Photowalks have been happening for years, but they got more organized in the last few years as advances in the digital camera made photography much easier for everyone.  One of those who helped popularize the movement is Jeff Revell, one of us Northern Virginia boys.  Mark and I have had the pleasure of attending many walks organized by Jeff.  You can find out more about him and read his blog here.  Scott Kelby went along with Jeff, a few years back, and started up this Worldwide Photowalk thing, and it has grown larger every year.  Of course, as with everything Scott, there is the NAPP connection.  And, to add a touch of charity, t-shirt sales (optional) help support the Springs of Hope Orphanage, in Kenya. You need to be in on this one.

Photowalks are free and open to anyone, with any camera.  Beginners and seasoned pros will be there.  I’ve seen 1950s press cameras, 35mm film SLRs, point-and-shoots, camera phones, and modern digital SLRs.  You’ll spend a couple of hours and 1-2 miles of walking with other photographers (each walk is limited to 50).  Everyone shoots whatever they find interesting.  Usually, the ending point is a restaurant where we all meet and look at photos that our walk group took.  

As we’ve discussed in previous discussions of our personal photowalks, the goal is to get out and shoot things that you might not otherwise go after.  This is an excellent time to photograph things that challenge you.  If you need some help, you’ll have 50 friends there for advice.  You can shoot great shots that everyone likes, or be happy with your vision of something different.

So, sign up today, and mark your calendar.  You’ll have a great time; make some new photo connections;  and create some new photographs.  How can you go wrong?

In March (23-26), it’s time, once again, to wander down to Orlando for Photoshop World – an entire week of photography and post-processing fun.  There are two conventions every year.  The east coast is in the spring and usually rotates between Orlando and Boston.  The west coast version happens in the fall in Las Vegas.  The exhibition floor will be packed with great deals and new products.  The classrooms will be filled with lots of photography-related education.  There are several must-attend parties and discussions that occur throughout the week.  Yup, a regular photo-geek fest.  Here’s the link, so you can register now.

On the 23rd, we will be spending the day in a pre-con session with Joe McNally and Moose Peterson.  We’ve raved about Joe before.  He is an incredible photographer.  Moose is an extremely talented wildlife and landscape photographer.  This will be the highlight of the week for me.  Hope to see you in Orlando.

On a personal note, the post office delivered several of copies of The Guardian, newsletter for St. Mary’s Home for Disabled Children.  In October, I photographed their annual fund-raiser fun run in Virginia Beach and wrote a blog about it.  They used two of the pictures in their newsletter and gave me the photo credit for the pictures.  It’s always nice to start the year with a new photo credit.  You can support them by sending a donation here.  It only takes a few minutes to help them with their work.  If you haven’t given to a deserving community group yet, this is a good one to recognize.  I hope you can give them a hand.  We’ve been talking about how to start the new year off properly, and this is just another good idea.

Here is one of the pictures from the run.

When was the last time you gave some time to a worthwhile cause?  Well, you should.  I could give you the standard line of how good this is for your soul/karma/community.  Or how you’ve got a great life in this great country, and everyone should give back something to show their gratitude.  I could chide you that I’m tired of hearing people talk about it “taking a village” or how they are “compassionate conservatives,” and it’s time to stop talking and start doing.  I could do that, but, believe me, you don’t want me to climb up on that soapbox.  After all, this is a photography blog.  OK, I hear you….  This is an ideal way to work on your photography and post-processing skills!  These organizations are always looking for help publicizing their work, and you can help them out while working on becoming a better photographer.  You can put yourself into challenging situations – outside of the sterile studio – and you’ll make lots of new contacts.

Kathy, one of my long-time friends and a fellow blogger (read her at Reinventing a Bloomer), called me up late last week.  She works for St. Mary’s Home for Disabled Children, in Norfolk, Va.  St. Mary’s cares for children who have severe disabilities as a result of birth disorders, traumatic accidents, illness or child abuse. They provide clinical, educational, recreational and support services with a gentle touch.  They were getting ready for their 21^st annual 5K run/walk fundraiser, and a last minute issue took away their photographer.  Could I help out?  Well, I’m a sucker for children, so I signed up.  So, today we are photographing a running event, so let’s talk about what you want to do in order to properly document it.

Think about the important parts of a race to create your shot list.  You’ll need some pre-race shots to set the scene.  Teams are always happy to get their photos taken.  Here is Team Hoyt getting ready to push the carts.

You always have some people who get into the spirit in strange ways – we had an astronaut on skates.  Lots of friends meeting again, before the race.  Don’t forget to take a couple of scene-setting shots, too.

As the race gets ready to begin, you want to catch the crowd, and they’re off!

Before, during, and after the race, take the time to concentrate on individual runners.  They always love to see their pictures.  This is always my favorite part.

The winner crossing the tape is a mandatory shot.  This was a fun run, so we didn’t have a tape, and the finish line was around a corner, so I concentrated on the runners as they neared the finish.

For more information about St. Mary’s Home for Disabled Children, go to http://www.saintmaryshome.org/.  Their donation page is at https://secure.acceptiva.com/?cst=db0cfd.

Throughout these photos, you’ll see Team Hoyt Virginia Beach folks.  They are another good group with a mission to bring awareness that the disabled can be integrated into the most challenging able bodied activities. They donated $10,000 to St. Mary’s cause. You can find out more about them at http://www.teamhoytvb.com/.  They are still setting up their website, but they have contact information up.

Have fun and give back to your community.  Go help a charity continue to do good things for those in our country with more life challenges than you.