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L Panels, A and F Panels, Stars and other distinctions…
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With all the heartfelt congratulations going around at the moment for our new L’s, just thought
I’d ask the question. Must one be a member of a recognised club to receive such honours? Or is
it open to individuals working on their own time without any club membership?I’m not a member of any club excepting this online one, and can’t see where I’d find the time
to be member at any stage in the near future.Rob.
Within the IPF ye have to be a club member to obtain any distinctions. Not sure about the other arganisations..! I’d say it happens that people join clubs, never attend and then apply for their distinctions..! A bit shite I think…!
Richie
Well I can’t speak for the IPF but I know that the British RPS don’t require you to apply through a club.
Perhaps someone could tell us how much it costs per year to hold membership of the IPF.
I personally am a little wary of distinctions. You have to pay every year to maintain your letters even if you have passed the “exam”. So it’s not like a university degree. It’s more like a club than a qualification. I don’t mean to put anyone here down, after all, going for a distinction gives focus and direction to your photography and if you gain an L,A etc then it is a real personal achievement.
But I’ve always felt that a standard can be demonstrated by showing your photography rather than showing letters after your name. It’s a little bit bit clubby to my liking.
Andy
What do you use a distinction for? Is it good for your health or looks well and improves the interior design of your living room? Being antisocial, joining a camera club is like marrying to me, I need very good reasons before I’d do it.
randomway wrote:
What do you use a distinction for? Is it good for your health or looks well and improves the interior design of your living room? Being antisocial, joining a camera club is like marrying to me, I need very good reasons before I’d do it.
:lol: :lol:
That’s just it. I’m the world’s biggest misanthrope, and the thought of sitting in a room full of
people once a week fills me with dread. I guess I’ll have to make some award up, present it to
myself (not yet of course; I’ve a long way to go), and think of some suitable acronym to place
after my name… :lol:Andy, I think the LIPF and the PAGB ‘distinctions’ are intended for Camera Club members, and it is a requirement to be an active member of a camera club. There is no annual fee.
There is an annual “fee” to retain your IPF distinction.
The club must be a member of the IPF and pays an annual membership and individuals with distinctions pay an amount to retain distinctions earned.
I had to fork out ?20 to retain my “L”.Shame on LIPF organisers for having an annual fee to retain it….. :oops: The PAGB body in UK does not have any recurring fee to retain what you have achieved.
Yes, indeed, there is an annual fee that all IPF distinction holders must pay to the IPF and yes indeed you have to be a member of a club affiliated to the IPF in order to apply for a distinction. When I was a member of East Cork Camera Group, they were not associated to the SACC or the IPF and this prevented me from applying for a distinction. Of course, not long after I left, they signed up to the SACC! That was after me badgering them for 2 years to do so.
You don’t need to be a member of any club to obtain an RPS distinction but you do need to have RPS membership in order to hold on to your distinction. You can submit a panel without being a member. If your submission is successful you must join the RPS before they will award you your distinction.
Similar conditions apply to the professional bodies such as the IPPA, MPA or SWPP. That’s pretty much par for the course with any professional organisation (I know this applies to the IEI (Institution of Engineers of Ireland) for example).
Swordie wrote:
There is an annual “fee” to retain your IPF distinction.
The club must be a member of the IPF and pays an annual membership and individuals with distinctions pay an amount to retain distinctions earned.
I had to fork out ?20 to retain my “L”.:shock: :shock: :shock: :shock: Thas a well kept secret then .. I haven’t heard that before now .. absoltuely shocking ?
As for why you want them .. I’m torn between two stools.. on the one side its a recognised measure of basic progress which is always good.. people ask the same question about why I post images online for critique .. its a similar answer? To guage a level of quality, progress and/ or improvements from people with an understanding of photography..
On the other side .. I’m not really all that bothered about doing it for the reasons Andy mentioned.. good photography should speak for itself .. plus the fact I was too lazy to bother :)
On the club side Rob .. Its qute good craic once you get into it :) but it took me a good 6 months to decide if the Club environment was for me ;)
L
LoGill wrote:
Thas a well kept secret then .. I haven’t heard that before now .. absoltuely shocking ?
It’s no secret – there’s a note at the end of the application form which states that “Note: There is an annual distinction’s holder fee payable to the Irish Photographic Federation to help fund the many activities of the organisation in promoting photography.”
Thorsten wrote:
Similar conditions apply to the professional bodies such as the IPPA, MPA or SWPP. That’s pretty much par for the course with any professional organisation (I know this applies to the IEI (Institution of Engineers of Ireland) for example).
No annual fees are charged by the IPPA or the MPA to retain your licenciateshp, Associate or Fellowship. Dont know about SWIPP. I do believe that the SWIPP is a business as opposed to a body of members. Both IPPA and MPA are professional bodies owned by the members. You must be a member, and maintain your membership to hold and retain you L, A, F or C’s. This also is the rule that applies to have the special rates on your PL, PF and health insurance schemes but no seperate annual fees apply to your desegnations. Membership of the IPPA also gives you membership of the Federation of European Photographers (FEP).
Within our associations the desegnation is deemed to be a level of qualification within that particular organisation which is given and cannot be revoked unless you leave the body…..(my understanding …. even just looking at the rules now). If I had to pay an annual fee to keep the desegnation then is it not an honourary title rather than a qualification of skill ?
randomway wrote:
What do you use a distinction for?
If I ever do get one it’ll be framed and hung with pride … in the bathroom (edit:) where all awards should go. Anyone other veterans in IT here will understand my attitude towards certifications, etc.
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