General Guidance
This area contains an SPF Website Guide to find your way around this website.
This page also contains guidance on all aspects of running a photographic club. This includes - Writing a Constitution – Data Protection – Child Protection – Health and Safety – Risk Assessments – Guidance on Recording Meetings - Accessing PAGB Recorded Lectures - Model Release Form - Covid Guidance – Abbreviations
For Guidance on all aspects of Judging and Lecturing for Clubs, Judges and Lecturers please see the All Things Judging and Lecturing page (click here)
For Guidance on - Online Entry Guidance Notes – Digital Guidance Notes - Resolutions and Image Sizing - Converting from Adobe RGB to sRGB - Print Capture - Laptops and Projectors etc. – Projector Calibration - Supplying Images to a Judge – File Naming – Running a Digital Competition – Nature and Mono Definitions – What Is and Isn’t Allowed in SPF/PAGB Competitions please visit the Competitions Guidance page (click here).
In addition each of our SPF Events has it's own webpage see the EVENTS area from our homepage for details of each.
About this SPF Website and the SPF
The SPF Website - To find out what's where download the SPF Website Guide below for an overview of what's contained on this website and where, as well as an overview of the SPF.
The 'Admin Area' - Online Entry area of this website is for Club Main Contacts and Competition Secretaries only at this time. Please visit the Competitions Guidance page (click here) for full details and Illustrated Guidance Notes for help in completing your Club's entry online using this area. Please Contact Libby if you require any assistance.
PAGB CMS (formerly called CES) Online Services
The PAGB CMS - Club Management System website (formerly called the CES) holds information such as contact details and Club and Federation memberships, together with Judges and Lecturer's lists from throughout the PAGB (previously supplied as part of the PAGB Handbook), as well as PAGB Recorded Lectures and access to enter PAGB Competitions etc.
Now that the CMS has evolved into a service delivery system, there is a real need for Club committee members to have an account with Club officer approval so that they can access services for their Club. There are still many PAGB affiliated Clubs which have no officers recorded in the CMS. Those Clubs have effectively excluded themselves excluded from PAGB provided services until they have at least one account approved as an officer.
Account holders must be specifically authorised to access only the information they require for whatever status they have as a Club member, a Club officer or a Federation officer. We call these ‘approvals’, which must be requested, independently verified, and then managed over time.
So, what does ‘approved’ mean in this context? Just as the Handbook was available for use by any member of a Club committee or a Federation committee, the accounts in CMS which can access the speakers’ contact information are those approved as a Club or Federation officer (committee member).
Please see the document below in the downloads area for more info, and how to gain access to this service as an SPF Club Member or SPF Club Committee Member. Contact Libby if you require assistance as she also helps administer the PAGB CMS (formerly called CES) site.
If you have access to Facebook visit the following two videos to see how the PAGB CMS works and where to find things (click here) the second video shows you how the Judges and Speakers area works (click here)
Risk Assessments - A Very Rough Guide
We have been asked by our Member Clubs Do we need Risk Assessments?
Unless your camera club employs staff you do not come under specific Health & Safety Legislation. However, the premises where you hold your meetings and more importantly your club insurers may insist on risk assessments being in place. This makes sense and is good practice. (The PAGB Insurance Brokers Darwin Clayton recommend that you do Risk Assessments and keep records of them having been done)
Clubs, their members and officials do have a duty of care to look after each other and others they may come into contact with. If there is an accident that results in some form of claim against the club then it is very likely your insurers will look to see what actions you have taken as a club to mitigate any risks that could reasonably be predicted.
How do we complete a Risk Assessment?
There are 5 steps to risk assessments
- Step 1 Identify the Risks
- Step 2 Decide who may be harmed and how
- Step 3 Evaluate the risk and what precautions can be taken
- Step 4 Record your findings and impliment them
- Step 5 Review your risk assessment and update if required
A document produced by one of our SPF Executive Members is available to download below. This outlines the basic process and explains how to go about completing a risk assessment. This document also gives links to more information on this subject, including a template for you to use when completing your own Club Risk Assessment together with an example of a simple risk assessment for A Camera Club
It is important that you carry out your OWN risk assessment that is specific to your Club, premises and outings.
We have also given a few of these links below so that they are easy to access
Health and Safety Executive Brief Guide to Risk Assessment (click here)
Blank Risk Assessment Template (click here)
PAGB Recorded Lecture Service
The PAGB run a Recorded Lecture Service where Clubs can download a variety of Recorded Lectures, for a nominal fee. If you need something last-minute to fill a Club evening then you can download one in a mater of minutes.
You require PAGB CMS Club Officer Log-In Access to be able to access and download these. Please see full details re this under the PAGB CMS Online Services heading above, and the Guidance Notes supplied there for more info.
How to Submit Articles
If you have anything that requires circulating for a specific date then please contact either the General Secretary or the e-flash editor who may be able to help. We are keen to see Club events advertised in our News area, and we'd also like to cover any historical events in our 'History' page.
Advice
The PAGB have produced guidance documents on Data Protection, Health and Safety and Child Protection. Neither the PAGB nor the SPF accept any responsibility for any errors or incorrect statements within these publications. These are meant as a starting point for you. You main find some differences in legislation in Scotland, particularly in regard to Child Protection.
Disclosure Scotland (click here) and the Voluntary Arts Scotland (click here) are good sources of information. Most local councils may have someone who can advise Clubs locally.
For full details about the Data Protection Act please visit the goverment website (click here) for full details and see the separate DAta Protection section below.
For an interesting article on UK Photographer's Rights please visit the following Sirimo website (click here) (Please note Sirimo has no connection with the SPF. This has been added here as a general resource for those Photographing in Public places)
Data Protection
This section should be read in conjunction with the Data Protection downloads available below ('Data Protection and the SPF Guidance Document' contains all documents in one)
As there was new Data Protection legislation that came in to force in May 2018, the SPF had to put certain things in place to comply with the new legislation. And; following new documentation laid out by the PAGB in Feb 2018 (updated Apr 18), the SPF have put a Data Protection Policy in place and amended our Competition Rules for all events in line with the new requirements.
This information is advisory and does not set out a policy for anyone to follow. It is intended only as guidelines for Clubs to construct their own policy. Whilst this information has been researched and we believe it to be accurate, the SPF and/or PAGB can accept no responsibility for any errors or incorrect statements and cannot be held liable for any consequent actions which may arise.
Clubs should particularly check the Guidance Summary given by the PAGB in their PAGB Advice Document;
Extract from PAGB Advice – The new legislation adds a requirement for all data controllers to demonstrate their compliance Federations/Clubs need to inform volunteers about the requirements for holding and using personal data. Federations/Clubs do not need explicit consent to collect personal data, but implied consent is only valid within a published policy. The data controllers of Inter-Club and similar events will need to ensure they have consent from individual photographers whose work is entered via a third party.
The main areas where some changes may be required by your Club, in addition to what you already do, are shown in the Summary List of Actions -
- Federations/Clubs will need to prepare and publish a data protection policy containing an adequate description of what personal data will be collected and for what purposes. – This is required so that implied consent is valid for competition secretaries entering member’s work in Inter-Club/SPF/PAGB events (SPF Draft Club Policy available to download above)
- Federations/Clubs will need to review and document their compliance with their own policy.
- Federations/Clubs will need to inform their volunteer officials about maintaining a separation between personal data from different data controllers, and between controlled and domestic use of personal data – i.e. that data can only be used for Club business (inc SPF Directory lists etc..)
- Organisers of inter-Club and similar events will need to review their entry conditions to ensure that any third party entrant confirms explicit consent for the organiser to hold personal data about the photographers entered to the event – e.g. To cover a Club Photographer’s work entered by a Competition Secretary into an Inter-Club/SPF/PAGB competition (and that the SPF may also re –enter into a PAGB/Celtic Challenge event)
- Federations/Clubs must not make their membership contact information available for electronic marketing. Clubs must refuse any request to cascade marketing material to members by electronic messages - For clarification and as an example of what’s allowed; the e-flash, e-news and e-salon contain details about SPF events etc; this is not classed as electronic marketing so you are free to disseminate it to your members, although you are wise to get permission to send any such information to their email address. Extract from PAGB Advice; Marketing material would not include information to members about events directly related to a Federations/Club’s activities.
Model Release Form
The below non-threatening Model Release Form has been supplied for use by Clubs and Individuals
Downloads
Abbreviations used by Us
Below are the main accronyms connected with us and our events -
- SPF - Scottish Photographic Federation
- PAGB - Photographic Alliance of Great Britain - visit the PAGB's website for the acronyms of all PAGB member Federations (click here)
- FIAP - Federation Internationale de l'Art Photographique
- GPU - Global Photographic Union (Formerly UPI) (Scottish Salon only)
- PSA - Photographic Society of America (Scottish Salon only)
- RPS - Royal Photographic Society
From the above, this should help you with additional abbreviations used by these organisations or us e.g. EFIAP belonging to FIAP, and MPAGB belonging to PAGB. This should also help you decide which area of this website you will find details about these.
Others you may come across -
- BPE - British Photographic Exhibitions
- UPP - United Photographic Postfolios of Great Britain
- GDPU - Glasgow District Photographic Union