First Remote Zoom Lecture Goes Well

I delivered my first remote lecture via Zoom last night. It was to Hebden Bridge and 32 members tuned in to hear my Underwater talk. All went well I’m pleased to say - here’s the feedback from Bill Pilkington, their programme secretary;

“David presented his first live video lecture via Zoom to our camera club. It was absolutely fabulous. David's professional commentary matched the stunning images and had all of our members mesmerized. The talk works perfectly "remote live" with members being able to ask questions throughout. If you're looking for a guest speaker to give a live, remote presentation, I can recommend David without hesitation.”

*Note; Bill is happy for you to contact him if you’re thinking of setting up Zoom for your club - just email me & I’ll pass you his details

Twenty-Five Remote Lectures Booked

The remote lecturing idea via Zoom really seems to have hit the mark - I’ve had 25 bookings so far. In these difficult days of social distancing it really does give clubs a solution to be able to keep their programme running - and it’s so easy to use. The benefits in the short term are obvious but I think there are potential longer term benefits too. For example one club are thinking of running a regular Photoshop / Lightroom teach-in session where I cover techniques on my PC & they can tune in to watch & ask questions. There really are lots of possibilities.

If you’re the slightest bit interested, not necessarily in me offering anything, but just to see the possibilities for your club please get in touch - I can demonstrate it for you in less than 10 minutes.

Here’s a bit more info on Zoom;

A bit more info from me here

Zoom is free to install but the free version limits the number of people and time of a meeting to 45 minutes. However, it’s perfectly sufficient to evaluate the technology - one club member could download it & invite several others into a test meeting. I have a Zoom business licence, which means 100 people can join a presentation for an unlimited time.

You can use Zoom from a PC, Mac, phone, iPad, laptop - all you need is speakers. If you want to ask questions you’d need a microphone. You can get good headsets with a microphone built in relatively cheap these days - they just plug into your computer & self-install. Here’s an example. An alternative is to join the meeting using your phone so you can ask questions that way, but I’ve no experience of that so couldn’t comment on how it works.

Pinner Camera Club have produced a guide to using Zoom - http://www.pinnercameraclub.co.uk/zoom/

Smethwick Photographic Society have done similar - https://smethwickps.co.uk/sps-online/

Both Clubs have kindly given me permission to copy the link here. Take a look, they answer all the questions you might have.

You can also test your internet connection prior to a meeting here:
https://ukri.zoom.us/test

Remote Lectures Ready to Go

I know many camera clubs have been trialing remote meeting services so they can continue to deliver a lecture programme and a chance for members to interact in these difficult times. I’d got lots of lectures booked this year and who knows when clubs will open their doors again - so I’ve been testing several remote meeting services & I’m now ready to go.

I’ve successfully delivered my lectures using Zoom & GoToMeeting, but my preference is for Zoom because it delivers videos better.

If you’ve not used a remote meeting service before you should try it - it really couldn’t be easier. Just click on a link in an email & you can join a group of up to 100 people and watch the lecture live in your own living room on a pc, mac, tablet or phone - plus if you have a microphone you can ask questions and chat to other members. It doesn’t necessarily have to be at the time (or day) of your normal club meeting - just a mutually convenient time for all.

Here’s how it would work;

1. I’d send the club organiser a link which they would then send on to interested club members. Alternatively the club hosts the meeting and invites me to be a co-host. The end result is the same…

2. At the agreed time we’d all log on & I’d deliver the lecture

3. You would see my PowerPoint presentation on your screen & hear my voice via your computer speakers

4. There would be time at the end for a Q&A session

If you’d like a quick demo just drop me an email or give me a call (07767 208784) - it’d only take 10 minutes and it would give you an insight into how you might be able to use it for your club, regardless of whether you want to book one of my lectures. Click here for a bit more info

Here's how it would look from your end...

The view from my end