I’m am really excited and honoured to be invited to present a Travel Photography Workshop in Nanaimo on June 23rd.  Neil and Adam of Vivid Photography are hosting two great events that weekend, check out the Portrait Photography Workshop too.

Travel Photography Workshop – Nanaimo – Register Today

In this full day workshop, I share specific tips on camera equipment, traveling with computers, tricks on getting sharp images from moving vehicles and more.

What makes a good image and how can I tell a story?

What lens or lenses should I bring and why?

Do I really need to pack a tripod?

How can I make sure my images are backed up while traveling?

Am I allowed to photograph in this location?

How can I get better candid people photographs?

Bring your questions AND YOUR CAMERA!

The morning starts with examples, showing images, answering questions and discussing tips and specific techniques.   After a light lunch together, you will get a chance to walk around and practice those techniques hands on, getting immediate help and answer to your photographic challenges.

We finish up the day with a step by step demonstration of travel workflow techniques using a laptop and Lightroom

Outline of the day:

9:30am Doors open, coffee & tea

10:00 Slideshow discussion on components of strong travel imagery – subject, narrative, composition, technique

11:30 Equipment and travel considerations – lens choices, extreme conditions solutions, model releases, laws

12:30pm Light lunch provided

1:30 Outdoor photo walk (rain or shine) to practice travel photography techniques

3:15 Demo and lecture on travel workflow and back up options using Lightroom

4:30 Question & Answer

Travel Photography Workshop – Nanaimo – Register Today

A translator and guide, opportunities for editorial and documentary portraiture, specific story telling tips, excursions to other towns, one on one photography sessions, group image reviews, technical and creative tips, and more…

Day of the Dead, Photography Tour and Workshop
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
October 27th – November 3rd, 2013
Maximum of 8 participants
$1,995*

Book today.
*Rates increase by $300 on June 7th.
Click here for information
about the amazing city of San Miguel de Allende,
the Day of The Dead celebrations,
and the photography workshop.

Sunday, October 27th, Day 0

There are only a couple of flights a day that get into Queretero, the closest airport to San Miguel de Allende and they arrive late evening.

Your driver will be there to meet you and take you into town, about an hour drive, where you will be welcomed with a light meal at Casa de la Noche (or similar accommodations).

Monday, October 28th, Day 1

A late breakfast and easy start with a walking tour of this unique UNESCO World Heritage Site and the preserved architecture of colonial Mexico. This is a great way to get to know the city and feel more comfortable with the culture.  A casual group lunch in town and time to relax, explore, nap, or immerse yourself in a a one on one session with me.

Your private session can be focused on an area of your photographic development including portfolio review, technical challenges, understanding your personal style, etc… This is your time to take advantage of my years of teaching and photography experience. You will get the best value from this session if you prepare in advance with specific questions or a goal in mind.

A group sunset photography session on the hotel terraces or nearby location before a relaxed dinner at the hotel and casual conversation about our plans for the week.

Tuesday, October 29th, Day 2

Breakfast and presentation on post processing with special attention on architecture and high contrast lighting.  This is a hands on session so be sure to bring your laptop with Lightroom installed.

More one on one sessions or time to photograph on your own, a group lunch at the hotel, and a presentation on visual story telling and building photo essays before our afternoon with one of San Miguel de Allende’s cultural story tellers.

We get to learn about the  ancient traditions and the symbolism of the decorations and celebrations for Day of The Dead and practice our editorial / documentary portraiture and narrative photography techniques.

Dinner together in town at one of the local restaurants and time to download and edit the days images.

Wednesday, October 30th, Day 3

Finish up your image editing and selections over breakfast in time for our first group image review and feedback session.

We will explore a different local restaurant before heading out to visit a Mojiganga builder (or similar Day of The Dead excursion).  These crazy big headed people puppets are a large part of the parades and traditions in Mexico.

After our day of immersion into the preparations for the celebrations and challenging our story telling and people photography skills, we can relax over dinner before heading back to the hotel for image editing.

Thursday, October 31st, Day 4

Our Western traditions have us celebrating Halloween on this day but we have to wait until tomorrow for the Day of The Dead parades in San Miguel.  Today we start with a relaxed morning editing our images over breakfast or heading out to exploring this picturesque, bohemian town on your own.

Our ride to Queretaro, another UNESCO World Heritage Site, has us arriving in time for lunch in the plaza, surrounded by the culture of Mexico and serenaded by local musicians.  Street photography of people, decorated architecture, story telling – you get to practice the techniques with hands on, in the field help and feedback.

Leaving just after sunset to get back for dinner in San Miguel de Allende. If we have the time and you have the energy, we may do another group image review this evening.  We want to be sure to get to bed early though, our day starts at sunrise the next day.

Friday, November 1st, Day 5

Coffee is served bright and early so we can arrive at El Charco Botanical Garden in time for sunrise and a walk through the fresh, morning light.  We have breakfast in these beautiful gardens a few hours later.

Back in town with plenty of time to explore on your own or nap or work on your images in preparation of our next group slideshow.  Lunch is on your own to give you more time to arrange your day.

We meet back together in late afternoon and get ready to photograph the first Day of The Dead parade honouring women and children who are no longer living.  Our group dinner is in town, savouring the energy and activities of this two day celebration.

Saturday, November 2nd, Day 6

The big parade and main festival celebrations don’t start until late in the afternoon (and go until sunrise the next day!).

After breakfast, we will visit one of the local markets overflowing with flowers and other traditional offerings.  Practicing our candid portraits, story telling, and exposure challenges.

Lunch together in town as a group and then a wonder through town to capture the unique altars in the shops and homes.

Our guide and hostess is working on arranging special permission for us to visit a cemetery that is closed all year except for on this day.  An evening session photographing the tombstones and party favours to get us warmed up for the main event.

We will be in the streets, with the people of San Miguel de Allende, celebrating and cheering on the big parade honouring the dead.

This is our last evening together over our farewell dinner.  You may be too exhausted to download and edit your images from this days shooting but hopefully, you have managed to select some favourites for our final group slideshow.

Sunday, November 3rd, Day 7

Our final breakfast together as we reflect on the amazing experiences, incredible stories, and new friendships formed.  The slideshow of our best images is a great send off and celebration of our time together.

Airport transportation for those leaving today.  If you wish to extend your stay, please let our travel agent, Wendy, know and she can make arrangements for you.  Or join me a week earlier for the Boudoir in a Bordello workshop.

Who Should Come?

Photographers of any skill level, from total newbie to experienced enthusiast to emerging professional.  As an experienced photography instructor and tour leader, I customize the tour to the participants.   Your one on one sessions will help you really get the most out of this tour and workshop.  If you are unsure, please feel free to email me.

There is plenty to do in San Miguel de Allende so even if you, or your companion, are not photographers, you are still welcome to join us on this tour.

Options and pricing details here.

Book today.
*Rates increase by $300 on June 7th.

As usual, Vancouver’s weather was fickle – very cold, very wet.  Can you see the rain drops streaking down the frame in this image?  Ya, the shutter speed was 1/125th and there is still motion blur.  It was raining hard!

The group had a fantastic attitude and were keen to keep photographing.  They were really pleased with the variety of locations and kind of jealous about how much Vancouver has to offer photographers – even in the rain!  We had a ton of fun, including doing some experimenting with intentional camera movement.

I absolutely love sharing my passion for photography and for my city by doing photo tours.  It is exciting to share how I see and be inspired by how other photographers see too.  I really hope the people on the photo tour will share some of their images…..hint, hint.

Coming to Vancouver and looking for a unique experience?

Explore this beautiful city with an Expert Photography Instructor
to help you take amazing travel and vacation photos!

Learn new ways to use your camera.

Get a local’s inside tips on the best locations.

Challenge your creativity.

Hands on practice of tips and techniques

I am a local professional photographer and experienced
international, British Columbia, and Vancouver
photo tour leader.
I love helping people take better photos, especially while traveling.

Join one of the already scheduled group photo tours listed on the calendar tab
or
contact me to book your custom Vancouver photo tour today!

Ian Ruhter shows me his first wet plate made in Canada.

I saw my first wet plate image being processed by Ian Ruhter!  One of those totally serendipitous moments in life….

On Friday, April 5th, I was truly inspired by a fantastic panel of photographic artists at a presentation called Pursuing Your Passion.  Four local BC artists and guest,  Ian Ruhter, Alchemist.  You may have seen his Silver and Light video going around the internet?

The panel spoke about their passion, how it drove them, how they kept coming back to central themes or how things changed in their lives once they truly committed to following their ‘voice’. Failures are just opportunities for them to get one step closer to a success.

Katie Huisman spoke about being the voyeur and really looking at people and their faces, exploring themes of repetition, and the balance of working as a commercial and fine art photographer.

David Ellingsen showed the progression of his work and shared the core message – the current state of our environment and the devolution of species – and how he sees his upbringing expressed in his fine art and commercial work.

Using photography to start discussion, to empower children to have stronger voices, to give communities control over the messages being marketed – for media artist Anne Marie Slater,  photography is only one of her many tools for creating dialogue.

My favourite quote of the evening came from Robert Kenney, another artist working both commercially and from his own passion for creativity.  His wet plate collodion collection is breathtaking (on his site, click on the images to see them larger, it’s so worth it!).

“Creativity is not on iPhone app. ” – Robert Kenney

I left filled with inspiration and a sense of reconnecting to *why* I photograph and feel so fulfilled by sharing not just the images I create,  but sharing knowledge with others so that they can create their own images and see their own ‘creative voice speak’.

On Saturday afternoon, I went for a walk with my camera to listen to my passion and practice my craft.  I rounded a corner in the path and spotted a big baby blue truck parked under the Burrard St. Bridge and a man with a tripod camera, and video mic set up.  It wasn’t until I started walking past the truck that I noticed the lens in the back.

This was THE TRUCK!  Ian Ruhter’s Time Machine. This was where magic and alchemy happen!!!!

Ian, Lane, and Madeline were welcoming and gracious as I introduced myself and barely contained my excitement.  Ian had just finished a plate and was posing in front of the truck with it!  What luck!  What timing! A beautiful image and a successful plate.

An amazing experience for me to see the work being washed and to witness that moment of creation of his first wet plate made in Canada.  Fuel for my passion and I am incredibly grateful.

This is the first year I have really made a point of going out to photograph some of the amazing cherry blossoms and magnolia trees that decorate so much of Vancouver.  In fact, there is a website dedicated to the celebration of the delicate cheery blossom – Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival.

Since so many of you shared your lovely images on my Facebook page, I  thought I would share a few more of my favourites here for you.  Please add links to your photographs or post them directly on my fanpage if you want me to offer you some feedback.

Happy spring!!!

Four shooting sessions with models (and a translator if needed) in several different indoor and outdoor locations and times of day. One on one sessions, group image reviews, coaching, posing, and lighting tips.

Boudoir in a Bordello Photography Workshop
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
October 19th – 25th, 2013
Maximum of 8 participants
$1,900*

Book today.
*Rates increase by $300 on June 1st.
Click here for information
about the amazing city of San Miguel de Allende,
the accommodations,
and the photography workshop.

Saturday, October 19th, Day 0

There are only a couple of flights a day that get into Queretero, the closest airport to San Miguel de Allende and they arrive late evening.

Your driver will be there to meet you and take you into town, about an hour drive, where you will be welcomed with a light meal at Casa de la Noche, our home and converted bordello.

Sunday, October 20th, Day 1

A late breakfast and easy start with a walking tour of this unique UNESCO World Heritage Site and the preserved architecture of colonial Mexico. This is a great way to get to know the city and feel more comfortable with the culture.

A group lunch in one of the local restaurants and free time to relax and prepare for our first shooting session with our models.

Starting with a demo and introduction of working with light on location, we have a minimum of two local models (and an interpreter if needed) to explore the many rooms, terraces, and courtyards of the converted bordello and practice our boudoir and figure photography techniques both indoors and out.

A relaxed dinner at the hotel and casual conversation about the session and working with models before an early night.

Monday, October 21st, Day 2

An early breakfast this morning so we can catch the early light as we continue to explore the locations and shooting environments within the bordello.  In groups of two, you will work with the available light and modifiers while getting tips for coaching and posing.

Lunch at the hotel while we download and edit our images for our first group slideshow.  This is also your first chance to take advantage of your one hour, pre-booked private session with Aura.  We can work on everything from basic skills development, personal style development, portfolio review, processing and retouching questions, and more….You will get the best value from this session if you prepare in advance with specific questions or a goal in mind.

Dinner in town this night, to enjoy more of the culture and experiences of this beautiful place. Images for the slideshow should be ready before dinner so when we get back we can relax and enjoy the images we created and get feedback to use for tomorrows session.

Tuesday, October 22nd, Day 3

After breakfast, the morning is yours!  Explore the town, shop for local handicrafts and art, read your book in the shade, edit your images, or do your one on one session with Aura.

The group will meet up in town for lunch before getting picked up in or private vehicle for our excursion to Pozos de Mineral. This abandoned mining town has plenty of olde ruins , deserted courtyards, and unique textures as a backdrop for this afternoon shooting session with models.  Focusing more on composition and working within an environment, we have several hours to get creative while the light slowly changes or go out and explore this histoircal town and artisan community.

A catered dinner in a private courtyard in Pozos will be a tasty finish to an incredible session before heading back to our hotel.

Wednesday, October 23rd, Day 4

A casual breakfast and time on your own until late afternoon.  Enjoy your vacation or if you are feeling extra keen, you have the option to add on a private session with a model at the bordello or an additional one on one session with Aura.  Make a note on your registration and we will make it happen for you!

Make sure you take time to sort through your images and prepare some of them for our group image review slideshow over afternoon tea and snacks.  We break just before sunset so we can take advantage of the gorgeous light before a late dinner.

Thursday, October 24th, Day 5

Another early start so we can head off to our ‘mystery’ location for our final photo session with our models.  Promised to be a interesting indoor location with opportunities for both available light and strobe lighting, we will have 4 hours to put all the feedback and tips into practice while creating strong boudoir and figure photographs.  Small groups, specific coaching and in the moment help, lot’s of time to work with your model – this is the focus of the entire workshop.

A late lunch together before downloading the days images and selecting your favourites for our final group slideshow.  Some of us will be packing up for tomorrow’s departure and some might be staying on for another week to participate in the Day of The Dead tour and workshop.

Our farewell dinner and chance to celebrate the learning and friendships while enjoying more of the fantastic local cuisine.  Tonight’s slideshow will be a ‘best of’ and will showcase the strongest and most creative images that each of you made with our models and of the town.

Friday, October 25th, Day 6

Breakfast and departures.  Transportation to take you back to Queretaro Airport.

Who Should Come?

You should be an fairly confident photographer, comfortable with your camera’s exposure settings, able to read your histogram, and familiar with the practice of exposure bracketing. If you are unsure, please feel free to email me.

While there is plenty to do in San Miguel de Allende, this photography tour is very focused on creating boudoir and figure photographs and does not have special pricing for non-photographers or companions.  However, they are welcome to join us!

Options and pricing details here.

Book today.
*Rates increase by $300 on June 1st.

This BC Winery Tour explores the picturesque Osyoyoos Lake and Okanagan Wine Region of British Columbia with an intimate group of wine and photography enthusiasts.

BC Winery Tour & Photography Workshop
July 11th -14th, 2013
$1,675*

Book today.
*Rates increase by $200 on May 5th.
Click here for information about specific wineries,
the accommodations, and the photography workshop.

Detailed Itinerary Below

Thursday, July 11th, Day 1

Plan to arrive midday to early afternoon for check in to your mountain or lake view room at The Watermark Beach Resort.

Welcome wine and cheese tasting with your host and casual presentation of the tour itinerary and photography events.

Break for evening stroll along the pristine sandy beach in front of the hotel,  or take a dip in one of the hot tubs to unwind from the road before a dinner at the hotel wine bar with the group.

Friday, July 12th, Day 2

Breakfast is served at the hotel until 9:30am, when our first formal photography presentation begins. Non-photographers have a chance to enjoy the poolside patio, book an early morning round of golf, check out the shopping in downtown Osoyoos, or duck into the spa for some pampering or explore the waterfront or…..

Our first winery is Hester Creek and their Terrifino Restaurant for lunch and pairings. Named one of the world’s top 20 Winery Restaurants by Wine Access Magazine, this cozy room with a Tuscan feel is a perfect introduction to BC wineries.

After lunch, we can photograph for a while before heading out to tour, taste and photograph at two more of Okanagan’s best wineries.

Our day ends at Miradoro Restaurant at Tinhorn Creek, a delicious partnership with Manuel Ferreira, owner of Le Gavroche in Vancouver. Panoramic views and a comfortable atmosphere are a perfect background for their seasonal menu and lovely wines.

Saturday, July 13th, Day 3

Breakfast and some Lightroom tips and tricks (or see above) for the first half of the day and lunch at the hotel and time for  prepping your favourite images for our group slideshow.

Our private driver and vehicle picks us up late afternoon for another winery tasting and some great light before our final evening in the Sonora Room at Burrowing Owl Winery. A stunning location and world class reputation make this an obvious choice for our farewell dinner.

Sunday, July 14th, Day 4

Late breakfast together and a group slideshow round out our tour. Or stay! Extend your visit and enjoy some of those great ways to relax.  Take advantage of having access to a nationally accredited fine art photographer and experienced instructor and book a private photography or Lightroom session with me.

Who Should Come?

Anyone with a passion for travel, wine, or photography.  You don’t have to be an experienced photographer for this tour, I tailor my instruction to all skill levels even total newbies.

You don’t need to be a photographer at all! Join us for the tour only and have plenty of time to explore the pristine beaches and downtown shopping in Osoyoos or relax on your private patio, indulge in spa services, or laze away your morning poolside.

Options and pricing details here.

One of my favourite parts of going on a photo tour with other image makers is seeing how differently each of us responds to the subjects and scenes we encounter. I was all about reflections, shadows, and lines yesterday.

f4.0 @ 1/160    ISO 200    +1/3 EV     24mm lens

I’ve always been attracted to dilapidation and detritus (if you use big words it doesn’t sound so much like ‘garbage’) and the idea that as a photographer, I could shift how people thought of garbage.  That somehow, through photography and presentation that instead of being perceived as waste or an eye sore, people would be compelled to hang images of it on their walls.

This particular photo is more street photography than fine art, nothing very special about the camera handling – pretty standard exposures, no real photographic tricks.  However, the seeing and composition are still part of what can take a relatively ‘common’ subject and make it more interesting.

The one big adjustment I did in post (aside from the standard raw file tweak of vibrance, clarity and contrast) is to adjust the distortion from using a wide angle lens and add another 2/3 stop exposure.

Sorrento is a fairly clean and lovely, lemon scented tourist town on the edge of an incredible Italian coast and it is very rare to see graffiti like this.

This years’ photography tour to Italy is almost sold out….be first in line for the 2014 tour (likely the end of June).