Are you Nervous!
Had a message from Sally, asking if I could do a spot of photography – in about 3 hours’ time, short notice she admitted but someone had let her down! Let her down, if this is a dance shoot, I normally do these for her, I know all the dance moves! ……. but panic not Adam, reading the message again, it looked like this was for a meeting at a community hall.
I reply, yes, it was fine, needed to move a job around but not a problem. Sally said this was for a community meeting to discuss way’s forward with Powys County Council over work carried out by them at a local woodland area where Sally lives called Bull Dingle.
I had an idea that ideally it could do with being videoed and maybe even live streamed but there was not enough time to set this up, so thinking ahead, I brought along a GoPro, PA, wireless mic and camera….just in case.
Got to the community hall half an hour before the meeting was due to start and met with Sally.
Asked her if everything was okay, no she replied, I’m a nervous wreck, never done this before, I just teach girls how to dance, so a quick hug and some words of encouragement I check with Sally if she would like me to video the meeting as well as photograph, it would be best endeavours with the video as there was limited space to mount the camera but should at least provide a record of the meeting so she can look back and make notes.
Sally opened the meeting and started by introducing herself and providing a summary of what the meeting was about, then Simon, her farther introduced himself and explained his role as advisor and an explanation of councils and the way they work.
This photographer was very impressed with Sally and Simon, very professional, wonderfully clear, observational, knowledgeable, well researched, prepared and open to the community’s questions and concerns – and carried out in a calm manner.
The community consisted of local residents and Welshpool Councillors as well as councillors from other areas acting in an environmental capacity, along with environmental officers.
The meeting was productive despite key figures from Powys Council not being there due to other meeting commitments but you felt that everyone there who had a capacity to help were sympathetic to the communities’ concerns and dedicated to trying to help resolve some of the many questions asked throughout the meeting.
I caught up quickly with Sally before I left and said well done, she was obviously the ideal person to represent the community and had done her community proud.
