October 18, 2007 by Mike Wong • Comments Off
A couple of weeks ago, I had the chance to go shooting with Canon Explorer of Light, Rick Sammon. Rick is a great guy and a lot of fun to hang out with and he really enjoys teaching photography and it shows.
Rick was in Portland for a couple of days working with Pro Photo Supply and Canon and he led a photo shoot in the Japanese Gardens. We had great weather and it was a lot of fun and I even got to try out the Canon EF 16-35 f/2.8 L II lens. Wow. I really want that lens now after shooting with it. Here's one of my shots that I took with it.
Later, Rick stopped several of us and reminded everybody to have fun while shooting and to try new things. Here's Rick teaching one of the attendees how to be creative by setting a slightly longer shutter speed, point the camera down at an object, start rotating the camera and then click the shutter.
Here's my attempt.
So if you ever get a chance to go shoot with Rick, make sure to get out there and do it. You won't regret it. If you can't go shoot with Rick, here's the next best thing.
If you can't get to one of Rick's events here's the next best thing. Rick has a new live-action DVD: Rick Sammon's Canon EOS Digital Rebel Personal Training Workshop. The 1.5 hour DVD covers everything you need to know abou the Canon Digital Rebel XTi and digital SLR photography in general. So even if you don't have a Canon camera, the DVD will help turn your snapshots into a great shot. Learn more here.
All images copyright Mike Wong 2007
August 17, 2007 by Mike Wong • Comments Off
I posted earlier about sessions at Photoshop World Fall 2007 that you don't want to miss on Day 1 of the conference and now here are my Day 2 selections for sessions you won't want to miss.
If you enjoy still life photography or if you make a living at it, you won't want to miss Jim DiVitale's session at 9:30 in the Digital Photography Live Studio Track. The session is called "Still Life Photography Shoot Live" and I can guarantee you that Jim will teach and show you something you didn't know before. I was in Atlanta once last year and stopped by Jim's studio and he gave me an improptu Photoshop class and taught me a ton...but I digress.
If Still Life isn't your thing, go over to the Creativity Track and catch Joe McNally's session on "Shooting for Major Magazines". Joe has a resume second to none and the portfolio to back it up so I'm sure he'll be showing a bunch of his work so this will be a hard one to miss.
At the 11:00 am session block, I would do anything I could to be in Helene Glassman's "Lighting for Digital Portraiture" class. Few things will improve your photography like proper lighting and Helene is one of the best on the subject. To prove it, Helene has been living minutes away from The Brooks Institute of Photography for over 20 years since she graduated from there and has maintained a successful studio even with hundreds of new graduates to compete with each year.
You get a 2 hour break for lunch, so if I were you - here comes a shameless plug, sorry - I'd stop by the onOne Software booth (#515) at 1:00 after you eat. We're giving away an iPhone to one lucky attendee. Stop by our booth on day 1 for details on how to win.
At 2:30pm, I'd make my way over to a new session this year called "Lightroom Power Session" with Chris Orwig. Chris is a new Photoshop World instructor this year and is an amazing photographer - so you'll get to see some great stuff in his demo I'm sure - and a wonderful teacher, not to mention a great guy. Be sure to see him there if you can. If you miss him there, he's got several sessions on the Tech Expo theatre and in the Peach Pit booth.
In the 4pm session, you'll have to choose between Jay Maisel's new "Light, Gesture and Color" and Rick Sammon's "Working Hard at Having Fun in Digital Photography". Jay and Rick have opposite teaching styles so you'll most likely want to pick the session that you think you'll enjoy the most. I suspect Rick will be full of energy and will get the class invovled while Jay tends to be a little more subdued and presents in more of a lecture style. Both sessions will be great I'm sure, just pick the one you think you'll like best.
At 5:15 I'd either go back to the Lightroom track and see Tim Grey's session on "Photographic Workflow in Lightroom" - though if you saw Matt Kloskowski's session at 9:00 on workflow you might be covered. I think I might have to go see Joe Glyda's session on "How to Light for Shooting Food". I'm not a food photographer and I don't plan on becoming one, but Joe is an amazing presenter who is hilarious as well so I would go to this for the sheer entertainment value. Joe has been the top guy at Kraft foods in the creative department for something like 15 years (or more) so you know he's had to figure out some cool and creative ways to stay fresh there.
At 7:00 pm, you will not, I repeat, will not want to miss the "The Art of Digital Photography" presentation. There's no instruction, just a bunch of great slideshows by Jay Maisel, Vincent Versace, John Paul Caponigro, Jim DiVitale, Joe McNally, Moose Peterson and Joe Glyda. Don't miss it.
That's a very busy day 2 but well worth it. I'll post my day 3 recommendations next.
