How did people showcase their photographs before the Internet?

Question

I am curious as to how, in earlier days (before the advent of Internet), photos were showcased to large audience when someone was in the learning path of photography?

Nowadays you take a picture and you have an option to post it to several forums- facebook, flickr, 500px and lot more. You get critiques and one can try to learn from them.

How were things done before these things came into existence? I am here interested in people who were new to photography and in the learning stage (Not a journalist or an already a famous photographer). Even those who became famous, how did they bring their photos to the public and how did they got noticed? Competitions perhaps? Or was there no scope for hobbyist photographers to show their photos in public?

I would love to hear, if someone can share the experience who has travelled this journey.

Currently, what is the trend? How do people showcase their work? Websites, portfolios?

Answer 1

People who were new to photography showcased what they did on a much smaller and local scale, often limited to friends an colleagues. But a number of magazines, newspapers, and other groups did run photo contests, often with prizes for best photos. Many were national and many were local. Some cities have local photo clubs. Some community galleries would host photos of local photographers. In my own area we have Artworks around town, inc that has a permanent gallery where local artists, including photographers, can display their works. Similar venues exist in many other communities. Check your local newspaper.

On the internet, it's not just places like Facebook. Even here in stackexchange phography section, there is a Weekly Featured Image you can see at the top of the pages here. Google's Panoramio site also has a photo contest each month for featured images in Community >> photo contest. There are number of photography specific forums around, too.