Thank you for your interest in the Science Museum Camera Club (SMCC)

We are a group of photographers of all levels, from beginner to advanced, coming together to share experiences, know-how, and learning. The Club has many activities providing a range of venues for improving your photography. The bigger opportunity is to join in group discussions or participate in group outings, as you will find that fellow members are always ready to help.

More specifics for club activities are listed in the club newsletter, the “Format” published several times during the season. in meeting handouts or email announcements.

Overview of activities

Meetings: SMCC meetings start in September and end in May. Meetings are semi-monthly on the first and third Wednesday of the month, starting at 6:30 PM to give us time to snack, socialize, and talk shop. At 7:00 PM we go into the Auditorium for our program or competition. At times, we can also hold special educational meetings during the summer or during the meeting year.

Competition Night is the 1st Wednesday of the month. This is a chance to have a judge give feedback on your Projected Images or Prints. For most of us, this is the hardest thing to do because we hate to hear anything but good comments. Once you get past that, competition is the best possible way to learn.

Why do we call this competition? Judges assign scores to our images, which are collected over the year. There are four levels for "Competitions”: Bronze is where we all start out; Silver and Gold are intermediate and Diamond is the top level.

The top point earners in each level are recognized at our annual year-end banquet.

Our Competitions consist of:

Projected Image General Competition: 2 projected images (digital photo files)

Projected Image Creative Competition: 1 Projected Image (digital photo files)

Color Print Competition: 2 Color Prints

Monochrome Print Competition: 2 Monochrome Prints

It is your choice to enter competitions. We have competition rules specific to each competition. You will get a copy of the rules when you join.

Depending on the number of competitions that are held during the year, we will have a pre-determined number of entries that must be entered to be counted toward the year-end standings.

We have a Novice program for new members. We will assign an experienced member to help you improve your photography and editing skills. The mentor will also help you to decide what and when to enter competitions. The mentor will accompany you on Club outings to help you as well.

If you join mid-year and start competing later in the year, you can enter one extra digital image and one extra print each competition night until you have caught up to the minimum entry number in Projected Image and Print competition. The appropriate competition chair must approve these additional entries.

Program Night is the 3rd Wednesday of the month. This program can be educational, an outside speaker, or a club activity. This night includes time to socialize as the talk will end early enough to allow for a little camaraderie and talk “shop.”

The SMCC website is a source for information about the club, photographic topics, and a place where members can have their own gallery. Paid-up members get a password for the website and instructions for login. Please log into the site and explore it. Look at pictures in other member's galleries. Telling someone you liked a picture they posted is a great way to introduce yourself and start a dialog at the meeting. You can download help files for how to do things, but some members will assist if you have difficulty. We have a “Critique Forum” where members can upload images and have feedback from some of our experienced members.

SMCC special competitions: The E. Thomas Smith is an annual nature competition. The Dorothy Ralph Photo Essays are shown at the annual banquet. There is a year-end "Projected Image of the Year" and "Print of the Year" at the last meeting before the banquet.

Group Outings are wonderful ways to get out and shoot with fellow photographers.

The Buffalo FORMAT is published several times each year. You will find the meeting schedule, general articles, and information from club members. This is a great way to share ideas and techniques with the club. Mary Lou Frost is the editor.

The Annual Banquet is our annual get-together where members bring family and guests to share in a recap of the year's competitions with awards, Ralph Dorothy essays, and to enjoy the camaraderie. This is always held on the 3rd Wednesday of May.

SMCC is an all-volunteer organization that has operated at the Science Museum since 1939. There are many tasks that we need volunteers to keep our club going. Please ask if you are interested in doing something.

Note that there is specific information available explaining the requirements for all competitions. Club Outings and special events get announced as they come up.

SMCC Announcements are also emailed from the SMCC website before every meeting and as things come up throughout the month.

Please ask anyone for assistance. If they do not know the answer, they can point you to someone who can help.

If you have questions, don't hesitate to get in touch with Sharon at:

Sharon Dentice, President SMCC
sdentice@me.com

To Join our club, please fill out the membership form and mail it to the address on the form or bring it to one of our meetings

SMCC Membership Form.pdf

SMCC Membership Existing Member Form

SMCC MEMBER HANDBOOK rev 08-2023.pdf


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