Photography clubs in schools adapt to the New Normal

The pandemic could not freeze photography clubs in schools as students of Modern High School for Girls, La Martiniere for Boys, Lakshmipat Singhania Academy, Shri Shikshayatan School, and Loreto Day School, Bowbazar went virtual to pursue their passion.

COVID may have restricted outdoor activities such as photo walks and offline competitions, but the young photographers soon adapted to the New Normal and continued to go click click.

Photography clubs on campus

Modern High School for Girls runs a photography club, Focus, with 50 students and two teachers, Anuradha Sen and Mita Dey. The photography club of Lakshmipat Singhania Academy, Lensocraft, currently has 30 student members under the supervision of Shubham Paul, an instructor.

The Camera Club of La Martiniere for Boys has about 150 to 175 students, four core committee members, and three teachers who help with the coordination.

Rajasi Bhattacharya, an assistant teacher of Mass Media at Shri Shikshayatan School, trains a group of 40 students who are a part of their Film and Photography Club.

How to become a member

Each school has its own set of norms for joining the photography club. “I’ve been associated with this club since 2016. The students are selected based on an interview and are divided into two batches — junior (Class VI-VIII) and senior (Class IX-XII),” said Paul, who trains the students of Lakshmipat Singhania Academy.

Shri Shikshayatan School follows the same rule, while at Loreto Day School, Bowbazar, and La Martinière for Boys, interest matters.

What is buzzing in the club?

In the initial days of the lockdown, it was difficult for the club to function but it did not take long for the students to cope with the New Normal. “I have been a part of our photography club for the past four years. Before the onset of the pandemic, we used to have photo walks, leisure walks, and visit the school garden for photography sessions,” said Usri Pal Chaudhuri, a Class XII student of Modern High School for Girls, who is the president of the club.

Modern High School for Girls collaborated with Living Waters Museum, a virtual museum, for a project on ‘Ghats and Water of Kolkata’. “We taught our juniors the basics of photography, and how to set a camera. We are also organising campaigns, time-bound tasks, and creating photo stories virtually,” Usri said.

The Modern High School for Girls collaborated with Living Waters Museum and organised Ghats of Kolkata: Through the Lens of Time with Raghu Rai and Debarshi Duttagupta, an online session on November 2. More than 40 attended the session with ace photographer Raghu Rai and Debarshi Duttagupta of The Kolkata Cloud Chasers, a group that chases storms by photographing and documenting extreme weather conditions.

Things have taken a turn for the students of La Martinière for Boys, too. They have expanded the club activity during the pandemic. “Apart from photography, we are working on calendars, chronicles, live streams and also looking after other virtual activities of the school. We are having at least two to three events every week,” said Yashonandan Kakrania, one of the core committee members of The Camera Club, La Martinière for Boys.

Lakshmipat Singhania Academy is conducting photography classes for students through Microsoft Teams using live visuals and demonstrations. Students are learning editing through screen-sharing. “The pandemic has given students time to nurture their hobbies. There is an increased interest among students to learn photography,” said Paul, photography teacher of Lakshmipat Singhania Academy.

Loreto Day School, Bowbazar, and Shri Shikshayatan School are also having regular online classes, club meetings, and competitions online. They are virtually taught the settings and parameters of handling a camera. “We are having online classes regularly, getting fresh assignments, analysing and learning new things,” said Abanti Samanta, a Class XII student of Shri Shikshayatan School.