1^st Annual Blossom Kite Festival:
A Photographic Storytelling Workshop

Sunday, March 27, 2011, 12:30-4:30 PM

Level: Intermediate/Advanced

*Before enrolling in this workshop, students should have a good grasp of aperture, shutter speed, and ISO, and be capable of using aperture priority and shutter priority camera modes.

Spring is in the air with the National Cherry Blossom Festival’s first ever Blossom Kite Festival, including a Kite Makers Competition, Hot Tricks Showdown, and Rokkaku Battle.  During the Hot Tricks Showdown, multi-line sport kite fliers will engage in a series of one-on-one competitions, aweing the crowd with amazing flight patterns timed to music.  The crowd chooses the winners with the loudness of their clapping!  And during the Rokkaku Battle, teams of kite fliers compete to “cut” or ground the kites of the opposing team – featuring hexagonal-shaped Rokkaku fighter kites originating from Japan.

While you may have already honed your photography skills, and you may have many terrific photos, telling a story through a series of photographs is a much different skill, and this year’s 1^st ever Blossom Kite Festival promises to be a terrific opportunity to hone skills in both people photography AND storytelling.

Click here for more information about the Blossom Kite Festival.

Click here to register for this workshop.

What to Bring:

• Your digital SLR camera (preferred) or film SLR camera.  If you don’t have an SLR camera, than at least bring your point-and-shoot camera that permits adjustment of aperture, shutter speed, and ISO.
• Your camera lenses, ideally a wide angle and a telephoto.
• Your camera manual.

Where to Meet:

Washington Monument grounds – Constitution Avenue & 17th Street, NW

Schedule:

12:30-1:30 PM: Storytelling

Creating compelling imagery of people is a very different skill from photographing architecture, nature, or landscapes.  Creating a compelling story takes us a step farther still.  We’ll discuss:

• The photo essay
• Power and impact
• Photographing people
• Composition

1:30-4:00 PM: Let’s Go Photograph!

1:30-2:00 PM – Kite Makers Competition
2:00-3:00 PM – Hot Tricks Showdown
3:00-4:00 PM – Rokkaku Battle

Students will work together to explore the event and create their photo essays, with input from me.

4:00-4:30 PM: Photo Critique

We’ll find a quiet place to look at the images you got!  You’ll show us your photo essay and talk us through each element.  We’ll also talk about the power and impact of your images and how the choices you made changed the message of the image/essay.

After-Workshop Critique

After the workshop, you’ll send me the six most important images to your photo essay, which I’ll post on my blog as a slideshow.  Each photo essay will also be posted in a private viewing site, which only workshop students have access to.  I will provide a photo critique of each student’s images/essay.

STUDENT WORK FROM PAST WORKSHOPS

Also click on the links below to view student work from past photography workshops:

- Art of Architecture: Photographing the Franciscan Monastery
- Photographing the DC Memorials from Evening to Night
- Light and Motion: Photographing the Montgomery County Agricultural Fair

Click here to register for this workshop.

Do you have an expensive camera that you don’t know how to use? Do you always shoot on automatic? Do you wish you could take better photos of your children? Do your photos often end up under or overexposed? Do you wonder why your photographs lack impact? Do you wish your photographs could equal your vision?

If you answered yes to any of the questions above, then this workshop is for you.

Learn photography basics, including how to use aperture, shutter speed, and ISO to control exposure and depth-of-field. Learn your camera controls and delve into composition to make photographs with impact. And learn while enjoying the fun and festivities of this year’s St. Patrick’s Day parade in Gaithersburg, Maryland!

View the complete lesson plan and registration details here for this March 12th people photography workshop in Gaithersburg, Maryland.

Also click on the links below to view student work from past photography workshops:

- Art of Architecture: Photographing the Franciscan Monastery
- Photographing the DC Memorials from Evening to Night
- Light and Motion: Photographing the Montgomery County Agricultural Fair

January marks the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, a historic decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to make abortion legal.  Each January, pro-life Americans rally and march along the Mall in Washington, DC for the March for Life, with an additional feeder march.  Pro-choice groups may also gather on the Mall in smaller numbers.  In 2011, the March for Life Rally has filed and received a permit from the National Park Service for 50,000 demonstrators.

This year’s March for Life and Roe v. Wade rally promises to be a terrific opportunity to hone skills in people photography AND storytelling.  At this workshop, you will work on telling the story of Roe v. Wade and the March for Life. This workshop is for students at the intermediate/advanced level.

View the complete lesson plan for Roe v. Wade and March for Life: A Photographic Storytelling Workshop in Washington, DC here.

Register for Roe v. Wade and March for Life: A Photographic Storytelling Workshop in Washington, DC here.

Are you still a beginner with your camera? Or do you have a different photographic learning agenda? Or are you simply not available on January 24th? Check out my private photography lessons, which are tailored uniquely to YOU.  View more information about private photography lessons in Maryland/DC/Virginia here.

Some of you might remember that I’m running a photography workshop called Light the Night: A Photographic Storytelling Workshop at the Light the Night charity walk in Washington, DC on October 16th.  In preparation for the 16th, Idrissa and I drove down to Rockville this evening to check out the Rockville event.  It was a WHOLE LOT OF FUN.  Light the Night/Leukemia & Lymphoma Society did an AWESOME job organizing the event.  The walkers were clearly glad to have an opportunity to contribute to the battle against cancer, and they were out in full force.  The band was terrific, and children and adults alike were a-dancing!  Check out a selection of photos below.  (I was so excited, I did a quick edit as soon as I got home.)  I’ve just sent a lightbox of >50 images to Light the Night, if they’d like to use any of them on their website, etc.  I can’t wait for the DC event next weekend!  If you’re interested, it’s not too late to sign up for Light the Night: A Photographic Storytelling Workshop. Click on the link to view the detailed lesson plan and registration details!

We bought our tickets for Burkina Faso yesterday!  We are really getting excited about this 1-month trip.  The reason to go in November is Tabaski, the biggest West African holiday of the year, and my absolutely favorite African holiday.  Oh, the food!!!  Every year at Tabaski, families in villages across much of West Africa roast a whole goat or sheep around large fires.  It takes the entire day for the meat to cook, but a real feast is in store that evening!  What isn’t gobbled up by the next day is then cut into cubes and boiled in oil for a few minutes, and set out on aluminum sheets to dry in the sun.  It’s the West African version of beef jerky, but way better!  The outside is crisp and salty, but once you bite in, you’ll quickly find the inside to be wonderfully moist and tender.  It will last for months, although when I was a Peace Corps volunteer in Niger, my share would only ever last a few weeks, because it was so good and tasty, and I would finish it up much too quickly!  Then, alas, I would have to wait for the next year to come…  I haven’t had Tabaski food since…1998!!!  That is…TWELVE YEARS!!!  Also, it seems that we may be able to attend a family wedding while we’re there.  It’s being planned for the day before Tabaski!  That will be a terrific cultural experience.  Remember, you’ve still got time to pre-purchase Burkina Faso fine art photography at up to a 50% discount!

So I’ve just finished pre-registration for my new intermediate/advanced photography workshop on October 16th – Light the Night: A Photographic Storytelling Workshop.  Light the Night is an annual charity walk organized by the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.  Each year, communities across the US and Canada join together to raise funds, bringing help and hope to people battling blood cancers.  Walkers carry illuminated white, red, and gold balloons as they walk.  White balloons designate survivors, red is for supporters, and gold balloons are in memory of loved ones lost to cancer.  Each walk usually brings 2,000 to 3,000 walkers, and pre-walk festivities are marked by live music and carnival games.

I’ve arranged with Light the Night for my students and me to have volunteer status and access to the event.  It’s going to be a terrific opportunity to hone skills in people photography, night photography, AND storytelling. At this workshop, you will work on telling the story of Light the Night and the battle against cancer. With pre-registration completed, I’ve only got two seats left in this workshop.  View the full photography workshop lesson plan here, and register for the workshop here.

Also, registration is still open for my October 2nd Art of Architecture: Photographing the Washington National Cathedral workshop.  View that photography workshop lesson plan here, and register for that workshop here.

And finally, don’t forget that October is Family Portrait Month, and your portrait session in October or booked in October for a future month can help to save a child’s smile!!!

Here’s the text of a press release that I issued last week about Family Portrait Month:

Local Photographer Supports October “Family Portrait Month” Promotion To Benefit Operation Smile

By Irene Abdou Photography

Summary: During October, Irene Abdou Photography of Germantown, Maryland joins PPA Charities in promoting “Family Portrait Month,” a fundraising effort benefiting Operation Smile, which treats children suffering from facial deformities.

During October, Irene Abdou Photography of Germantown, Maryland joins PPA Charities (the philanthropic arm of Professional Photographers of America) in promoting “Family Portrait Month.”  This national fundraising effort will benefit Operation Smile, which treats children around the world who suffer with cleft lips, cleft palates and other facial deformities.

Irene Abdou Photography has pledged to contribute $25 plus 10% of print sales over $200 from family portrait sessions conducted in October or booked in October for future months to PPA Charities, which has chosen Operation Smile as its charitable partner.  According to Louis Tonsmeier, President of Professional Photographers of America, “October and November are ideal times for families to have their portraits created, because the holiday season is just around the corner.  Few gifts are appreciated as much as portraits of family members.  And when families participate in Family Portrait Month, they are making it possible to truly change the lives of children who would otherwise face a lifetime of pain and rejection.”

Founded in 1982, Operation Smile is a worldwide children’s medical charity dedicated to helping children and young adults born with facial deformities.  In as little as 45 minutes, one cleft lip surgery can change a child’s life forever.  Each year, more than 100,000 children are born with a facial deformity in Operation Smile’s 26 partner countries.  Tens of thousands remain untreated.

“Joy, excitement, love…these are emotions that we all show through a smile, and a child’s smile can melt a parent’s heart.  I love that my job is to fuse art and photojournalism to create images that are simply unforgettable.  But I can’t forget that a smile is key to that, and I’m incredibly happy that I can help to save a smile by participating in Family Portrait Month,” says Irene Abdou, photographer and owner of Irene Abdou Photography.  PPA Charities Board of Trustees president Mary Fisk-Taylor adds, “It’s hard to imagine a more appropriate charity for our members to support.  And when parents participate in Family Portrait Month, it’s a wonderful way to teach children the value of reaching out to others.  Even small children can understand the importance of Operation Smile’s work, and they are eager to help these needy children.”

For further information on how you can help to save a smile with your family portrait session, contact Irene Abdou at (202) 596-8147 or visit her online at http://ireneabdouportraitsweddings.com.

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Irene Abdou Photography fuses art and photojournalism to create images that are simply unforgettable. Serving the Washington, DC metro area and destinations worldwide to meet your portrait, wedding, and event photography needs.

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Last week, I taught a photography workshop on Light and Motion: Photographing the Montgomery County Agricultural Fair. The students and I had a great time; everyone agreed that the fair is a great subject for a photography workshop!  What better place to learn about night photography?  And of course, everyone got some great photos, so all of you, pat yourselves on the back!  Here’s a selection of some of the students’ work here.

(Click on “View with PicLens” for a full-screen slideshow.)

[Show as slideshow]

[View with PicLens]

I’ll also be posting critiques of each image on a private viewing site – students, you’ll be getting an invitation from me this coming week to view the site!

I didn’t take any photos myself during the workshop, as I wanted to focus on the students, but I was able to head back to the fair for two hours last night before getting scared off by the beginnings of a drizzle.  I’ll post a selection of my own fair photography soon…

And, over the next few weeks, I’ll be planning my next group photography workshop.  I’ll probably only have time for one more workshop in September/October before I head off for a month in Burkina Faso, West Africa.  I’m thinking that my next workshop will be on something “horsey”…horse races…polo…rodeo…  Let me know if you’re interested!  I always give students who pre-express interest first dibs at registration!

Last week, I posted a photo of Troy Turner, Ike & Tina Turner’s nephew, singing away the blues at the Blues Club on New Orleans’s famed Bourbon Street.  One of my students saw the post and asked me how I made the shot, so I thought I’d tell you here on my blog.  So here goes!

When a friend and I first walked into the club, the waiter ushered us to a seat close to the stage, but on the side.  That didn’t make for a very good perspective, so I asked to sit instead at a table that was farther away, but slightly closer to center.  Since I didn’t want to really stick out so much by standing and moving around to take my shots, it was important to choose the best position at the beginning.

I put my Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM lens onto my Canon 5D Mark II camera, zoomed into 200mm, opened the aperture wide to f/2.8 and set the ISO to 1600.  On manual, I selected a shutter speed of 1/80 seconds.  (I don’t remember if I came up with the 1/80 shutter speed right away.  I probably experimented with a few shutter speeds, chimping along the way, to find the slowest possible shutter speed needed to get a sharp image with the proper exposure, to come up with 1/80 seconds.)  I also might have been bracing myself by setting my elbows on the table, but I don’t remember.  Here’s what I got of the singer who opened for Troy Turner.  The camera would probably say this image is underexposed, but well, it should be.  It was dark in there, after all, and I want to retain the mood of the scene.

After zooming in and inspecting the image on the back of my camera, I decided that 1/80 seconds wasn’t fast enough.  So I upped my ISO to 3200 and my shutter speed to 1/160 seconds, resulting in these images of Troy Turner.

OK, fast forward to back at the hotel/home.  I shot the images in RAW – so in color.  I converted the first image to black & white in Adobe Photoshop Lightroom and cloned out one distracting small spot of light in the left hand side of the frame.  The next two images of Troy Turner, again, I have color and monochrome versions.  Using the local adjustment brush in Lightroom, I burned (made darker) some of the lighter areas of the images that I found distracting.

And folks, that’s it!  I think this shoot was pretty straightforward!