First Austin Photo Walkers Meet-up

Last Sunday I joined the Austin Photo Walkers for their monthly meet-up for the first time. I wasn’t sure what to expect from it, and while it was daunting, it was a really great experience.

See, I’ve spent the past few years being a solo photographer. I like going out by myself and taking photos, trying not to be noticed. It really is an introvert sport. So joining a group of people to take photos was a little strange to me - also, joining any group of people for anything where I don’t know anyone is very stressful because, well, introvert.

But ultimately I had a good time, met some good people, and had nice conversations about the styles of street photography, the way people edit and some tips on my own editing styles.

It was strange to have a group of about 50 people all walking the same street, taking photos of the essentially the same things. But it was also interesting to see what other people were seeing and what things I missed. Some photographers were doing portraits of one another, some went a little solo away from the group, and some hunted in packs.

It was nice to feel a part of a community. That’s something I haven’t really felt in my photography journey yet. I have friends who enjoy taking photos, and some friends who are professional wedding and portrait photographers. But I wouldn’t consider that a community - we don’t overlap much in the Vinn diagram of photographic styles and desires. And while there was still some disconnect within this group (so many film photographers), it felt like we were all after the same thing.

And there were people from all stages of the journey - kids just starting out and trying to find their eye up to people who had studios and sold their work. It felt like an opportunity to reflect on where I’ve been and forecast where I want to go. No one had the pretentiousness of a professional photographer who felt they had all the answers.

Afterwards, everyone met up a dive bar near where we started. I unfortunately skipped that (sorry everyone) because my social battery was pretty drained and I was getting hungry.

But I’m going to continue to attend the meet-ups, and hopefully stay the whole time.

There’s also a discord channel that’s been set up, which, to anyone who’s thinking about starting a photo walkers group in their community, I highly recommend this. It allows for different boards to discuss different topics, and I find myself checking it almost more often than I check Instagram now. Having that sense of community even when we’re not all out taking photos is great. And it’s been a great place for me to share my photos and get feedback from other photographers and what I could do different - namely, cool my photos a little.

There’s also a guy with a 3D printer who, I think, is going to print me a disposable camera lens. So that’s really cool, and if that comes to fruition, I’ll definitely be talking about that.

With this newfound desire to be a part of a community, I’ve been reaching out to other photographers in areas that I’ll be traveling to soon, namely Chicago, to see if they’d like to do a meet-up. The confidence going out with other people and getting positive feedback brings is a wonderful thing. It makes me feel like a real photographer, and not just someone who enjoys taking photos.

That’s all I’ve got for this post. Just a reflection on the importance of community, even if you feel like street photography should be a solo activity. Because I can assure you, it doesn’t have to be. Sure, you’re going to scare most the subjects away, because there aren’t a lot of people who see a mob of camera-carrying creators walking at them and don’t turn down a side street, but you find other things to photograph. And, there’s still the crazy people who stop and ask what the hell is going on, and those people usually want their photo taken. And that’s pretty cool too.

Stephen