Classes

We’ve all been there. Midday portraits with the sun out in full swing. Reception halls with yellow walls and black carpet that eats up all the light. In this class, we’re covering how to take that ugly ass light and shape it exactly how you want it to create GORGEOUS images no matter the time of day.

Does the word audio scare the heck out of you when it comes to filmmaking? Let Josh and Jen show you how to capture crisp clear. They will take you through the gear that they use to capture audio, preferred methods when it comes time to edit the audio, and how to make your audio sound the best you can so you will no longer lose sleep at night!

If you have ever struggled with posing your portrait client, this class is for you! I will teach the basic “rules” of posing for guys and gals along with the “whys”. These are tips and techniques you can apply to all clients including headshot clients and even family sessions. Some of the things you will learn are:
• Why Pose Your Subject
• Posing Rules, Guidelines, & Tips
• Masculine Versus Feminine Posing
• Posing Hands
• Directing the Pose
• Flow Posing
• Body Language
• The Power of the Pre-session Consultation
• The Importance and Power of Wardrobe
• Overcoming Posing Obstacles
• Posing Curves
• Directing the Expression
• Posing Props
• How to use the posing basics with family sessions

Using a “life-like” doll, this course will demonstrate posing techniques for infant bereavement photography that will help those interested in providing this service to produce images that convey a family’s love for their child loss through beautiful and heartfelt posing, rather than harsh realities. It is, of course, advised that photographers receive assistance from nursing staff in these situations, but this course will give you the skills and techniques to guide them in helping to position babies and families in a loving way.

Learn how to effectively brainstorm to come up with a theme for any styled shoot. You can’t just slap up whatever in the shot and expect it to look like a cohesive image, you’ll need to plan. But so many options can be overwhelming. How can you pare things down to fit in a theme, or even a budget?
-you’ll participate in planning a themed session
-learn brainstorming techniques you can repeat for any theme or session type
-learn how to translate all of your ideas to an actual shiot

I’ll discuss how to construct a brand that stands out from the pack by creating imagery that pushes your clients experience beyond just traditional boudoir. Attendees will learn how the addition of maternity boudoir as well as more epic editorial boudoir styled sessions incorporating elaborate wardrobe and locations will separate their brands from the competition. I will dive into how to market these types of sessions so that they develop an exclusive, luxury, must have feel to attendees clients.

You don’t need a ton of fancy equipment to create gorgeous boudoir photos. One light & different modifies is all you need!
Learn 5 different one-light setups to create images that will blow your clients away.

The very words “Stress Free” and “Newborn Session” never go together do they?
How are you supposed to create a masterpiece in this chaos? In this class, you’ll learn pre-session planning and how to cater to these situations before they arise, ensuring a smoother session. This is your how-to on going from possible disaster to a smooth, successful, stress-free, session that leads to Fine Art…Mind Blowing Sales! I will teach you how to nail your session by being prepared, confident, in control, and the authority in your studio!

Here’s what we’ll cover:
• What Clients are looking for in a Newborn Session before they book you.
• My Game Plan on how to Expect the Unexpected.
• How To Change the Perception of being a Photographer
• Address the top 5 challenges we face in our genre
• What makes your session Smooth and in control.
• Mapping out your Shoot
• Prop Pre-Selection (Tips on how to shoot to sell more from the very start)
• Preparing your Client and Setting Expectations (Session & Sale).
• Learn the top mistakes that cripple your studio and how to avoid them.
• Getting Organized with our props
• Secrets to Soothing – when the pressure is on.
• Keeping Mom excited, prepared and relaxed.
• What TOP element is needed for your clients to be comfortable paying you thousands a session?

Often we think about what we can do to make a session go smoothly, but we don’t spend a ton of time helping the client be ready for us. In this class you will learn to master BOTH. A game plan is everything. Let me help you make stressful sessions a thing of the past.

Participants in this workshop will learn different lighting techniques to conquer wedding receptions and the various events that occur, including the first dances, garter/bouquet toss, speeches, as well as how to get those crazy awesome dance floor shots regardless of the type of venue. I will show how to get story telling images using a combination of off camera and on camera flash. For the dance floor demo, we will crank up the music and all dance the night away (or afternoon, lol) as we take turns dancing and shooting and creating memorable images the bride and groom will love and their friends will be totally jealous of. Bring your camera and your dancing shoes.

Being a quality photographer means that you can provide consistent imagery, every time. Learn alongside Vanessa as she photographs while focusing on style, posing, expression and lighting – all that match her brand and her client expectations. Then get back in the classroom to see how she edits, keeping her promised style in mind, to deliver photos that her clients love.

*Bring camera gear + laptop to edit (or phone if you can Wifi your photos from your camera and edit from there)

Participants will learn how to get started with personal brand photography. Participants will learn what important questions to ask during a consultation, how to market branding services, guidance on how to price services, tips on ways to increase average order value (AOV), camera gear, client management systems, client journey, and so much more. Towards the end of class website and social media audits will be performed for those who are looking for feedback and guidance.

Did that photograph make you hungry? If it doesn’t, it should! Your main goal in a food photograph is to make the viewer want it. This class will improve your food photography with basic techniques in the art of food photography. Learn composition essentials that will make every photo wanting you to run to the grocery store. This is a beginning food photography class. You will learn how to select foods, linens, colors, shapes, props, and anything you can to make people say: I want to eat THAT.

Learn HOW to make people want to EAT it, food that is. This hands on class will teach YOU how to make the juiciest foodie photograph. From dramatic lighting for an old fashion, to pasta that would make even the nicest Italian grandmother run to the kitchen. This class will focus on the how’s, the why’s, and the just get in there and do its. Use the art of composition and the drama of storytelling to bring emotion out through your food photograph.

Looking for a way to stand out in your market, set yourself apart from the competition and serve your clients in a new and exciting way? Video is the answer! Video will give you the power to diversify your income, charge more for your services and be the go-to person for all of your client’s visual needs.

In this program we will walk through the steps you can take to start adding video to your photography business. Whether you are new to video, or you have started to dabble in filmmaking, this class will give you the tools you need to understand why video is important and how you can make it work for your photography business. After this session you will walk away with the tools you need for getting started with video and the knowledge to make it a thriving addition to your photography business.

Learning Objectives

Explore why video is so important and how it can transform your business
Learn the steps you need to transition your business from photos only to offering both photography and video services
Discover how to craft your video portfolio and create a cohesive visual voice
Learn to price and package your photo + video offerings for profit
Discuss how to sell and market your films to your new and existing clients

Our world is ever-changing, growing, and becoming more inclusive of all lifestyles. For far to long boudoir has been only about empowering women. Today, that is not enough. We are going to show you some easy ways to become a more inclusive studio and how to photograph all people.

PART ONE – this portion will be helpful for all types of studios, not just boudoir.
* Create an inclusive environment for everyone, starting from first contact.
* Understanding relationship dynamics & how they affect interaction and session planning
* need to know verbiage & key terms
* safety & boundary communication
* Session prep etiquette

Our world is ever-changing, growing, and becoming more inclusive of all lifestyles. For far to long boudoir has been only about empowering women. Today, that is not enough. We are going to show you some easy ways to become a more inclusive studio and how to photograph all people.

IN PART TWO – we will dedicate this time to shooting boudoir for all people. We set up models and have assistants to make sure that students rotate to get a chance to work with several dynamics including (this list will be adjusted day-of based on available models)
* female identifying
* male identifying
* non-binary
* CIS couple
* same-sex couples
* lifestyle partners (more than two people in a relationship)

We will also touch on how to incorporate props & use information from part 1 to personalize your shoots.

Let’s talk about pricing and presentation, then you’ll sit in on an actual REAL sales appointment and listen to what I say and how I present images.
-overcome your fear of IPS
-build a price sheet that works
-understand how to limit choices any why it works
-learn how to shut up and why talking more can lower your sales

In this class you will learn how to prepare your clients since the first meeting to the big day ( the IPS meeting ) one of the most exiting meetings in my opinion, you will learn how to present your images, how to present your products and the most important part, how to finalize your meeting with an amazing sale that can double or triple the original price of your contract.
Do you think that you are not ready to sale products? in this clase you will learn to introduce products to your business and what is the best way to sale them with no experience as a sales man.
be ready to increase your income with every contract, the inicial contract price is just the beginning of a great sale.
Quinceaneras, the art of making money

We are going to be learning how to pose young ladies (seniors – models) . I’m not gonna teach you generic poses, We will be breaking it down into faces, arms, hands, legs, feet and bodies. We will be twisting and turning, extending and pointing to make the most out of every body type. We will learn how to build poses that match a situation and the unique features of each person. There will be lots of good and bad examples so that you can see how not to do something too!
Communication is key to quickly getting the results you and your client want and we will focus on how and what to say too!

Learn amazing poses and the art of using angles that are most flattering to your subjects and the camera. This hands-on course will help you understand the need for angles when photographing, learn the poses, and then apply them in this class. When shooting, your class with be broken down into smaller groups for an intimate hands-on experience.

– Why we use angles
– Lighting techniques
– Posing

Marketing is all about potential clients remembering who you are. When they are looking for a photographer, you want them to think of you. Its really that simple, but how do we get there?

This class will dive into marketing for photographers. We live in a world of photographers. We can throw a rock down the street and probably hit a few photographers before it hits the ground. There are literally photographers everywhere in our markets, so how do we stand out? How do we rise above? How do we get people to see us and not get lost in the sea of other options?

We will dive into marketing techniques to create a brand that stands out. We will discuss ways to use images in our marketing that gets attention. We will discuss some ways to do free marketing in addition to paid options like Facebook ads. You will learn to create a marketing plan that allows you to be noticed. This is a dive into the marketing world that will help you build and maintain your business.

LED Lighting has become so versatile and necessary. We will use multiple setups to create killer dynamic images for your senior and fashion photography. We will use one-Two-three light setups for portrait and stop action motion photography (Yes Really!). We will be using Studio Heads, Wands and Panels to create different looks and feels. Never tape a gel to a 7″ cone again because these lights come with 256 colors to conquer any lighting look. Even though this is Live Demo class you will be able to shoot as we go because no triggers are required.

Everyone uses flash nowadays for portraits, but did you know you can use LED lighting equally well? The best part is, you’ll be able to visually see how the light will affect your subject as you change it! LED lights have improved dramatically over the years, and I’d love to show how you can use everything, from bare LED’s to modified LED’s to create the shot you want.

If off camera flash scares you, come to my hands-on LED class! You’ll learn:
-How to use LED lights in any lighting situation
-Use LED lighting to see your shot “live”
-What different modifiers do to your lighting

Since this is hands-on class, you’ll walk away with images that you can use for your portfolio. Please bring your camera, and preferably a long lens, such as a 70-200. You won’t need a trigger since it’s LED lighting! We can all shoot at once!

In this class I will show you how I create my dramatic studio portraits. You will learn some of my favorite light setups, how I use gels to create interesting portraits and some of the diffusers I use the most to create my dramatic portraits.

-Learn some of my favorite light setups
-How to use gels in studio to create dramatic portraits
-How to use V-flats, spot light, and many other light diffusers to create dramatic portraits.

Learn how I use available light, adjust white balance, what lenses I choose and the camera settings I love to use at every wedding to create images that stand out, remain similar and help define my style to ultimately attract my ideal clients.

How do we succeed as photographers? We are problem solvers! Learning to change the perspective and view problems as challenges, and now it’s all about finding that success by overcoming the challenge of the day. Low ceilings, bad light, cramped spaces, nothing going as planned…what do you do? What do YOU do?
In this lecture, Westcott Top Pro Ian Spanier will share his stories on set working with athletes, celebrities and more. Take a deep dive into how to face up to the challenges, overcome those challenges, and how you too can change your perspective for this recipe toward success!

In this class you will learn different lightning techniques to create images that will make you stand out from others, you will learn one of the most important parts in photography, composition, I will show you how to compose your Quinceañera in any location in order to create those beautiful wall art portraits that mom and dad won’t hesitate to buy.

This class is about lighting techniques for fine art nude photography. The live demo will feature a photoshoot with both male and female models who will NOT be nude, so please do not attend for a cheap thrill. The class is intended for a mature audience and the slides will include partial and full artistic nudity, both male and female.

If you shoot fitness, boudoir, bodyscapes, fine art portraiture, or even fantasy composites, these lighting and posing techniques are all directly applicable!

During the live demo photoshoot, I will tether my camera to the display so everyone in the class can see the shoot unfold in real-time. You will learn new lighting techniques and you will see first-hand how I guide people through posing regardless of their experience.

You will learn advanced off-camera flash techniques to accomplish specific goals:
– Painterly-style lighting inspired by Classical and Renaissance oil paintings.
– Chiaroscuro (dramatic light and shadow) in the style of a Caravaggio masterpiece.
– Blending soft light with gelled hard light to accomplish a look I call “Gods and Goddesses”, a modern take on dramatic lighting.
– Hard and soft-edged bodyscape lighting to explore the blurred lines between abstract and erotic depictions of the human form.
– Highlighting body scapes with sharp, dramatic silhouettes.

Throughout the live demo, you will observe and learn essential posing techniques:
– Contrapposto as a starting point, especially useful for inexperienced subjects.
– Using my shoot-review-refine process to build confidence and improve posing.
– How eye contact (or not) impacts the mood of a picture.
– Guiding the subject into tense and compressed versus delicate and soft body language to convey competing emotions.
– What the hell should they do with their hands?

Hybrid with hands on so you will shoot. Just maybe a more detailed purposeful demo to start the session. Let’s get down and dirty with Studio Lighting. One light setup is the thing but the serious Light Chefs are made in the studio. Let’s walk through three studio lights set ups. A one light , a two light, and a three light station all set up and ready to rip. 30 minute demo on the whys and the what’s I’m looking for. Shoot with purpose and get some cool fashionable imagery with all three setups. Even be a light stand so you can see the purpose and direction of a light.