nature/landscape photo workshops?

[henkelphoto]

Hi guys!

  Just a word about myself then a question. I am a working photojournalist but am wanting to do some landscape photography for fun, so while I consider myself a professional as a news junkie, I’m somewhat more of an “advanced amateur” as a landscape photographer.

  Now my question, have any of you taken a photo workshop as an advanced amateur or professional? If so, was it worth it? I ask because as I look at most workshops on the web, I think, “Heck, why don’t I just use their itinerary and do my own workshop instead of paying them?” This is because the workshops I see seem to be more oriented for the beginner or early intermediate photographer.

  Now, don’t get me wrong, there are many things I could learn from others as we all know that the learning curve in photography is never ending and steeper as you advance, however, can an advanced amateur do one of these and not end up getting bored?

  Thanks for your input!

Jerry

[Paul Sumi]

I guess it depends on what you want to get out of a workshop, and there are a number of reasons to take one:

1) The opportunity to shoot with, and learn from, a photographer whose work you admire.

2) The chance to work in locations you've wanted to photograph but have not previously been able to visit on your own, taking advantage of the workshop leader's prior knowledge of the area.

3) To immerse yourself completely in this discipline and to hone skills and techniques.

4) To exchange ideas, experiences and knowledge with others of like mind.

5) To build a portfolio of images for personal or commercial use.

6) Etc.

I mostly attend landscape workshops for reason #2, but if I had to rank the top 3, the order would be #2, #1 and #3.

Paul

[henkelphoto]

Thanks Paul for your comments. They make a lot of sense.

I guess my best course would be to find a shooter I admire, take the seminar and then sit back and decide if I like it or not. If not, I don't have to do it again and will not be any poorer for the experience anyway!

Jerry

[Tim Gray]

Here's my experience, 2 cents worth, and recommendation...

I've done a couple of workshops with Radiant Vista, one street photography and one landscape in Death Valley.  The con is that most folks are mid level intermediate at best, but the advantage, (and this is something worthwhile checking for any workshop) is that the instrustors (usually 2) don't do any personal shooting during the workshop.  Craig Tanner is a pro and his advice is based on your experience.  The other advantage is that they are reasonably priced, but they don't do very many and they fill up quickly.

Bottom line is that if you're going as a true learning experience understand if the instructor is 100% available.  Most will probably say they always available for questions, but the test is - when not "answering questions" are they doing personal work or not...

[Mike Guilbault]

Tim makes some good points... but it really depends on the instructor and the workshop.  I've been running workshops for just over a year now and find that when you have motivated students, it's hard to do one's own photography - they're full of questions! So I do very little of my own.  However, it doesn't stop me from bringing my camera and setting it up - but it's typically to show the 'participants' something about the scene that they may have missed or offer a different perspective.  Yes, you can learn from a good teacher by copying them, but he/she should also challenge you to create your own vision.

We will often compare images later and without taking the photograph myself, it's harder to critique.  I've often had my images critiqued by a judge telling me I should have moved over a few feet - yeah! right off the cliff!!  Being there and participating in the 'shoot' helps me instruct the participants.

I think what's sometimes more important is the teacher-student ratio.  If the instructor has too  many students, of various skill levels, it's harder for someone with advanced skills to learn anything.  If the instructor uses a smaller ratio, then they will have the time to devote to each student at their level so no one is left out.  They should also encourage the participants to interact with each other which boosts the learning experience for everyone.  Sometimes a veteran will re-discover their own passion from a newby.  Sometimes the pro will learn from the amateur.

The great thing about photography, is that everyone's vision is unique and participating in a workshop strengthens that uniqueness by expanding one's vision through other participants.  A good instructor will take advantage of this to motivate everyone involved.

[Paul Sumi]

Mike also makes some good points and it's great to get the perspective of someone who leads workshops.  

I agree that when participants start working with each other, then everyone benefits.  This type of photography tends to be a personal, solitary pursuit and I find that I get a lot of inspiration from the work I see from other people in the group.

Paul

[Mike Guilbault]

Absolutely!  In fact, one of the reasons I started doing workshops was to re-capture my passion for landscape photography.  I attended many workshops under the late Budd Watson in Midland and learned much of what I know from him.  I've styled my workshops after his... small student ratios and lots of hands on learning.  

With this type of workshop, it really doesn't matter what level the participants are.  I had a workshop last fall that included a mother/daughter.  The daughter was 16 but had a great eye and found perspectives that everyone else, including myself, missed.  I saw the passion in her and it rekindled my own passion.  I know all the technical stuff and that's what one gets comfortable with - but it's the creative process that needs a boost every now and then.

I guess what I'm trying to say, is that you should find a workshop that interests you (the location, the 'theme', or whatever).  Contact the instructor or check out the website to see what the program is and what the student-teacher ratio is and if it looks good, go for it.

[Geoff Wittig]

It depends a great deal on the individual instructors as well as the mix of fellow students. Most workshops are filled with affluent amateurs, i.e. doctors, lawyers and businessmen, with skill levels that are all over the map. Sometimes the sense of affluent entitlement from fellow attendees drove me crazy. ('Course, maybe the others also felt that way about me.)

On the other hand, once an instructor realizes you're asking sophisticated questions about composition & metering strategy rather than "how do I turn this on?", the instruction can be very helpful even if you're already pretty experienced.

I think the greatest advantage to attending a landscape workshop is simply a matter of logistics and experience. A good instructor will know the best possible subject location for the prevailing weather/light on any given morning. If you only have a week (at most) in a special location, having an expert guide with years of experience in that location leading you to an optimal site is great. They've already done the scouting work, and will know which subjects just won't work on a cloudy day. There's nothing more frustrating than spending a bunch of money and precious time off to reach a photogenic location, and finding that the canyon you spent hours hiking to just won't work in the prevailing light.

Just my 2 cents.