NoBs Digital Dogbowl

Discovering NoBS by Neil Copeland

I originally discovered internet forums back in 1996 through my interest in science fiction shortly after I found the internet itself. There was an interactive forum online at the time called Eon4 and was about a group of people who were involved in a new form of space travel (think Jodi Foster's movie "Contact") and all of us regular people on the forum were the civilian advisory group to the official operators of the program. The interesting thing was that it was played as actually being real. There were a lot of people who came to the site asking "Is this REAL", and it made for some great "what if" scenarios. Basically, if you could suspend disbelief, it was a LOT of fun. The production values were VERY high, with all sorts of visuals, a full production crew and cast, and it lasted for over a year before budget restraints finally killed the program. It was funded by Sony (we eventually found out), but it created one hell of a buzz in sci-fi circles. It was written by Rockne S. O'Bannon, who later went on to write the popular TV sci-fi adventure "Farscape". You can dig out more about that through a Google of Eon4 science fiction.

You might ask, 'what the heck has this got to do with NoBS?'. Well, the answer is quite easy. Eon4 made an internet forum junkie out of me. I became rather engrossed in various fora after that, especially enjoying the camaraderie and sense of community it gave me, especially being isolated much of the time working alone at home. As my interest in the digital end my business grew, I gradually began searching around for photography related forums that could answer a lot of the questions I had about this new world. I went from one to the other, searching for the right mix of interesting info (I wasn't a newbie to photography, just the new digital end of it) and informative and helpful people. I thought I had found it when I got involved with DWF, the Digital Wedding Forum. I wasn't really interested in weddings, but there were a lot of really sharp folks contributing to it and they were branching out into other areas besides weddings. I was intrigued by the give and take we had there and really enjoyed seeing the other members image postings. I became aware of Hodgy there and his really innovative techniques and the openness with which he shared his knowledge.

After a while, DWF began to grow a little too much for me, branching off in too many directions and suddenly becoming a little too clique-ish for my tastes, and I began to grow less enchanted with the site and the experience overall. Plus, they decided to start charging a membership fee. I stayed on for another year or so, but I began looking around for Hodgy, who had disappeared from DWF for a while. I found that he and Rob had just started their own forum about a month earlier, so I came onboard NoBS back in July 2005. It didn't take long for me to become hooked on NoBS! I really enjoyed the openness and the sense of community I got from this forum. I have been in the photography business for almost 35 years, have joined numerous professional organizations, but have NEVER gotten the sense of belonging and sharing that I have gotten with my membership in NoBS! Most of the other organizations of which I've been a member, or in which I've tried to be a part, have fallen short of my expectations as a professional photographer. I enjoy the teaching aspects of this site, not only as a teacher, but also as a student. There is a great sense of give and take here and a good balance of experience from which we all draw. There is the wonder and awe you get from newbies just getting into the field and the patience and straightforward advice you get from the experienced oldtimers. There isn't NEARLY the cliqueishness at NoBS that I have found at other photo forums, and the amateurs are very well balanced by the pros, which I find very refreshing.

I count it a privilege to be a member of NoBS and I cherish the friendships that have developed here. Although I haven't met many NoBS members in person, I feel that many of you are friends on both a personal as well as a professional level and feel that, in all my 30 plus years in photography, I've learned more since my association with NoBS than I ever learned in all the years before. NoBS really IS a wonderful resource and a great place to hang out. If I've gotta be a forum junkie, I couldn't think of a better place.

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