I hope this newsletter finds all of you and your friends and families doing well.
I’m still here in Bethesda staying at home. April is usually one of my favorite times of the year for photographing. There are wildflowers blooming in the parks and tulips blooming in the gardens. And chances are, this year I’m not going to get to photograph any of them.
I’ve put together a new video – Tulip Time – with some of my favorite tulip photographs – to remind all of us of the beauty in the world. My photos are accompanied by a Medley of Voices of Springs Waltz by J. Strauss
Like many other small businesses, I have been figuring out how to adapt to these new and different times we’re living in. I have suspended in person workshops and events through May 30.
My “Do You Need Help Editing Your Photos” sessions have gone virtual. This is a chance for you to learn how Bill and I approach editing, and we’ll show you how we would edit one of your photos in Lightroom and Photoshop. Virtual sessions are limited to 4 people. There is no charge to attend. As I schedule sessions, I let people who have expressed interest in attending know when we have an opening. If you’d like to join the list to attend one of our virtual sessions, just drop me a note at Patty@Hankins.net and let me know.
Bill and I are both available for individual instruction and consultation on using your camera, photo editing (Lightroom and Photoshop) and printing. We can also help with theartistic side of your photography, including seeing, capturing your vision, and how to edit to match your vision. For the foreseeable future, sessions will be held virtually. The fee is $75.00/hour for individual instruction. If you’d like more information about individual instruction or would like to schedule a session, just drop me a note at Patty@Hankins.net and we’ll find a time to talk.
As I’m writing this, we’re expecting the first snow of the season here in the Washington, DC area. And that means it’s going to be a while until the flowers are blooming in the local. So I’m getting my flower fix by photographing in my studio.
If you’d like to join me for a flower-filled afternoon, I’ll be teaching my Photographing Flowers in the Studio Workshop on Saturday January 25th at my home in Bethesda.
It’s a fun workshop. We’ll have lots of flowers to photograph, two light set-ups (strobes and continuous lights), and several different backgrounds. After a brief discussion of how to work with studio lights, it’s time to photograph. No studio experience is required for the workshop.
We limit the workshop to 4 participants to make sure everyone has plenty of time to photograph and get all your questions answered.
It’s my favorite time of the year – Christmas at Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania! Every year I’m amazed and in awe of the incredible job the staff does decorating the Conservatory, the DuPont house and the grounds. I usually make several visits to Longwood during the Christmas season, just so I can capture some of the magic to share.
Here are some of my photos taken in the Music Room. This year, the Music Room is decorated as an old-fashioned Candy Store
I know – you’re thinking – New Year! Are you kidding – it’s not even Thanksgiving yet!
But I wanted to let you know about an event Bill and I have scheduled for Saturday January 4 at our home in Bethesda.
We know many photographers struggle with editing their photos. We have so many options for software – Lightroom, Photoshop, Topaz Studio, On1, Luminar and many others. And each one has incredible tools to help you edit. But the problem is – unless you have a vision for what you want your final photo to look like, you can spend hours making adjustments and changes to your image and still not end up with a photograph you are happy with.
Over the years, Bill and I have developed an approach to thinking about how to edit our photos and the general order in which we do things. And we’re happy to share it with you in case it will help you approach editing your photos. And the great thing is – this approach works with whatever software package you use for editing!
So the details for the “Do You Need Help Editing Your Photos?” afternoon are
Saturday January 4, 1 – 5 PM at our home in Bethesda
10 participants who bring one or two unedited and/or partially edited photo files on a USB drive
Plan is we’ll talk a bit about how we approach editing and then show you how we would edit your photos using Lightroom, Photoshop and whatever else is on our computers in January.
We’ll provide coffee and tea, and ask everyone to bring a treat to share.
Other than that – there is no cost to attend.
If you’d like to join us on January 4, just drop me a note at Patty@Hankins.net. The first 10 people to respond will have a space at the event. I will create a waiting list if more than 10 people reply. And if this one goes well, we’ll try to schedule similar events later in the year.
A couple of people have asked me recently – why am I suddenly sharing photographs of figure models – including nudes, implied nudes, and clothed? Haven’t I always been a flower and nature photographer? The answer is – Bill and I started working with models a few years ago. We took a few classes at a local photograph school, then a few longer workshops, until we were ready to start working with models on our own.
One of the reasons we started working with models was we wanted to expand our photography. We both started as nature and landscape photographers and we both still love photographing nature. But we wanted a new challenge and working with a figure model seemed to be something to explore. It also gave us the chance to learn about studio lighting. And we found we really liked it.
Wee discovered we could explore using the human form to show line and form, light and shadow in ways we couldn’t before.
We also are able to express emotions in a new way in photographs. Experienced models can set the emotional mood of the photo through facial expressions and body language. When we work with the right models, we have creative partners to bring our ideas to life.
If you’ve never worked with a figure model, I can assure you it’s unlike any other photography you’ve ever done before. It’s challenging, but you’re working with a model who really wants to bring your vision to life!
If you have any questions about the workshop – just drop me a note. And if you’re wondering – why nudes?? That’s easy – neither Bill nor I have a great sense of fashion – so when we work with nudes, we don’t have to figure out what to have the models wear.
It’s the time of year again – when I start planning workshops for next year. So far, I’ve got six workshops scheduled over the next several months. Most will be taught here at my home in Bethesda. The one workshop on the road will be my Photographing the Gardens of Philadelphia workshop in May.
All of my workshops are limited to 4 participants. I find I learn better in smaller group, and that as an instructor, it allows me to make sure you get all of your questions answered.
My upcoming workshops are
Photographing a Model in the Studio with Gazelle Powers on December 7.
Bill and I will be teaching an introductory workshop on photographing a fine art figure model. Not only will talk about how to work with a model and how to photograph with studio flash units but you’ll also have a chance to photograph local fine art figure model Gazelle Powers.
Gazelle is a very experienced model. Her poses are always beautiful and elegant. And she is fantastic to work with!!! You will love working with Gazelle.
Photographing Flowers in the Studio on January 25.
Bill and I will be teaching an introductory workshop on photographing flowers in the studio on January 25. We’ll have several types of flowers for you to photograph.
We’ll be working with both continuous lighting and studio flash units – not only will we explain how we light a still life subject, but you’ll also get a chance to photograph using both types of lights. We’ll have several different backgrounds for you to use as well.
Creating Still Life Photographs with Vintage Objects on March 7
Bill and I will be teaching an introductory workshop on creating still life photographs in the studio on March 7. We’ll have my collection of vintage props and full set of studio gear to work with. And I’m sure we’ll have some flowers available as well. You are also welcome to bring your own props to photograph during the workshop.
We’ll be working with both continuous lighting and studio flash units – not only will we explain how we light a still life subject, but you’ll also get a chance to photograph using both types of lights. We’ll have a several different backgrounds for you to use as well.
Adobe Lightroom was developed by photographers for photographers to make organizing and editing our photos easier. It has very powerful features – even after only a weekend you will be able to make your photos look amazing. By editing your photos you can share your vision of what you photographed – not just what your camera captured
During the weekend workshop, we’ll focus on the Library and Develop modules so by the end of the weekend you’ll be able to organize your photos in a Lightroom Catalog, edit your photos, and export them for printing or sharing on the web. You can read more about this workshop at https://beautifulflowerpictures.com/store/introduction-to-lightroom-workshop-april-2020/
Photographing the Gardens of Philadelphia on May 3 – 9
Bill and I will be teaching a workshop designed to help you think about what your vision for a photo is and how to edit it so that you can share your vision with others.
We’ll focus on specific Photoshop tools used for cleaning up your image and adjusting contrast and color. Photoshop layers and masks are powerful tools for both global and local changes to your photo. These tools allow you to establish a workflow that helps you create images that share your vision.
