The Executive Board is planning for 2026 - your opinion counts!
Virtual regional meetings via video - your opinion is asked for in our survey until 15 November.
A contribution from Thomas Wunschel, Managing Director of Club Daguerre e.V.
In times when more and more club activities are shifting to the digital space, I personally feel a growing need for real encounters. For conversations in which we look each other in the eye, laugh together, talk shop or simply marvel quietly at a rare camera. This human side of club life is particularly close to my heart - and it is precisely this that should once again take centre stage in the planning for 2026.
The Board is currently working hard on new ideas for the coming year. Following the successful workshops and events of the last two years, we would like to further expand the programme: more in-depth topics, more exchange, more opportunities to learn from each other. At the same time, we don't want to exclude anyone - which is why we are thinking about virtual regional meetings via video call to enable members without a local group or with limited mobility to participate.
Virtual regional meetings - gathering connects, even at a distance
Many of our members live far apart and some are no longer as mobile as they used to be. At the same time, we want to strengthen personal dialogue and keep the network within the club alive.
Our idea: virtual regional meetings via Google Meet or Zoom - simply from your smartphone, tablet or computer, Wi-Fi is all you need. The technical hurdle is deliberately kept low: no software installation required, just click on a link.
What would be possible?
- Thematic discussion groups: Specialised discussions about specific camera types, manufacturers or eras
- Object viewings via webcam: members show their latest acquisitions or special pieces from their collection
- Specialised short lectures: 20-30 minutes input on a topic, followed by an open discussion
- Informal get-togethers: simply chatting with like-minded people over coffee or tea
- Regional or thematic groups: North, South, East, West meetings or by collecting area
The decisive difference to purely informational meetings: Virtual meetings thrive on your active participation - it's about dialogue, not frontal lectures. You can hold your camera up to the webcam, ask questions, tell stories and socialise.
We are aware of the limitations: a virtual meeting can never replace the experience of actually holding a camera in your hand, feeling the weight, pressing the shutter release, hearing the click of the shutter. But it can build bridges - between regions, between physical meetings, between members who would otherwise never meet.
The survey runs until 15 November 2025 and only takes a few minutes.