An earlier article on the subject of Digital projection referred to the projection of digital images as “an experiment”. Now, a couple of years later the projection of digital images via a digital projector, purchased with the help of a lottery grant and the local council, has become a normal club event. Even the news by Eastman Kodak in 2005 that for the first time digital sales had passed film sales is no longer considered “news” but an inevitable trend.
Since the Horndean camera club first started to use digital images in competitive club competitions, a substantial range of images has been projected with the aid of our projector and projection PC software written by one of our members which helps us manage the new trend. Now, facing the 2007/2008 club year, we have an established league event that is very popular and entertaining (and yet another strain on judges!). The software has been extended and has now reached version 3 and is being made available to other camera clubs – see the Southern Photographic Federation’s May 2007 newsletter in their web site www.southphotographicfed.org.uk
The digital trend has had its downside too with a drop in the number of film slides offered for competition events – a trend deplored by many but accompanied by an even newer trend that helps film stay alive and helps clubs compete in external competitions: film slides created from digital files! The ethics of digital manipulation against the “pure” film slide is yet another area where digital growth is pushing the boundaries of photography and, leaving aside the question of “right” or “wrong”, is contributing to a growth in club membership with Horndean Camera Club’s membership now over 50 as we enter our 51st year as a club!
