DMCC OUTINGS - LOOKING BACK

The majority of camera club members became members primarily to advance their photographic skills. I am sure that this fact applies to most clubs. During the regular season of September to May we at the Don Mills Camera Club attempt to achieve this goal through our Workshops. However the learning does not have to stop just because the Spring flowers are starting to bloom. Bring on the warm weather and the Outing (field trip) Season begins, when groups of club members get together to enjoy the photographic experience, and if they so desire, learn by example. The venues and subjects have been as varied as the members preferences, and I am sure will continue to be so. Now let's look back and reminisce as we look at images of members past and present enjoying Club Outings, where the emphasis was on fun and friendship.

MORNINGSIDE PARK (APRIL 1972)

Morningside Park, located in Scarborough on Morningside Avenue, south of Highway 401, was and still remains a favourite for the Club's first nature photography outing of Spring. This outing often occurs the day after the Club's annual banquet, and serves to "blow away" the cobwebs from the evening's festivities. The stalwart group shown here, including Past President Oliver Dell, was hot on the trail of the years first skunk cabbages. (Photograph courtesy of David Barr.)

Burns Conservation Area, located near the town of Milton in Halton Region, is on the headwaters of Bronte Creek. It includes some interesting wetlands, and this outing gave the nature photographers something to raise their spirits. Both Betty Greenacre and past president David Broadhurst seem too pensive to be disturbed. While the worried gentlemen below seem to have lost their shirts. Maybe at the nearby racetrack. Paul Clarke (on the right) donated the club's Clarke Trophy, the first for Colour Prints.

John and Grace Walker

John and Grace Walker, shown here relaxing (?) on very hard rocks, hosted this outing to their home and the surrounding area in the Muskokas.  John was best known for his sense of humour, and his donation of  the  Club's 'Walker Trophy' for the Most Humorous Slide was most appropriate.  Below, are three other participants in that outing.  Evelyn Mitchell (deceased), Gord Mitchell (deceased), and Honora Dalton (now married and a member of Country Images Camera Club).

The Ontario Agricultural Museum, visible from Hwy.401, is located adjacent to the Kelso Conservation Area, near Milton. It covers the history of agriculture in Ontario from the pioneer days of 1830 to the time when electricity first became readily available in the area. It features a collection of historic farm buildings and machinery. This group of contemporary people was seen in a barn on the museum site, and faithfully recorded for posterity by means of a photographic image.

Black Creek Pioneer Village located in the north-west corner of Metropolitan Toronto, at Jane Street and Steeles Avenue West, has long been a Club favourite as an outing venue. Its collection of pioneer buildings with period furnishings, the village staff and artisans in period costumes, and the farm animals and gardens offer something to satisfy the tastes of all photographers. This particular outing held on a chilly March Sunday morning ended with hearty pioneer fare in the village's Halfway House Inn.

Harbourfront  on Toronto's lakeshore is a good place for photography, especially on those hot Summer days when the cool lake breezes blow. There are many interesting subjects to be captured on film, both nautical and human . On this particular day tall-masted sailing ships from all over the world had converged on Toronto. Below, dockside, Mike Mathias looks up to a female Club member, while Walter Dorlandt strains to see a mast top.

The Picture Chase has always been a popular concept for a Club outing. The participants are all given a designated route that includes a number of venues of photographic merit. On this day the area covered was the rural area to the north and north-west of Toronto, and included Holland Marsh. The final stop was the home of Raf and Brenda Ollivierre  in Richmond Hill, where they graciously hosted a "pot luck " barbecue which was much enjoyed by all present.