Richard Kizirian, a Rhode Island based photographer, was kind enough to go to the trouble of helping me arrange a mini-seminar in a studio up in Rhode Island, for Sunday Feb 19th. The topic was again the use of on and off camera flash techniques. Thirteen photographers booked a spot, and in the alloted time of four hours, I tried to cram in as much as I could. It was still based on my online tutorial webpages, but I extended it with a hands-on session where we tried out some of the techniques.

photo courtesy of Eric Turner.
(Myself, Michelle Turner, Hersul, and part of Richard K.)

It really felt good to me at the points where I could see the the reaction in someone - when an idea which had been unclear up until then, suddenly became clear. I loved seeing that. And I know from the reaction there that I received from the others and in subsequent emails, that it had been worth the while for everyone.

Here is part of the one email I received, which felt really good to see as feedback afterwards:

“I want to thank you for your well thought out seminar last week - very much! Your laid back approach to your style of lighting very much de-mystifies the concept of using flash effectively. You stated this not with words but by example. I think the benefit of leading by example is that you offer people an opportunity to make meaning of what they are leaning in a way that works for them, not what works for you. I feel you did this exceptionally well.”

So thank you to everyone who was there, and a special thanks to Richard Kirizian for going to all the effort of arranging the venue, and coming up with the suggestion of doing this in the first place.

On Jan 2nd, I met up with 28 other photographers during a mini photography convention in Mystic, CT. We were all members of the DWF and arranged this get-together as a means of networking. I was asked to do two presentations. For the first one, I decided to hone my numerous postings on various photography forums, into a cohesive presentation on using on-camera flash effectively.

I was astonished by the response the presentation received. I initially thought it might be too elementary in its nature to keep the attention of other photographers, but it appeared that the presentation brought a lot of elements together for some.

A few weeks later I turned it into an online tutorial on my main website
- Techniques in using on-camera flash.

Response to this on numerous photography forums was great. So thanks to everyone who wrote in and replied.

The second part of my presentation was on raw workflow with Adobe Camera Raw.

It was really nice meeting the other photographers, and talking shop. The high-light of the day was listening to, and watching Michael Cody present his work. So much quiet passion and warmth and love for his work was inspiring. I realised there that I need to work harder, and push myself harder.

Anyway, as you can see in these photos of me in action during the presentation, I use my hands a lot! It’s true .. I’m one of those people who can’t talk if they can’t move their hands.