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Design4Kids III Photo-Design Workshop An Overwhelming Success

Monday, December 21st, 2009

The workshop pace picked up on Friday and into Saturday, culminating in the presentation of the project designs to the client, Hospitalito Atitlan. The client was blown away! The group came up with five different potential designs, and the hospital is trying to decide which one to use. They are all outstanding works.

After the client presentation just about everyone relaxed at a party along the lakefront. Unfortunately, it was about that time that some evil bug got hold of me. I won’t go into details on the chills and my other experiences of the afternoon and evening – let’s just say the bug had me confined to quarters for the duration, and I missed the party and the final dinner that evening.

What a great group though – after the dinner everyone came up to my room to check on me and say goodbye. We really come together like a family at these workshops, and the last day is an emotional mix of elation over the success of the week and the sadness that it’s over.Santiago Christmas Tree

After a long day of travel on Sunday I arrived back home in Maryland, and picked right up on Monday where I had left off on shooting an annual report for one of my clients. Then, just to really make the point that I wasn’t in Guatemala anymore. The now famous “Blizzard of 2009” embraced us this weekend here in the Mid-Atlantic.

What a dichotomy – one Saturday walking through Santiago as Christmas festivities were in full swing, complete with a palm-leaf tree in the town square. The next, just a week later, buried in 20” of snow!

It makes the prospect of the next Design4Kids workshop in June that much more inviting. We’re considering a “Master Class” for the more advanced, experienced Fotokids. Keep tuned here and at www.Design4Kids for more to come on this workshop. And if you have the talents and experience to share – in photography, graphic design, marketing, entrepreneurship –  seriously consider in joining us as a volunteer mentor. There’s no way I can fully describe the incredible fulfillment and richness of emotion that comes from working with these kids.

Feel free to contact me for more info.

Posted in Candids, Composition, Creativity, Digital Photography, Learning Photography, Travel, photography workshops | No Responses »
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Depth of Field and Fill Flash

Thursday, December 10th, 2009

Santiago-45Back in the classroom this morning with an explanation of depth of field and using the aperture for creative control. We worked with “the girls” today on the photography side – it just happens that the girls in the group have less photo training, while the boys are more experienced, and we’ve divided the class into beginners and advanced.

After a short in-class presentation and a few examples, we went outside and practiced the techniques – definitely the best way to really learn and understand how to do it. Everyone loves the opportunity to play and experiment with the camera.

Then back inside for the next lesson – fill flash. We did double photo sessions with the same group today while the other group was doing screen printing on the graphic design side, and will do the same tomorrow with the boys working with us on photography.

It was a natural segue from aperture to understanding the use of fill flash both indoors and outside. It’s natural for beginners to simply use flash as the primary light source and blast away. Once you see the subtle natural results from balancing flash with available light, you really begin to get excited about the possibilities for creative control.

The kids really got into shooting photos of each other with the flash – they played like paparazzi and stars! This group is an amazingly talented bunch of kids, and they devour every new concept we present them.

The afternoon was project work. The concepts are set and the posters are really coming along. Only a day and a half before they present the final designs to the client.

Tomorrow we’ll see how the boys do with depth of field and fill flash. The girls have set the bar!

Posted in Cameras, Composition, Creativity, Digital Photography, Learning Photography, Portrait, Technology, Travel, photography workshops | No Responses »
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Photo Excursion To Panajachel

Wednesday, December 9th, 2009

Daisy BlogToday the group took a break from the teaching and project work and went for a day trip across the lake to Panajachel. The largest town on Lago Atitlan, Pana, as its often known, is the tourist and ex-pat mecca of the Atitlan area. This makes for a busy and photo-op rich environment.

One on Pana’a attributes is that all three of Atitlan’s volcanos – Vuncans Atitlan, San Pedro and Toliman are all visible from the town’s harbor. Heading up into town and all streets are predictably lined with shops offering local clothing, jewelry and all manner of souvenirs. It’s a colorful gauntlet, and if the shops don’t entice you the street vendors are always there with their offerings.

But we weren’t there to shop. Bree Hankinson, who runs the Fotokids program in Santiago, created The Amazing Photo Race for the kids (and the mentors). We teamed up in teams of three and went out into the town to solve a cryptic list of photo assignments. It made for some very creative thinking and rewarding inter-cultural teamwork between the kids and mentors. Not to mention some interesting interpretations and translations of the photo list!

Tomorrow its back to class and work on the project.

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Introducing The Principles of Exposure

Tuesday, December 8th, 2009

D4K3 003We began the day with the less experienced kids in the group, and introduced them to the basics of exposure control – aperture, shutter and ISO, and the relationships between them. These kids have worked with digital point & shoot cameras and have a respectable grounding in composition, and this shows them how to get consistent, predictable results in their photos.

We had them shoot a bracket from -2 to +2 and then showed them how to import their images into Lightroom and make adjustments to their photos, recovering much of their under- and over-exposed frames.

It’s exciting to see the lights come on when the concepts sink in and they “get it”. Ana, one of the girls from “the city” (as Guatemala City is know down here) observed that the shot she liked best wasn’t the “correct” metered exposure – recognizing that having the skills to control the exposure allows you to interpret your image the way you visualize the final result.

Next we repeated the two classes with the more experienced members of the group. While most of them claimed to understand the use of aperture and shutter, it was clear that they all had only a little experience in applying the concepts of manual exposure control in their photos. Once they realized what they really can do by making the camera do what they want, they got totally into the process as well.

Tomorrow is an “excursion day” – no structured classes, but rather a creative play day, with activities that allow the kids to apply and practice the concepts and techniques they’re learning this week. Can’t wait to see what they come up with!

Posted in Cameras, Candids, Composition, Creativity, Digital Photography, Learning Photography, Photoshop, Travel, photography workshops | No Responses »
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Design4Kids III Photo & Design Workshop Begins!

Monday, December 7th, 2009

D4K1206 002The third Design4Kids workshop began in earnest today in Santiago de Atitlan, Guatemala.

After the travel day on Saturday, staying overnight in Antigua, and the half-day drive to Santiago de Atitlan on Sunday followed by the opening introductions, today saw the first full day of the workshop.

The group traveled to the Hospitalito Atitlan, the clients for this workshop, to meet the doctor and staff and discuss the design project. The workshop will focus on designing a poster or series of posters to create awareness of diabetes and it’s consequences among the local population.

Not only does Guatemala have the dubious distinction of having the highest number of amputations from diabetes complications in the world, but the disease, its causes and methods of prevention are not widely understood by much of the population

The rest of the day was spent creating a pan for the project and assigning teams who will work on several potential options for the client.

Tomorrow the classes begin, with workshop director Jeff Speigner teaching graphic design, and Eric Lolkema and I teaching photo techniques and post production. Everyone is excited and ready to get to work, and this promises to be another fantastic week.

Posted in Cameras, Candids, Composition, Creativity, Digital Photography, Learning Photography, Travel, photography workshops | No Responses »
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December Design4Kids Photo & Design Workshop in Guatemala Next Week!

Saturday, November 28th, 2009

D4K 0609 001I’m making the final preparations for the third Design4Kids workshop in Santiago de Atitlan, Guatemala. Leaving in just a week! Eric, Jeff and I have become the core group of instructors there, and we’re really coming together as a team. Naturally it helps that all of us have the same passion – teaching the skills we have to give these kids an opportunity to develop a career path and success for themselves.

The kids come away from the week with much more than new technical skills. They learn how to work with a client and create a project from conception to delivery. They develop abilities that will help them grow in every area of their lives. The creative processes that they learn and develop through photography and graphic design give them insight into creative problem-solving thinking that they’ll use in everything they do.While it’s certainly a good thing to give people something they’re without and will use up right away – food, medicine, and the like – it’s a tremendous feeling to give them knowledge that they will use to become self-sufficient and productive for life. It’s truly “teaching them how to fish” rather than just giving them a fish to feed them for a day.

The more I teach, the more excited I am about teaching becoming a greater part of my life. Both at the workshops, and also in the classes I conduct back here at home, it’s a fantastic feeling to see how much enjoyment and value people receive from what I have to give. I’ve added a parent & kid class in January so that young (11-15 year old) people & a parent can learn some photography basics together. It’s already filling – really popular!

I do intend to post more frequent updates from Guatemala this trip. Keep checking in, and spread the word!

Posted in Cameras, Creativity, Digital Photography, Learning Photography, Travel, photography workshops | No Responses »
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Design4Kids Photo Workshop

Sunday, November 8th, 2009

D4K 0609 062AFinally! After four months, I’ve uploaded the photos from the June Design4Kids workshop to my website. Much of that time was waiting for the site to be up and running. Take a look at www.stuestler.com – look around the site and let me know what you think.

In case you haven’t seen my earlier posts on the workshop, Design4Kids is a group of volunteers from the photography, graphic design and marketing world who volunteer and get together to teach creative, business and life skills to groups of young people in Guatemala.

D4K 0609 071AWe’re affiliated with Fotokids, a non-profit organization teaching photography in several programs within Guatemala and now Honduras. Every six months a select group of these talented young people are selected to come with us to Santiago de Atitlan for a week-long workshop, where they actually work with a client to produce a marketing or promotional piece.The goal of the workshops is to help the kids develop the skills and knowledge to operate their own design studio. That is now a reality, in the form of Jarakamba – a studio with offices in Santiago and Guatemala City.

We’re less than a month away from the next workshop, scheduled for December 5th thru the 13th. We’ve all been working tirelessly to prepare a program to help the students succeed, and the excitement is building. Check in for new updates as the day arrives!

For more information:

www.design4kids.org

www.fotokids.org

Posted in Composition, Creativity, Learning Photography, Travel, photography workshops | No Responses »
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Photographing The Colors Of Autumn

Friday, October 30th, 2009
One of the blessings of living in temperate climates is the change of seasons, and in particular the great palate of color nature provides in the fall. While the exact time, intensity and colors depend on where you are, the prevailing vegetation and usually on the weather for the preceding spring and summer, autumn is typically a great photo opportunity.

Fall Colors on the C&O Canal

Fall Colors on the C&O Canal

Here in the Mid-Atlantic October to early November is showtime, and every year brings something to delight the eye. This year we had a dry end to the summer, which muted some of the colors a bit compared to last year, but there is still plenty to shoot. An added attraction is that many people plan their landscaping with ornamental plants that are green and lush during summer, and then burst into colors in the fall.

It’s common when faced with the overwhelming displays of changing color everywhere to try to capture it all. Sometimes that works, but sometimes you wind up with a photo that encompasses so much it lacks a true point of focus. Also, we can sometimes be so absorbed in the show nature is putting on that we forget about distractions that lead the eye away from the intended subject. Our brain can ignore them when we’re there in person looking at things, but as always, the photo sees all.

One solution is to narrow down our frame and concentrate on smaller slice of the visual pie. Even very close-up and macro shots may capture the feelings of the scene as well or better than an overall vista.

C&O Canal, Potomac, Maryland

C&O Canal, Potomac, Maryland

The fall colors aren’t the only thing going on now. It’s harvest time, and even if you live in the city, take the time to get out and explore the rural fields and farm stands. And don’t forget people! The autumn makes a great time to get photos of your friends and family or anyone out enjoying nature’s bounty.

So take the time to experiment with different subjects, different viewpoints and don’t forget to get up close and personal with nature at this time of year. Soon enough we’ll be shooting those winter scenes!

Posted in Composition, Creativity, Digital Photography, Landscape, Learning Photography, Travel | No Responses »
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Back To (Teaching) The Basics of Photography

Sunday, July 26th, 2009
(c) 2007 Stu Estler

(c) 2007 Stu Estler

Have you ever wondered why it is that two people, standing side-by-side, even with the same cameras, can each take a photo of the same subject? One takes a dramatic, emotionally-charged image, while the other’s photos are … dull, uninteresting – you just don’t get that emotional “aha” that you get from really great photos, that feeling of becoming drawn in and becoming part of the picture.

In the 25 plus years I’ve been a professional photographer so many people have asked me how to improve their photos, that I’ve taken all of the knowledge, experience, techniques and tricks that I’ve leaned over my photography career and put it all together in a photo course.

 

 

 

Here are some of the things I cover:

  • Have you ever taken a great shot, and thought “wow, how do I do that again?” You’ll learn how to use all those controls and settings on your camera so that you are able to reliably and easily get consistent results from your photos.
  • Imagine how the impact of little differences in framing and composition can have a dramatic effect on the impact of your photo. You discover how to compose your pictures to capture and lead your viewer’s emotions.
  • We’ll look at design elements in a photograph, how they affect your photos and why they’re such a critical cornerstone in taking really great pictures.
  •  You’ll learn how to see and understand all about light – front lighting, side lighting, back lighting, the color of light, how different times of day makes a difference … remember, photography is all about light. Even the word photography means “drawing with light”.

The course is a self-directed, self-paced program, delivered online via email and a website where you download your weekly lesson. I’m close to releasing the online course, but first I want to fine-tune it to be sure I’m on the right track with what everyone’s looking for.

Before this course goes live, it’s important that I’m certain my students are achieving the success they desire.

What I’ve decided to do is put together a class – a live face-to-face class – as a Beta-test to put the finishing touches on the course.

I’ll get input from all of the members to learn exactly what is most important – what you’d like to learn to help improve your photography.

 We’ll meet for an hour once a week, for six weeks, partly on location where I can demonstrate and you can practice techniques, and partly inside where we can review photos and see examples.

 Now, since you’re reading this photo blog, I’m guessing you have some kind of an interest in photography. So how about chiming in and helping me out?

What three things are you most interested in learning about photography? Doesn’t matter if you’re a working pro or a new beginner. Those of us who are working pros all know the way we got here is through constantly learning. And if you are a pro, what are people asking you?

(c) 2009 Stu Estler

(c) 2009 Stu Estler

This will also help us develop the program for the next Design4Kids workshop in Guatemala this December. So even if you can’t come along and volunteer this time, you can still participate in helping out the kids.

 

So go ahead and leave a short (or long) answer in the comments below.

I realize it’s kind of hard to find – it’s buried at the end of each post, as “responses”. I’m still looking for a template I like that handles comments better, haven’t found one yet. Any ideas there are welcome, too!

 

P.S.  – If you’re in the Washington DC area and would like more info on the live class, let me know how to contact you.

Posted in Architecture, Cameras, Composition, Creativity, Digital Photography, Learning Photography, Portrait, Travel, Uncategorized, photography workshops | No Responses »
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Re-Photographing The Familiar

Monday, July 13th, 2009

In contrast to the week in Guatemala, where everything was new and exciting, I’ve just returned from a long holiday weekend spent with family at a lake we’ve been visiting for the past nine or ten years.

 

We go at about the same time each year (around July 4th), stay at the same house we’ve stayed at each year, and after that much time it all has the look and feel of familiarity that we all find in our own every day surroundings.

(c) 2009 Stu Estler

(c) 2009 Stu Estler

 

 

Now don’t get me wrong – it’s a beautiful location, it’s great to spend time together with the family, and there’s plenty to do at and around the lake. It’s hardly a boring vacation.

 

But after this long, I found myself working much harder to find new and different photo ops. Being a bit laid slowed down by an injury this year kept me from being as active and from ranging as far afield as I usually do, and that certainly played a part.

 

One of the first reactions in a place like this is to zone in on the beauty of the place and the ever-changing scene unfolding as weather moves up, down and across the lake.

 

But after ten years, I found myself thinking, “OK, so I don’t have a photo of the lake with THAT particular cloud formation, but I’ve got eleven dozen with cloud formations that look an awfully lot like that one.”

 

Of course, there will always be the shots of family and our activities, which are a never-ending source of subject matter. When we look back, it’s those pictures that keep the memories of those wonderful times alive.

 

We may always go up to the airport for the Fourth of July Pancake Breakfast, but this is probably the only time that I’ll see my niece’s son – would that be my grand-nephew? I’m still confused about all that stuff – probably the only time I’ll catch him surveying his handiwork on his pancake breakfast like this.

(c) 2009 Stu Estler

(c) 2009 Stu Estler

 

 

In fact there was barely time to lift the camera and press the shutter before the moment was gone. No time to carefully compose, and avoid the bright orange shirt behind him. A bit of localized saturation and tone reduction helped reduce that a little – believe me, that shirt must be neon international orange!

 

When the exciting becomes the ordinary, it’s helpful to go back to the basics, and take a look at things through different eyes.

 

Are you used to framing grand, sweeping panoramas? Switch to a long lens and take a much closer look at things. Concentrate on design, on color, on form instead of on what the subject is.

 

Select a particular focal length lens – even if it’s a particular setting on a zoom lens – and shoot everything, near and far, with that lens.

 

Get closer to your subject, for more intimate shots of people than the comfortable distance you may be used to shooting at.

(c) 2009 Stu Estler

(c) 2009 Stu Estler

In the end, it was on the last morning there, sitting by the water having coffee, that the patterns of light through the water, painting the rocks below, gave me some of my most successful photos.

 

There’s always something new to see no mater how familiar a subject is. It just takes looking at it from a different point of view.

Posted in Cameras, Candids, Composition, Creativity, Digital Photography, Landscape, Learning Photography, Photoshop, Portrait, Travel | No Responses »
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