We’re exploring an idea that we think could dramatically strengthen our community, and we want your feedback before we take any further steps: Regional Chapters! Many of you might remember the old regional categories on NPN (like “Rocky Mountain” or “Pacific Northwest”). Those forums fostered some great connections, and we’re thinking about how to bring that spirit back – but even better! We’ve learned a lot, and we’re considering a fresh, member-driven approach, building on the best of the past. But before we do anything, we want to hear from you!
Our goal is to foster even deeper connections within our network of nature photographers. We imagine building vibrant, local communities, but we need your help to determine if this is the right direction. Imagine connecting with fellow NPN members right in your area – sharing favorite local spots, organizing meetups, collaborating on projects, or even just having a coffee and talking photography! This is the potential we see, but it all depends on your input.
Here are some initial thoughts on how this might look. These are just ideas, not a set plan:
Member-Led: This is a core concept. We envision members volunteering to lead chapters. You would define the region, set the tone, and help build the community. It’s about your vision, not a top-down structure. What do you think of this approach?
Flexible & Organic: We’re thinking of regions defined by you, based on shared photographic interests. Examples could be “Colorado Front Range Landscape Photographers,” “Yellowstone Wildlife Photographers,” “Black Forest Macro Photographers,” or “New Zealand South Island Bird Photographers” – but these are just examples to spark discussion. What kind of regional groups would you find most valuable?
Online & In-Person: We’re considering dedicated spaces on NPN for discussions, sharing photos (non-critique spaces!), and planning events. The long-term goal could be real-world meetups. Is this something you’d be interested in?
Easy Virtual Meetups: We’re exploring tools to facilitate virtual meetups (like integrated Zoom calls). Would this be useful for your region?
More Structure and Support: We’re committed to providing support to these chapters. What kind of support would be most helpful?
This entire concept is in the brainstorming phase. Your feedback is crucial! We want to hear from you:
Does this idea excite you? What possibilities do you see? What memories do you have of the good things from the old regional forums?
Would you be interested in leading a chapter in your area? Even if you’re just thinking about it, let us know!
What challenges do you foresee? How can we make this successful and sustainable?
What kind of support would you need from NPN to make this work?
What are we not thinking of? What other ideas do you have?
We believe that by working together, we can potentially create a network of thriving local communities that enhance the NPN experience. But this is entirely dependent on your input and participation.
Please share your thoughts, ideas, concerns, and expressions of interest by replying to this. We’re eager to hear your perspective!
Sounds like a great idea David. Being part of a local photography group where I live in central Oregon, I have seen where meeting and connecting with other like minded photographer nearby can be very inspiring. Many of us nature photographers like to go it alone, but this would encourage some camaraderie when we are out and about. Combining real world activities with online connections could be a winning combination. Looking forward to seeing what other members of NPN feel about this.
This is a great idea. From my experience in another photo community, I have always enjoyed the regional/local meet ups with other photographers from the community. They were organized on a much more informal basis which is probably one reason they have fallen off in recent years. So having a small group leading each area is good idea to keep it on the fore front.
I think this is a great idea!! Don’t have any good ideas (not even any bad ones at this early stage) but I’ll watch this space! My area would be something like greater San Francisco Bay Area or Central CA.
Dear David, this is an intersting idea. Just a few thoughts:
• One of the great things about the image critique at NPN is the collective focus on individual images, meaning that contributes from across the globe can join a communal debate about specific images. I wonder if Regional Chapters would dissolve that communal focus?
• If such chapters were introduced, one may ask about their status: Should they be cut off from the communal debate? Replace them? Duplicate them? If such chapters were introduced, I think it would be great with some sort of feedback mechanism, so that the activities in the Regional Chapters were channeled back into the communal debate.
• Although geographical location is important in many of the images on NPN, I tend to think that aesthetic quality is even more important to many debates on NPN Image Critique. To me, aesthetic quality crosses geographical boundaries, and I often feel enriched by being introduced to locations that are far beyond my personal reach.
• Regions differ in volume and density with regard to photographers. If one looks at the Users Maps, this is fairly clear. Regional Chapters may work well in regions with a high volume and density of photographers, but in other regions such chapters may be too thinly populated to sustain a vibrant discussion. That would decrease the value of NPN to many belonging to the last group.
• I fully agree that it is good to connect with local photographers, but the Users Map is also helpful in that respect, and I suspect that many of us have checked the map in order to find other local photographers and possibly reached out. An alternative to Regional Chapters could be to encourage more members to fill in their data in the Users Map.
Anyway, thanks for your effort to develop NPN, already a great forum, into an even better forum!
Thank you so much for your thoughtful and insightful feedback on the Regional Chapters idea! You’ve raised some important points that we’re taking very seriously as we continue to develop this concept.
Here’s how we’re thinking of addressing your concerns:
Preserving the Global Critique Focus: You’re absolutely right that the global, collective focus on image critique is one of NPN’s greatest strengths. To be absolutely clear: Regional Chapters are not intended to replace, duplicate, or interfere with the critique process in any way. They will be completely separate spaces focused on social connection, sharing local knowledge, and organizing meetups. Importantly, while members can share photos within these regional groups, it will be for inspiration and discussion, not for formal critique. We’ll make this distinction abundantly clear in all communications and guidelines.
Relationship to Main Forums: The Regional Chapters would be complementary to the existing forums, serving a different purpose. They are designed for connection and local inspiration, not evaluation.
Aesthetic Quality vs. Location: We agree that aesthetic quality transcends geographical boundaries. The main critique forums will remain the primary place for discussing and learning about aesthetics from a diverse, global perspective. Regional chapters offer a different kind of connection, based on shared location and the practicalities of photography in that area. The sharing of photos within the chapters is intended to foster this local connection and spark ideas.
Uneven Photographer Distribution: This is a valid concern. We’re emphasizing member-defined regions, allowing for flexibility. Instead of many small, inactive groups, it might make more sense to have a broader group like “Scandinavian Nature Photographers” (as an example relevant to you in Denmark), encompassing a larger area to ensure sufficient activity. We’ll also explore ways for members in less populated areas to connect.
User Map Enhancement: You’re right, the User Map is a valuable tool, and we’ll definitely encourage its use! We see Regional Chapters as a more active way to build community, going beyond the passive nature of a map listing. The ability to share photos and discuss local opportunities adds another layer of connection.
We truly appreciate your input. It’s helping us shape this initiative to be as beneficial as possible for all NPN members. This is still very much a brainstorming process, and your feedback is invaluable.
This sounds like an interesting idea to explore! I just had an informal meetup with @James_Shoemaker, because of a post here that led us to figure out we’d be in Death Valley at the same time. Previously, I met @Diane_Miller through NPN because we live nearby. Personal meetups I think would GREATLY benefit our community of nature photographers.
Regional Chapters:
@Leo_Catana brings up a good point that we would not want to see the “Image Critiques” category fractured by “Regional Groups”. I think @David_Kingham specified this by saying “non-critique” spaces for regional group photo postings. I could see the need to limit the regional spaces to discussion only. I can imagine an image posting in a regional space creep towards feedback and then critique’ishness. Just a thought, there may be other instances where photo posting would work without taking away from the current image critique space.
With that said, I would be in favor of regional chapters because at least for me there are other NPN members within an hour or two of where I live.
Location Meetups:
Another idea that could work for everyone including those who maybe don’t live somewhere where a regional chapter would work for them (no nearby members come to mind) is to have informal location meetups. An example would be if I’m planning a trip to Oregon Coast or Death Valley, I would post on the NPN “Meetups” space: “Death Valley 2027 NPN Meet Up”. As in my case this year, other members were planning the same trip at the same time. This ended up being a great opportunity to put an image to a camera and face if you will, and have fun hanging out and shooting with another NPN member, whom I would not otherwise get to know through a “Regional Chapter”.
Just brainstorming here…Thanks for bringing this up David, I think there is a lot of potential for this idea!
Now this topic has got me thinking…I’m brainstorming meet-up ideas and wondering how many NPN members have a camper, trailer, 5th wheel, or motorhome that they use to travel to photography locations? This might be of interest for both Regional NPN groups as well as those that don’t have or fit into a Regional group.
If so would you be interested in meeting other NPN members at a photography location for a few days, hanging out and doing some photography?
If you don’t own a camper/RV, what about staying in a nearby motel?
Not a formal workshop but more in the spirit of an RV Rally - “RV rallies are organized events where RV enthusiasts gather to share tips, stories, and enjoy camaraderie.” Substitute “RV” with nature photography. There are any number of locations where this would work since all of the State/National Parks have campgrounds/RV parks in and just outside of their boundaries.
Love the idea David. The two things I really miss about the old PNW group were the occasional group photography events and the sharing of current conditions.
We only had group events several times, but they were a great way to connect in person (something I believe is lost in this digital age). I built some lasting friendships from those meetups.
I also really enjoyed the ability to share locations current conditions. If someone had been out shooting a wildflower area, for example, they could update the regional forum about what they found. This was useful if traveling too, because you could pop into a different regional forum to get the opinion of locals.
Back in the days when there was a Pacific Northwest regional group this is exactly what we did, and the group was split about in half between staying in a motel vs. camping.
I would love to have in person meet-ups. I’m having to leave my beloved Oregon and move to NW Washington. I don’t know anyone, nor do I know the area and what photo ops are there.
I think this is a great idea. I am in contact with people I met here, since they are all from the US, I probably will not see them anytime soon though. If there are any members in the Lower Rhine area of Germany or from the Netherlands, I’d be more than happy to lead a chapter.
I would like to support Leo’s thoughts about exploiting the Regional Map. Certainly to get folks to plug themselves into the map, Also would be very helpful to select a number of members on the map and send them an NPN email.
I’m in favor of this - it would be great to meet people in person. I’m in Northern CO about an hour from Denver. If meetings were in Denver, I’d be a lot less likely to do in-person often.
Hi David,
I like the idea of regionals. Perhaps start with one known place to the leader and meet quarterly to capture images (or one image) in each of the four seasons. And each quarter publish each photographer’s selected photo for the same type of critique selections.
Best— Tom
I think the concept has potential. I believe it would take someone with adequate time and leadership ability to run each location. (I do not fit that category). I am not sure you ned to limit images exhibited in a region only to that region, as many of us like to wander outside our home turf. I would enjoy integrated Zoom calls where we could post images and receive real time analysis and suggestions. Regional in-person gatherings would serve a similar purpose. Clearly the latter would require additional costs so it might be reasonable to start with Zoom and see how successful that is.
At some point, we may be heading to NW Washington e as well. We love Gig Harbor and surrounding areas. Looks like lots of photo ops in the area and surrounding areas.
I don’t know how far NW you’re talking about, @Chris_Baird, and I don’t get up there very often any more, but if it’s north of Everett, the Skagit Valley, North Cascades and San Juan Islands will give you enormous photo opportunities up there.
I know the old regional groups were focused on certain zones or areas, but they weren’t exclusive at all of those who m ay wish to join up with one of the groups if they happen to be traveling through or to that area. It would be great to post any and all group meetups in the general notices somehow, and well enough in advance so people might even be able to plan a trip??? On the other hand, I wouldn’t want to destroy spontaneity or close personal contacts/small groups if that is desirable. So I waffle like a breakfast restaurant in the Southern USA. . . .
David, you can count me in to lead a regional group.
Our old regional groups had separate galleries, which in retrospect diluted contributions to the main galleries. I would NOT have separate galleries again, but certainly informational pages for each group including contact info, upcoming meets, etc. A separate discussion forum on each of these pages could be useful as long as it was focused on organizng group activity, sharing of locations, etc.
Ultimately this is an effective way to grow membership and participation on NPN, so I think re-establishing regional groups is a great idea.
