Camera Clubs and the Coney Island School of Photography and Art
B&H Photography Podcast
Jill Waterman
4.8 • 2.1K Ratings
🗓️ 18 April 2019
⏱️ 45 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The first amateur photographic entity in the United States was the Amateur Photographic Exchange Club, New York City, which existed from 1861–1863. The oldest continuously extant camera club in the United States founded, at least in part, by amateurs is the Photographic Society of Philadelphia, founded in 1862.
On today's episode of the B&H Photography Podcast we will talk about camera clubs and, specifically, the Coney Island School of Photography and Art, which, despite its pedagogic nomenclature, is an amateur camera club that takes the famed oceanfront community and amusement park in Brooklyn, New York, as its subject. For anyone who is familiar with Coney Island, it should be clear that photographing at this beach is less about sunsets and flamingoes and more about "polar bears," freak shows, and street photography along the beach.
We welcome three members of this camera club, Orlando Mendez, A.J. Bernstein, and Norman Blake, to discuss their personal photographic journeys, the benefits of having cohorts with whom to work and compare notes and, of course, the changing face of Coney Island itself. We also take time to talk about gear, technique, the different ways in which photographers will see the same subject, and the simple joy that photography can bring to our lives. Join us for this entertaining episode.
Guests: A.J. Bernstein, Norman Blake, and Orlando Mendez
Photograph © Norman Blake
For more photos and information on gear discussed in this episode click here
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | You're listening to the B&H Photography Podcast. |
| 0:04.0 | For over 40 years, B&H has been the professional source for photography, video, audio, and more. |
| 0:09.6 | For your favorite gear, news, and reviews, visit us at bnh.com or download the B&H app to |
| 0:15.4 | your iPhone or Android device. |
| 0:17.6 | Now here's your host, Alan White. |
| 0:19.8 | Greetings and welcome to the B&H Photography Podcast. |
| 0:22.8 | The first photography club in the United States, the Photographic Society of Philadelphia, |
| 0:27.2 | was founded in 1862, barely four decades after Joseph Nipsig captured the first photographs |
| 0:33.8 | in 1826 or 1827, depending on who you ask. |
| 0:38.7 | By the time Kodak introduced their first Brownie camera in 1888, there were fewer than 10 |
| 0:43.8 | camera or photography clubs in the entire US. |
| 0:47.6 | Today, photography clubs can be found all over the world, some big and some small. |
| 0:52.4 | Today's guests, Orlando Mendes, Norman Blake and AJ Bernstein, are members of the Coney |
| 0:58.0 | Island School of Photography and Art, a loose knit group of photo enthusiasts, who share |
| 1:03.1 | a love of a place called Coney Island. |
| 1:05.7 | Before I start, I want to read a statement that appeared on the opening page of the then |
| 1:10.0 | new Coney Island School of Photography and Art Facebook group page. |
| 1:14.8 | Here goes. |
| 1:16.0 | This page was inspired by James Major Prince, the Prince of Coney Island, on Saturday, |
| 1:20.6 | November 7, 2015, during the opening reception of the Sodom by the Sea Art Exhibition. |
| 1:27.3 | We wanted to create and build a place for those of you that are photography's and or |
| 1:31.5 | artists to come and share your work and your images. |
... |
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