12 Months on Film

Over the years, in my professional as well as my personal and creative life I am resigned to the fact that I need to be pushed, motivated, inspired and competitive to DO THE WORK. And that’s okay. It’s also probably why I don’t live on an isolated sparsely populated island. It’s also probably why I will some day seek out that island. :)

Enter a new photography challenge for me. I have bags and shelves and a closet full of vintage film cameras and I need a reason to go through each one and shoot it and decide if it is worth keeping. I also have a freezer and refrigerator full of film. I am psyched to have the framework of shooting a different analog camera and different film every month. For January I chose one of my Holgas and Ilford HP5 b/w film. I took my camera on a walk in my neighborhood and I am happy to share the results here!

Over the last few months, the google algorithms have been working some magic for me. I’ve suddenly been getting new inquiries for photo sessions, weddings and photography classes as well, right here in Santa Barbara. My weekends have been getting booked with all these opportunities and I am so excited to be back in the game after taking an extended break after moving to California. SO. Take a peek at my Classes tab and or my People Gallery and send me a message! Right now I am teaching in-person hands-on camera and photography classes on the weekends in Santa Barbara and I have loved seeing the ‘a-ha’ moments with the people I am teaching and they are producing some great work too!

Coffee and Cameras-Everyday Storytelling

The next Coffee and Cameras class series is March 13th, 20th, and 27th!  This is a Tuesday morning class for adults 9:30-11am, held at 1345 Breton Rd, EGR.

This class is designed to help you curate the little details in your everyday life and turn them into art for the walls.  The added benefit is learning to operate your camera along the way and to refine your composition and perspective skills. This series is appropriate for all skill levels and will cover the camera basics to shoot in manual mode and learn to perfect your exposure. We will choose a personal project to work on and then finish with critique, basic editing, storing, sharing and printing options.  Class fee is $150 and due to the personal attention given to students is open for up to 6 participants only.  (e) denarobles@gmail.com to register

Learn to Shoot Portraits

Parents! Grandparents! Nannies!  This fall learn to photograph your favorite kids, in all their glorious silliness.

This fall's session of Coffee & Cameras is learning to shoot portraits of your kids and create artwork like this.  The 3 part class will start at learning to work that fancy-camera-with-all-the buttons-and-the-lens-that-changes, aka DSLR, with the optimal settings for portraits. Next we learn how to set up a simple shooting space and how to engage your subject.  This session is what I call the 15 Minutes of Fame!  We finish the class off with learning to cull and edit your photographs and assemble and print a storyboard collage for your home.  No experience necessary, camera and cute kids are.

DATES:  

Wednesday mornings, 10:00-11:30 -- October 11, 18, 25

or

Sunday afternoons, 3:30-5:00 --October 15, 22, 29.

All the Info:

• Classes are limited to 4 adults, your kids will model for you at home
• Classes are 1.5 hours long for 3 weekly meetings
• Your choice of Weekday mornings or Sunday afternoons beginning October, times & dates as follows: Wednesday mornings, 10:00-11:30 October 11, 18, 25 or  Sunday afternoons, 3:30-5:00 October 15, 22, 29.
• Tuition is $150 + printing

FAQ

What kind of camera will I need?  A DSLR is best suited for this class and for the designed instruction.  There are some great hybrid cameras on the market now which are small and easy like a 'point and shoot' but still allow you to change all your exposure settings for optimal portrait performance.  I am happy to advise you on your camera choice.

I have a good camera and am interested in learning to use it for portraits, but have no idea what all these buttons and dials are for, is this class right for me?  In a word, yes!  In more words, this is a project based class specific to shooting fun portraits of your child in a simple set up and in controlled lighting (don't worry, these examples are all window light!)  Since we are focusing on one outcome here, all the skills needed for this will be learned along the way. Later Coffee & Cameras classes could cover the camera skills needed for sports photography, storytelling lifestyle photos, creating artwork for the home, etc.

Are there any hidden expenses?  Well.  Sometimes I have to bribe my kids to allow me to photograph them.  If you learn this and have fun with it you might find yourself wanting to spend meeeellions of dollars on new cameras and lenses, but I don't recommend it!  For the class, I will make recommendations on where to print your final artwork, and the cost incurred will depend on the size you choose to print (around $3-$30)  The set up here is super simple, if you don't have a blank wall in your home next to a window, you may want to hang a sheet, or purchase a large piece of foam core (about $5.)

Am I limited to this black and white look? Nope.  This is what I will be teaching for this class, but you can make adjustments to suit your style.  Here are some examples from previous 15 Minutes of Fame sessions.

Interested? Have questions?  send me an email, denarobles@gmail.com