John Armington is an Assistant Scout Master with Troop 1776 in Marietta, GA.  He is wood badge trained (92-48 Owl) and keeps current all his BSA training.  In addition to serving on staff for the MeritBadge University every year since it began, hs also counsels Scouts for the Digital Technology, Camping, and Photography merit badges. 

For high-school graduation my Dad gave me an Olympus OM-1 35mm SLR.  He had already taught me a lot about photography, beyond the basics of shutter speeds to f-stops and depth-of-field, strobe synch and focal-plane shutters, film speeds and push processing, and many other technical details that you had to know to take good pictures in those days before automatic cameras and digital processing.  In the 25 years I used that camera mostly as an amature photographer, I took thousands of photographs and in the process learned more about what makes a good picture: composition and lighting, camera angles and focal lengths, back-lighting and fill-in flash, etc. 

I bought my first digital cameras in 2000 and my first digical SLR, a Nikon D70 in 2005, with which I have taken tens of thousands of photographs.   

Prerequisites for Photography Merit Badge:  By completing the following, you will help assure that you will leave the clinic on Saturday with a completed, signed blue card.  (be sure to bring your blue card with you)

1. Please download and print a copy of the Photography Merit Badge Worksheet at http://www.usscouts.org/mb/worksheets/Photography.doc  or http://usscouts.org/mb/worksheets/Photography.pdf 
   1. Write your name and Troop or Crew number on page 1.
   2. Read carefully and thoughtfully all of the requirements and think about which ones you know about or have a special interest in.  Write down any information that you already know, and things you have already done.  This will save you time during the Merit Badge Clinic on Saturday and make it easier to share your knowledge with the class. 
   3. Bring it with you to the clinic on Saturday   
2. For requirement number 1, look up the definitions to the terms and write them on the worksheet.  There are many good photography resources on the web that you can find with a simple search.
3. Professionally-produced photographs are everywhere you look - for marketing, news, art, documentaries, and many other uses.  Think about why you chose the Photography Merit Badge and how you might choose a career in photography. Be prepared to discuss your choices and ideas with the class. 
4. Pick one of the items under requirement number 4.  Outline the story or the exhibit, and write on the worksheet why you think it is a good choice for the merit badge.  Take some pictures and, using pictures you have taken, either 1) put them into a computer presentation (powerpoint or a slide-show) or 2) print them and arrange them into a booklet or onto a poster with words to tell your story.  Come prepared to discuss the pictures you took and tell the story or explain your exhibit.  You will have an opportunity to share your presentation with the class on Saturday.  We will have a laptop computer to show your presentation from disk or flash drive, or you may bring your own PC or tablet

If you have your own camera you are encouraged to bring it with you to the clinic on Saturday.  We will have some old cameras and parts for you to look at and do requirement number 2.  We have a lot to cover, so be prepared to work hard and learn.  We look forward to seeing  you on Saturday morning at the meritbadge clinic.