Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Learning to See

I want to show you a couple more pictures I took during Ibarionex Perello's workshop. (I'm proud of this one.)

When you arrive at the workshop, which begins at Memorial Park and takes you trekking through Old Town, you'll be greeted by Ibarionex, his wife Cynthia, and probably a few of their friends. With smiles. And hot coffee. It sets the tone.

Then, like ducklings following your leader, you head out into Old Town in search of challenge, texture and, most of all, light. Ibarionex will give you some basics about using your digital SLR camera, then you're going to start chasing the light and learning to see in new ways.

For my first couple of years of blogging I worked with an Olympus SP350, a nice, purse-sized point-and-shoot that had some manual settings I never used. I still shoot with it sometimes (with the automatic settings) but not as much. I learned a lot and I was ready to move on to a better instrument.

I met Ibarionex at a local blogger event about two and a half years ago. We had already met online. Some time after that first meeting I bought a Canon 20D from him. It might have some of his mojo, but I'll never know unless I learn how to use it. I've been trying to teach myself and I've made progress, but I'm lazy about reading manuals. So when the chance came along to take a workshop with the man himself, I jumped at it. I'm going to jump again this Saturday. It's his last workshop of the year that isn't full yet.

(I'm proud of this one, too.)

I can recommend the class because I've taken it and I already see results. If you want to make the leap, go to the Candid Frame Workshops sign-up page, ignore the other discount codes and get the workshop for $50 by entering this code: perellovip.

I was out shooting today and got a few good pictures, although I admit several were overexposed. It's not like this stuff comes easy. With practice, though, it comes. I could set everything on automatic and let the camera make all the decisions, but in that case I might as well use a point-and-shoot.

Dorothea Lange said "A camera is a tool for learning how to see without a camera." I love wrapping my mind around the meaning of that statement.

26 comments:

dive said...

Wonderful photos and inspirational text, Petrea. I'm itching to see more.

Shell Sherree said...

I love that quote, Petrea! And I love these photos. Chasing the light suits you.

Unknown said...

Lovely photos Petrea... i especially liked the table with lights falling on it.

Kalei's Best Friend said...

And u should be proud... wow, I love your photos- they bring back a lot of good memories ....btw have u seen Luis' photos? http://www.onephotographaday.com/

Bellis said...

I like the table photo as well. Wow! You've turned into a photographer ( as John said).

alex said...

love the window reflections.

Pasadena Adjacent said...

I like the last photo of table and chair. The warmth of the wood against the celadon color of the glass is striking.

Steven said...

Who says you cant teach an old dog new tricks. Not that you are old or a dog. Nice photos. I like them.

Petrea Burchard said...

Thanks, everybody. It was so much fun to traipse around Old Town with a real pro and begin to see things the way he sees them, just by watching what the light does.

But that is one thing. To be able to capture it with the camera is quite another, and I am thrilled to have learned a few of the knobs and dials on the camera and how to use them. It makes such a difference. Even if I had spotted those sights before, even if I'd taken pictures of them, I wouldn't have been able to capture them in the same way. The Canon is a finer tool than I had realized.

Kalei, thanks for the link to Luis. I've seen him around on some of the same blogs I follow. Wow.

Petrea Burchard said...

Steven, I'm teaching Boz to carry my camera bag.

Latino Heritage said...

Really enjoy the reflection of one building on the other.

Anonymous said...

Clearly I need a second class. Well done.

Petrea Burchard said...

Thank you, Roberta.

Come, Karin! I'm trying to remember it all right now, as it slowly seeps out of my mind. I took notes, though, and will carry them with me until I remember it.

Susan Campisi said...

Great photos! Really inspiring work. I'm excited for you.

Petrea Burchard said...

Thank you, Susan. It's fun to at least begin to understand things like "aperture" and "ISO" and how they work with shutter speed.

Ms M said...

Really nice shots! You do good work :-)

Speedway said...

What terrific photos, Petrea! I am so glad you found such a wonderful instructor. I wish he were available here!

Petrea Burchard said...

Thank you, Ms. M!

Speedway, I'm seeing it now, Ibarionex: The Tour.

John Sandel said...

Time perhaps to admit that, if you could be a dog, you would be.

Petrea Burchard said...

Mmm, why? In this case, I mean.

Ysabelle said...

woderful shots, your place was really wonderful~


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Lets Enjoy Philippines | Enjoy Philippines

Petrea Burchard said...

Thank you, Ysabelle.

Devon said...

Great quote and fantastic shot of the table!

Petrea Burchard said...

Thanks, Devon!

A Red Sky Photo said...

yea, the pics you took are beautiful. you should be uber proud. it was so much fun getting to hang out with you.

veronica

Petrea Burchard said...

Hi Veronica! I had so much fun I went back and took the workshop a second time. It helped me to really grasp the concepts we worked on.