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Plays With Light
08-10-2017, 11:34am
I'm not really sure where to put this plea for generosity/assistance, so went with this sub-forum.


Howdy All,

I run a weekly photography group, local to me, in the Southern suburbs of Adelaide for people that experience mental health challenges.

We are holding an exhibition next week, for Mental Health Week at a local café, The Ripple and Swirl Café, at Christies Beach, South Australia, open from 8am to 4pm every day. The exhibition is also a fundraiser, for the group to purchase a DSLR, three lenses, a tripod and a flash. Thus far we have been using mobile phones, but the group have hit a wall in regards to editing, printing and the lack of creativity/vision available due to the lack of any aperture control on a mobile phone.

If you are a local, in Adelaide, please help spread the word about the exhibition.

To the rest of you, I will paste in a copy of my letter I have printed for the exhibition, below. In a nutshell, we are seeking old DSLR/Mirrorless cameras, lenses for them and tripods for the group too. We have eight participants every week and would love to be able to have everyone using a camera for the duration on each trip out that we go on.

Through assisting the group to learn to express their creativity and vision photographically, I have noticed a huge upswing in their self-confidence and moods overall.

If any of you can assist with old cameras and associated gear, I would be deeply indebted to you for the opportunity it will allow the participants.

I would be willing to pick up the tab on postage of any unused items you may wish to share with the group.

Kindest regards,
Alex :)



I run a weekly photography group, based in the Southern suburbs of Adelaide for people that experience mental health challenges. This exhibition is also a fundraiser, for the group to purchase a DSLR, three lenses, a tripod and a flash. Thus far we have been using mobile phones, but the group have hit a wall in regards to achieving their creative vision within the limitations of mobile phone cameras.


My name is Alex Mausolf, a while ago I created a weekly photography group for people affected with mental health challenges, living in the Southern regions. Members have been using their mobile phones to express their photographic vision and creativity, but the limitations of this have become apparent of late, especially in the expressiveness, editing and printing processes. I am seeking your assistance for the group to be able to raise funds to purchase a DSLR camera with three lenses, a tripod and a flash. One of the lenses is for wide and sweeping landscapes, one for longer/further views, and another lens for close-up or macro details of things. I have five images as a part of this exhibition that I am donating to this worthy cause, as are some of the other artists exhibiting here this week.


The four photographs of mine in the black frames are all one-off long-exposure images, representing the challenges I have, living with schizophrenia, anxieties and chronic auditory hallucinations, experiencing a world that straddles the real and the surreal. These photographs were printed by myself at home on an A3+ sized printer on specialist black and white photographic paper of an archival quality. The other images in this exhibition, in the white frames, have been commercially printed for us.


With your kindness, I can help the participants to reach even higher levels of creativity, self-expression and the resulting boosts in self-confidence, as I assist them to learn how to use a DSLR camera so as to be able to capture their ideas photographically. I am also showing the group how to edit their images, so as to bring out the best of their images on a computer.


Further to this quest for a new camera for the group, we are seeking donations of your old DSLR/Mirrorless cameras and lenses for them, as well as tripods that you may have laying around and do not use any more. We'd appreciate the opportunity to give them a new home where they will be much used and loved!


To purchase one of the prints here at this exhibition, please speak to one of the lovely staff of the Café.


To arrange a donation of an old DSLR/Mirrorless camera with any lenses for them that you may have, or tripods that you want to pass on to the group, please email me at: alex@playswithlight.net


With thanks for your generosity and support.
Alex Mausolf

ameerat42
08-10-2017, 11:45am
Good luck.

Mark L
08-10-2017, 8:35pm
Great cause and good on you Alex.:th3:
PM about to be sent with what I can offer.

Plays With Light
08-10-2017, 9:12pm
Great cause and good on you Alex.:th3:
PM about to be sent with what I can offer.
Thank you so much, Mark! The participants will love it and get much use out of it! :nod: Who knows, there might even be a budding bird photographer or two amongst them. :cool:

Plays With Light
09-10-2017, 9:14pm
I'd just like to thank the nameless member that is donating their old Pentax K20D, with a 90mm macro lens, batteries, charger, and other bits and pieces for it! :th3:

Plays With Light
11-10-2017, 4:53pm
Have now established a crowdfunding drive for financial donations after receiving several emails asking me where people could donate money rather than goods for the groups quest.

https://fundly.com/happy-snappers

Plays With Light
11-10-2017, 6:17pm
Have an amazing update! Just received our first donation, of $300, from a fellow with a huge heart in Glasgow, UK! :th3:

Dug
12-10-2017, 8:19pm
Great work Alex, such a good idea for a photography group.

Most of my older gear has already been past on unfortunately, but I drop off a sturdy tripod to you though.

Plays With Light
12-10-2017, 9:28pm
Great work Alex, such a good idea for a photography group.

Most of my older gear has already been past on unfortunately, but I drop off a sturdy tripod to you though.
Thanks so much, Doug! You're a godsend! We haven't received any tripods as of yet, so that would be perfect. :th3:

Mark L
12-10-2017, 9:52pm
Alex has allowed my to share his response to a PM I sent him saying that what he is doing is good and maybe challenging.

"Challenging is a polite way to put it, sometimes, but then that magic you see when people have an "aha" moment and they genuinely get why something has worked in their photography is worth it all. Well, that, and the lift I can see in the participants self-belief and general outlook on life, too. For many members, it's their only interaction with others during their weeks, and there's a camaraderie that has developed among the participants, which has been beautiful to see take place."

Wonderful

Plays With Light
13-10-2017, 5:49pm
I'd just like to send a HUGE thank you to the forum angel that sent me their old Pentax K20D! I had a couple of old manual Pentax lenses that I used to use on a K1000, and here's a few shots taken with them! The group are going to love playing with these! They render such beautiful images! :cool:

First with my old 50mm f/2 @ f/2
https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-QDGfRbm/0/120feeb1/X3/i-QDGfRbm-X3.jpg

https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-wKcJpTX/0/ffe90537/X3/i-wKcJpTX-X3.jpg

Then a few with my old 28mm f/2.8 @ various apertures
https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-9jGFfnc/0/62674e9d/X3/i-9jGFfnc-X3.jpg

https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-TJ9dZpg/0/9515f754/X3/i-TJ9dZpg-X3.jpg

https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-qg8GDLV/0/784eedc2/X3/i-qg8GDLV-X3.jpg

https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-B9hG5CK/0/9f973fe9/X3/i-B9hG5CK-X3.jpg

https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-9L47XRS/0/23c531a9/X3/i-9L47XRS-X3.jpg

Plays With Light
15-10-2017, 7:09pm
Another update for you all. I've gone and registered myself as a business and also as a not-for-profit entity, should find out if I am allowed to be a taxable donation over the next few weeks, when the Tax Department make up their minds either way. Have also created a basic website for it too. http://www.happysnappers.org.au

And in regard of donations, we are now sitting at $860 of the $1,500 target for our first DSLR setup purchase!

A Nikon D70 and a mid-ranges zoom for it, along with batteries, a charger and some CF cards are coming from a generous donation from overseas.

That's two cameras out of the total eight that we need already! :eek:

cupic
16-10-2017, 5:23pm
The SR funtion the the K20d is the bonus

Plays With Light
17-10-2017, 7:30pm
The SR funtion the the K20d is the bonus
Too true, Ivan! :th3:

And, the latest update...

We now have had offers of four cameras and lens combinations. The latest two are a Panasonic micro four thirds and a Canon EOS. Looks like I'm ending up with the United Nations of cameras for the groups to use! :cool:

cupic
17-10-2017, 7:36pm
Variety is Gold

Plays With Light
18-10-2017, 9:33am
And, another update!

A "Three legged Thing" tripod is being donated to us by someone from Melbourne who is a member of an international photography forum I am a member of! :cool:

That's the two tripods I wanted for the groups now! I'm looking forward to having the groups play with long exposures! :D