The Group was started in June of 1998, following a Spring Session photography class at the Senior Center in Kingsport, Tennessee. The class, on how to use the 35mm SLR camera, was taught by Claude Kelly, a 1997 retiree from Eastman Chemical Company and long-time member of the Eastman Camera Club. The eight Senior Center members decided to form the camera club as a means of building on the lessons learned. After an organizational meeting to set goals and develop a schedule of events, the Kingsport Senior Center Photo Group was on its way. Current membership has risen to 20 active participants and is still growing.

Meetings:

Meetings are held each month, usually on the second and fourth Mondays. Workshops, slide shows, photographic critiques, business meetings and demonstrations are held at the Senior Center or the Eastman Employee Center from 9:30 a.m. to noon, during the winter months. Our field trips are daylong and multi-day excursions, which cover the historic, cultural and natural beauty of the surrounding eight-state region. These trips begin with the emergence of spring wildflowers in April and end with the fall foliage displays in October. Occasional winter snow trips are also worked in. We pause from time to time to schedule socials and meetings to view and critique the results of our efforts. We hold no competitive events within the Group, although several members regularly enter area competitions. The highlight of the year is our annual Photography Exhibit hung each January in the Renaissance Center Gallery. In June 2004 the Group began hosting the annual Appalachian Photography Salon in Kingsport.

Goals: