Photo Magic Tuesdays

Here's a look at the work club member Jim Giles has done this summer.

Photo Magic Tuesdays
The Photo Magic Tuesdays Class provided an opportunity for young people, 8-12, to learn how cameras work and how to take great pictures. The class ran four consecutive Tuesdays from July 3 to July 24, 2007 in the Library auditorium. Fran Benninger, the head of the Library Children’s Program sponsored the class as part of the Library’s Summer Reading Program.
About a dozen young people took advantage of the opportunity to learn from long-time photographer, Jim Giles. Jim showed the students how cameras work in much the same way as their eyes do. He also showed them the right camera techniques they should use to take good pictures. The high point of the class was a photo competition. Jim and the library provided each student a single-use 35mm camera. Each student then used his or her camera for their first photo assignment: pictures of people, places, or things. (Pets could count as “people” for this contest!) Jim had the film processed at the CVS in Grantsboro by Dave Brown another CPC member.

The student’s work was outstanding. The outside judges had a difficult job sorting through many excellent entries. It was inspiring to see that young people have such an intuitive eye for taking interesting, creative images with just a basic camera. Sorting through more than 150 images, Michaela King won first prize, John G. Hines III second and Mariah Meador third.
The Library may sponsor a similar program for the 2008 Summer Reading Program. The Library is also looking for available grants to assist with providing cameras and film processing so that more young people can get a start in photography.
Instructor Biography
Jim Giles has owned a home in the Sail Loft subdivision near Oriental since 1993 and has been a full-time County resident since 2000. Jim is an avid photographer and member of the Coastal Photo Club. Jim likes mentoring people of all ages to improve their photography skills. In addition to presentations to his club, Jim has taught young people photography in the HeartWorks After School Program at Fred Anderson Elementary School and in the Pamlico County Public Library Summer Reading Program.