Guest speaker and photographic instructor

Last week I had the privilege of being a guest speaker and photographic instructor at one of the private Catholic schools here in Canberra called St Clare’s College.

And what a class it was! The class started off as every class does, with me giving a brief introduction of myself and some of my ideas and thoughts around photography and the industry. While the girls were fairly timid at the beginning it didn’t take long once they had cameras in hand to start getting into it and taking all sorts of photos of each other.

As I only had couple of hours I wanted to share as much information with them as possible to give them an understanding of what it is like to take portraits on a professional level. To do this I took in and set up my portable studio in one of their arts classes so they could see and touch the equipment while also getting a chance to use some of it in the practical component of the class, and I must say once they got over their initial shyness they had the studio lights popping as if it was popcorn at the movies.

We walked-through the process of postprocessing an image in Photoshop and some of the skills and techniques I use when dealing with portrait images, like skin and eyes, and not to mention hair, an I must say I was very surprised with how quickly the girls picked up all the information that I was throwing at them with not one of them having any issues using Photoshop and in post.  The amazing amount of enthusiasm that the class had made it a real pleasure to instruct, while the lab where we conducted the practical photo shop part of the lesson was outstanding. Each of the kids had a PC to their own motor with photo shop so they could follow along while I demonstrated on the projector.

After talking with the teacher she tells me the girls had a fantastic time and not only enjoyed the lesson but also learnt a lot in the short time we had. We are now in discussion of how I can go along and assist in future classes both for that year and the senior years where they get more into the lighting, and I must say that be a very exciting class to give.

I was hoping to get the chance last week to video and upload me editing the same image which I gave to the class, but unfortunately I spent most of last week on the road and out of town, so today is catch up day and with any luck I should have the video up this afternoon for the girls to view and follow the process.

Looking for a guest speaker or instructor for your photography class? Drop me a line as I would love to come along.

If you run a work in education and are looking for a guest speaker for your photography classes please don’t hesitate in dropping me a line is I’m always very keen to share my knowledge and enthusiasm with the younger generation.

Instructing at St Clare's College CanberraInstructing at St Clare's College Canberra
Instructing at St Clare’s College Canberra

Here comes the paparazzi

Well, I must say it is a bit of a turn up for the books when someone actually wants me to show up as the paparazzi.

Yes, it is true, I am attending an event this evening where it was specifically requested that instead of me hiding in the shadows taking shots of the unsuspecting victims, that I show up in the form of the paparazzi.

It should be an interesting event and I hope to share more details with you later, right now I have to go along and packed my car so I can head off into the wild blue yonder and pop speedlights in a blinding fashion faster than Spiderman and shoots a web.

Wish me luck and I’ll see you on the other side.

Relaxing photos

One of the coolest things about photography these days is that the world of the digital camera is big enough for just about anyone. Whether you’re a professional photographer, a budding amateur, or someone who simply loves capturing snippets of life on your mobile, photography coaxes and sometimes even cajoles us to explore the world around us.

Another awesome thing about photography is that pictures truly can say a thousand words. Take this photo submitted by Sandi Weeks on her favorite way to relax where she wrote:

“Relaxing – I relax the most when I am on the beach. I try to plan our yearly vacations near the beach. We don’t live close enough to one or in an area that promotes year round beach enjoyment, so I have to take what I can get.” Sandi Weeks

The simplicity of the subject matter combined with the solitude of the footprints on empty sand carry a thousand nuances that words alone could not capture. Have you managed to capture scenes like the one below, ones that drag you into a photo so that you feel yourself there walking along the foam, sniffing the salt on the air, and feeling yourself unwind with each step?

Members submission - relax by Sandy weeks
Members submission – Relax by Sandi Weeks

And if you still need more convincing to get yourself out and about with that digital eye, consider this: aside from causing us to feel more focused, alive, and creative, survey results show that photography makes us feel good about ourselves, increases our contact and connection with other people, and even helps to improve out memory. And at the end of the day, we get to surround ourselves with glimpses of life that might have passed us by had we not been holding a camera.

So if you haven’t picked up your camera lately or you find that you’ve been shooting the same old material for a while now, see if you can find something you’ve never shot before, or better yet, a new way of looking at something you see every day. What new and engaging perspectives are out there waiting to be discovered? If you find any good ones, I’d love to see them! Send in the old with the new and if any epiphanies or “Aha’s” happened, let us know that, too.

 

A moment in time

Part of being an event photographer is that I get to go to these really cool places, and capture all sorts of things, and one of those cool places I went to a few months ago was the Australian’s salsa open in Sydney.

There was a large event spread over three very long days, but they were fantastic days. I got to meet lots of people, make new friends and capture some really interesting shots. And this is just one of those.

Now I’m not sure how they got into this position or even how they got out of it, but it does make for an interesting action shot.

Boy that was close
Boy that was close

Show me how you relax and feature on my blog.

Love life and adventure takes its toll on all of us one way or another, and we all deal with it in our own ways.

For anyone that knows me, knows I lead a very busy life. I do lots of things with my time. Some of these things are covering events both here in Canberra, interstate and also internationally, by also doing portraits of all different descriptions and complexity levels. Added to this is my coaching and photographic workshops I conduct, while also writing course material and working on publishing photographic magazines and books.

Such a busy life requires a lot of time and effort not to mention emotional investment and I have to admit it takes it out of you. Some people drink, some people party, some people hold it within, some people yell some people, sit back, and some people just enjoy life what it is.

For me is a simple things in life. To be able to sit down and relax in the warmth of the sun or drinking a super hot coffee.

Sometimes life is as simple as a good coffee and some sunshine – Brendan Maunder

I wish you all a very good weekend and I’d be interested to see what photos you can take over the weekend that express how you relax and wind down.

So your mission shall you choose to accept it, go out and capture events and things over this weekend that you find relaxing to help you wind down.

Anyone that sends me their photos I will publish on my website for the world to see and ensure you have full and 100% credit.

Out of the images I receive I will select one , and feature in one of my blogs next week where I will interview the owner of the image so they can tell us/the world what it is, in that photo that makes them relax and wind down.

You can send your image to “Brendan @ BrendanMaunder.com”  (Just remove the spaces) or PM on Facebook or message me on Google +

So what are you waiting for get out there and capture your life in a relaxing and wind down fashion. 🙂

Seflie of me having a coffee to start the day
Seflie of me having a coffee to start the day