Royal Photographic Society

J H Foto

J H Foto

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Jeff
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Any members on here ?
 
Yes I am. I have an ARPS in nature and I'm on my regional committee.
 
Used to be... not worth the money unless you merely want it to say "I'm ARPS" or whatever. It can add credibility to public facing businesses like weddings or social portraiture though.. So whether it's worth it depends on why you want it really. In answer to the question though.. yeah, there are loads on here.


You thinking of it? There was a long thread about someone's journey to LRPS on here not long ago.. can't find it now. May be worth a read.
 
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Yes, ARPS, hopefully will become FRPS this year. Having the letters has maybe given me added credibility when speaking at camera clubs, but probably don't mean a great deal outside of that environment. However, the journey to the distinctions has really made me up my game in terms of quality and presentation.
 
Yes...working on my 'A' - find it a great focus and way of pushing me along. Not sure why some people get wound up about it, (not aimed post above, by the way) but they have done here before now. Good luck.
 
Just remember that while you'll have to up your game to get the letters... it's fairly prescriptive, and the RPS are not very broad minded. Your work wil have to fit certain established criteria that many see as quite limiting. Not so much with FRPS but LRPS and ARPS can be. The only reason I paid up for a short while, was because I didn't have to submit a panel of work... having a degree I just pay them the fee and I automatically get ARPS, so I didn't have to jump through their hoops... I just didn't see what the benefit was though, so no longer bother.
 
For amateur photographers or those who can't / don't want to go down an academic route, it does allow for a progression which I found useful. If you already have a degree then it doesn't give you much really, as David suggests, other than another set of letters after your name, and these you have to pay an annual fee to retain (that is in line with other bodies though - I have to pay to keep using CEng after my name in a professional capacity).

I've seen some quite creative work on F panels, but a lot of the L and A work is standard camera club stuff (and I don't mean that in a derogatory way) albeit to a very good technical standard. By and large though it's somewhat different stylistically and subject wise to the kind of work done in colleges and universities. And there's nothing wrong with that as long as you manage your expectations.

If you are a camera club member there are also the PAGB distinctions which may be of interest. Don't know much about them as I'm not in a camera club anymore.
 
I also was a member for a number of years until I too realised that the fee gave me nothing I wanted or needed.

I tried to influence a change in what I thought was a very old fashioned establishment with custodians from the dark ages. They have a "special interest group" still called "Digital"! Speaks volumes to me.
 
I emailed them to ask about their AIS LRPS. Never got a reply.
 
st599 said:
I emailed them to ask about their AIS LRPS. Never got a reply.
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Try ringing the distinctions department in Bath - all the details are on the website; there are also downloads that might answer your questions . They have some very busy periods when they do the assessments so maybe that is why you haven't heard? They will also have a stand at the Photo show if you are going and that is a chance to talk to people face to face. Hope it goes well.
 
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Been a member up until this year but haven't renewed ... don't really get much from it and I don't find them very friendly/helpful/informative. I used to frequent their forum but it was hamstrung by constant bickering about how the site/membership/whole thing was run. Monthly Journal not really in my sphere of interest either.
 
I did have an LRPS but i also havent renewed for pretty much the reasons outlined above
 
I feel similar to Gramps - I don't think I get very much for my membership. There has been virtually no activity in my region in the years I've been a member and although I enjoy the magazine I don't think it's particularly relevant to working photographers. In fact I don't think it's an organisation for working photographers at all, I would say it focuses more on photography as a hobby and the history of photography. I sometimes get the vibe that some of their members almost have contempt for photographers who work within the social photography arena - particularly if we shoot digital which bizarrely still seems to be regarded in a slightly derogatory way. I once went on an outing with one of the special interest groups and whilst I met some really nice people I didn't feel that I fitted in - and one of them went so far as to tell me that.

Jeff, before joining any organisation it's worth thinking about what you want to get out of it and whether that particular organisation will suit you. There have been a number of threads on photographic bodies here on the forum and I think the general consensus is that they are all different, they serve slightly different customer bases, and in general you will only get out what you put in. If you are very much into landscapes and nature then the RPS might be a good one to try, but if you do mostly portraits and weddings then something like the BIPP or SWPP would do more for you.
 
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