About Us

The Silver Spring Camera Club is a diverse group of individuals passionately dedicated to the pursuit of photographic excellence. We believe the best method of understanding the art of photography is through education and sharing of ideas. For over 50 years SSCC has maintained a high standard of integrity and quality. Our reputation as the friendliest club in the metropolitan area is the basis of our success.

History

The Silver Spring Camera Club began in the fall of 1950 when about 50 people attended an open meeting for anyone interested in forming a Camera Club. The stated purpose of the Club was "to provide an opportunity for people with a mutual interest in photography to share their experiences and common knowledge." The charter membership was about 60. Eleven years later in 1971 the membership stood at 150, and new applicants were placed on a waiting list.

Over the years the Club had held its regular meetings in a camera store, various community center clubrooms, a recreation center, a high school, and several libraries. It usually had two meetings a month. Up until 1975, there were only two categories for the competitions: color slides and monochrome prints. In 1976, four print meetings included a color print competition. And by 1983, every print competition included color prints for both novice and advanced classes. The slide competitions have remained basically the same, except that the number of allowed slide entries was reduced from three to two in 1982 due to the large number of entries.

The original "workshops" consisted of short 15-minute presentations given by members at the beginning of each main meeting "to provide an exchange of information and first-hand experience on photographic techniques and materials." (The name was changed to "short-shorts" in 1970; and then to "mini-workshops.") In the mid-60s "study groups" met monthly, first for color slides and later for monochrome prints. These were joined by the New Directions Workshop in 1981, and a few years later by the Composition and Presentation Workshop. Also in the 80's, there was a View Camera Group, a Creative Workshop, and two one-year workshops on the Fine Print and Retouching. In the 90's, we added a workshop on Computer Imaging.

From the very beginning, the SSCC was a member of the Photographic Society of America (PSA). This provided an opportunity for members to exhibit their work in the Print and Slide Circuits in the U.S. and around the world. Through the years, SSCC has arranged exhibits of members' work in a variety of locations throughout the Washington, DC area. Club members have also participated in the competitions sponsored by Greater Washington Council of Camera Clubs and the Council of Maryland Camera Clubs.

The Club's newsletter, the Cable Release, began publication in October 1961 as a mimeographed newsletter with hand-drawn illustrations, which was mailed to members for 4¢. Later issues contained black-and-white photographs, and two 1979 issues feature front-page color Xerox reproductions from slides. The first mention of the use of a computer was by editor Art Drucker, who used his trusty Commodore from 1984 to 1987. Over the years, the Cable Release has provided club news, photo-related articles, and members' opinions on a variety of topics. The archive of past newsletters, which is in the care of our club historian, chronicles the history of a dynamic organization that, with the active input of its members, has been constantly evolving for more than half a century.

Membership

SSCC welcomes the membership of all those interested in photography regardless of skill level.

Current Yearly membership dues are:

$35 for individuals
$55 for married couples
$25 for students

Payment of dues should be made by check to “SSCC” and given or sent to the

Membership Form

Club Treasurer

c/o Silver Spring Camera Club

P.O. Box 2375

Wheaton, Md. 20902-0471

Meetings

The club meets from September thru May of each year, and holds its annual banquet in mid-June.

Monthly Slide, Print, and Education Meetings: Meetings are held the first, second, and third Thursdays of each month (with some exceptions - please check calendar first!) at the Marvin Memorial Methodist Church in Silver Spring. All meeting start at 7:30 p.m. last approximately 2 hours.

Map of 33 University Blvd E
Silver Spring, MD 20901-2437

Field Trips

One field trip is held every month on a Saturday in the middle of the month throughout the club year (September thru May). Most trips are sites in and around the Washington, DC area, although we occasionally visit locations in Baltimore, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Delaware. Field trip members usually meet and then depart from the Giant parking lot on Arlis Street in Takoma Park at about 9:30 a.m. Please contact Field Trip chairperson for more information. (See Calendar for dates and trip locations)

Competitions

SSCC provides many opportunities for photographic competition for its members throughout the year. These competitions help to improve members’ photographic skills by providing valuable feedback on their work from seasoned professional photographers, instructors, and gallery owners who serve as the competition judges. SSCC conducts two major types of competitions: one is the club’s monthly competition and one is an inter-club competition.

For the SSCC monthly competition, there are three categories: monochrome prints, color prints, and color slides. These competitions occur at most of the club’s two monthly meetings, and usually follow the guest speaker for that evening. The color slide competition is held on the first Thursday of the month, while the monochrome and color print competitions are held on the third Thursday of the month. Typically, the guest speaker for the evening will also serve as the judge for the competition. All members in good standing are eligible to enter the monthly competitions. Each category of competition (monochrome prints, color prints, and slides) has two classes: novice and advanced. When new members join the club, they are automatically assigned to the novice class. However, they may choose to enter the advanced class directly if they so choose. After members have accumulated the required competition points in the novice class, they will be promoted to the advanced class. The subjects for each monthly competition are determined by the SSCC Board and are announced in the Cable Release (the club’s newsletter) at the beginning of each club year. At each regular monthly meeting, a table is set up on which members can register their photos for the evening’s competition. Upon conclusion of the competition, all photos are returned to each participant.

For the Inter-Club competition, all members in SSCC compete on an individual basis against all other competitors in both SSCC and the other clubs. Up until just a few years ago, SSCC participated in inter-club competitions conducted by Greater Washington Council of Camera Clubs (GWCCC) and All Maryland Council of Camera Clubs (All Maryland). The number of area camera clubs competing in these two council competitions usually ran to a dozen or more. Unfortunately, declining interest and a lack of funds caused the councils to disband. To remedy this loss of extended competition opportunities for its club members, SSCC and two other area camera clubs—NIH and Bowie-Crofton—initiated a new inter-club competition in 2001. This new joint competition is conducted once a year, and each club takes its turn at hosting the event. The subject for this competition is “open” and each member can enter up to 3 photos for each category (slides, monochrome prints, and color prints). Unfortunately, no class distinction has been established as yet, so all photographers (novice or advanced) compete together.

The detail on the rules and awards for competition is described here. Want to see some of the competition winners?