- Safety is the top priority for this event. Remind everyone before the walk starts to be careful while they’re taking pictures. Each location is different and comes with its own dangers, so be aware of those things and make sure all of your walkers are aware of them too. Watch for traffic, don’t get too close to the edge, be aware of your surroundings, and so on. Keep an eye out for everyone during the walk as well.
- Plan a route that ends close to where you started so your walkers don’t have to walk a mile back to their cars.
- Once you have picked your ending location (restaurant, bar, cafe, etc), call them to make sure they can handle a large group (say perhaps 50 people) on October 7 at the time your walk ends. You don’t want to show up to a place assuming they can accommodate you only to find out they can’t. Then, the day before the walk, call again to confirm your reservation time and let them know your adjusted number (maybe there were 39 people who signed up instead of 50).
- Make sure you go and scout your route early on, and when it gets close to the day of the walk. This way you know for sure that there are no problems like construction, or a bridge is out, or some other thing that will hinder a large group of people from getting to where they need to go.
- Choose relatively flat terrain for your walk to keep the walk accessible to everyone. We’ve had people everywhere from kids to great grandparents participate, and not everyone can make it up or down a really steep hill to a location.
- Choose a great location/route for the walkers to shoot interesting things – monuments, buildings, great architecture, a great scenic view, etc. Interesting things make for interesting photos!
- Make sure your route is pedestrian (and large group) friendly. If you choose a route with narrow sidewalks or busy areas, it could pose a problem trying to get many people through the area.
- Make sure there’s plenty of parking available around your starting location.
- Don’t overestimate how long your walk should be. We’ve found out that a mile to mile and a half is the ideal length for a photo walk. Otherwise people rush to get to the ending location and don’t have fun taking pictures along the way. Or they get too tired to finish the walk and leave early.
- As a walk leader, it’s very important to be really friendly and really patient with your walkers. Everyone will be asking you questions, so be ready to answer them before, during, and after the walk!
- Have a backup plan for your walk in case you have bad weather.
- Last, but not least… SAFETY. (Also, bring sunscreen!)
