On My Mind … - Column

PSA Journal, July, 2000 by Carol-Ann Rogus

It is with tremendous excitement that I write my first On My Mind column! Now I can only hope that fellow members will read it and hopefully take away something they will make their own.

What Your PR Team Has Been Doing

First, let me introduce that team--names many will recognize because these people have been so active in PSA, contributing their time and efforts in this and other areas over the years. In alphabetical order: Sil Horwitz, FPSA is our Webmaster and Chairman of the Computer Network Committee; Tony Patti, FPSA chairs Historical Research; and Joseph J. Zaia, APSA is PR Chairman. Quoting the Master Operations Manual, our joint mission is " ... promoting the Society through various media to increase public awareness of PSA, maintain a favorable public image of the Society, and promote membership growth." Basically this means communications, both outside and within.

In the first meeting of the current Board of Directors in Toronto, President Al Sieg, FPSA, EPSA made the PSA website the top priority for Public Relations. Indeed, as the popularity of the Internet grows and the number of people cruising the web increases in seemingly geometric progression, it is a vital means of communicating with thousands of photographers, both members and prospective members alike.

If you've been checking in (www.psa-photo.org), you have noticed all the changes and new features on the site. Growth really started when Webmaster Sil found and converted to a new carrier last November, not only saving money, but also largely increasing our capacity and capability. With expanded space, progressively more images are going up from a variety of sources all over PSA, including selections from our EPSA/PPSA honorees. Expanded coverage includes all aspects of the Society: who we are, what we do, and how we are organized.

Among other areas of information, you can find news about chapters, their chairmen, where they are located, and the events they schedule; Region Directors, the areas they cover, and how to reach them; your Board of Directors, including their responsibilities, mug shots, and e-mail addresses; a description of each of our divisions, what they offer, how they are set up, who the officers are and how to reach them. Those with Internet access can become a member of PSA using our "secure" enrollment page, learn the latest about the upcoming Albuquerque conference, read about the PSA Journal including a current listing of articles and reprints, purchase items from our boutique, and identify (and in some cases link to) member camera clubs and councils/ federations throughout the world.

We are also planning a variety of other offerings, tentatively to include: a Members Only section with special features including an up-to-date membership roster and a secure page for membership renewal, searchable data bases for member clubs and past Journal articles, and, because communications is everything, a Message Board for on-line questions and answers--about photography in general and PSA in particular. Already having lots in the works, we are still open to more ideas for the website. Feel free to mail (e- or the "snail" variety) those suggestions to me.

Our work is not limited to the website. Recognizing the importance of communications, we have also added a new feature in the PSA Journal. The Answer Box is intended to explain aspects about the Society that members do not understand. Launched in the April issue, the column is used to answer questions submitted by members about PSA terminology, services offered, procedures followed. Your Board of Directors hopes that you will avail yourself of this forum for those "I wonder why ..." questions you might have. We are also exploring other media where we might inform the public about the Society; again, if you have any ideas, please share them with me.

Make Your PSA Affiliation a Success

There is a fundamental truth we all have encountered repeatedly: Life is what we make of it. This can be applied to every imaginable aspect of our existence, even PSA membership. What we take away has everything to do with what we put into it. Our personal enjoyment of our membership increases in direct ratio (or better) with our involvement. Similarly, the success of PSA as a whole depends totally on the input and efforts of its members.

There are hundreds of ways to be involved: Many derive great satisfaction from exhibiting their work beyond camera club and council by participating in the PSA salons. Not interested? Being an almost exclusively volunteer organization, there are literally hundreds of tasks, large and small, needing to be done--at clubs, councils, and chapters on a local level; for our divisions and the Society in general on an international level. Too busy? Maybe you'd like to partake of the many services the Society offers, including: slide and print study groups, commentators and other help set-ups, TOPS presentations and tutorials from headquarters or individual divisions, the annual conference (you are guaranteed to get hooked!) and chapter-sponsored events. Can't take the time?