Editorial, June 2026

Dear members,

Sometimes an entire year of the club’s activities can be condensed into just two days. At the start of June, I travelled to Bièvres for the first time – that town south of Paris where Europe’s largest photography fair takes place once a year. Walter Jekat and Dr Stephan Baedeker were by my side, and together we immersed ourselves in a hive of activity – a jumble of stalls, voices and equipment – that quickly taught us to marvel all over again.

Yet it was not the cameras and photographic memorabilia that left the strongest impression on me, however tempting the displays might have been. It was the people. Bièvres was teeming with every language under the sun and, for a short weekend, was truly the epicentre of the camera collectors’ world. We strengthened our collaboration with our French partner club, Club Niépce-Lumière, who welcomed us with heart-warming hospitality, whilst also meeting up again with a number of German club members, dealers and familiar faces. A collectors’ fair is, after all, far more than just a marketplace. It is a meeting place where collectors from across national borders recognise one another for what they are: custodians of a shared history.

I would like to highlight one of these encounters in particular. We have been in close contact for some time now with Jim McKeown, who has been a member of our club for many years and whose *McKeown’s Camera Encyclopedia* has accompanied generations of collectors. In Bièvres, we have now taken the next step. Club Daguerre will host and operate his vastly expanded life’s work online in future, whilst editorial and commercial responsibility remains with him, and access will be free for our members. I ask for your patience, as this is a long-term project; there will be nothing to see before 2027. A work of this significance deserves care rather than haste.

Just how much Bièvres had moved us became clear a few days later at our second virtual get-together, which was attended by nineteen participants. We recounted the trip, showed photos and videos, and felt just how infectious the enthusiasm was. Such connections bring us together even when the distances are too great for a face-to-face meeting.

So I am already looking ahead. At the end of August, we will meet in Mannheim for our annual gathering, and my anticipation of it has only grown since Bièvres. For what happened there on a grand scale – the reunions and the chance to get to know one another – is what I hope for within our own circle too, as part of the Zeiss-Ikon anniversary celebrations that are with us this year. And one thing is already certain: next year, we’ll be back in Bièvres. I’m even toying with the idea of organising a trip there together with some German clubs we’re friends with, travelling together by TGV/ICE from the Rhine-Main area. If you’re interested, I’d be delighted to hear from you at [email protected].

Bièvres has shown me once again where this club draws its strength from. Not from the historical equipment, books and photos – however much we love them – but from the people who gather around them. Old friends, new friends, and the anticipation of seeing them all again soon.

Yours,
Klaus Herrmann
Chairman of Club Daguerre e.V.