Workshop advice please

[ducatiwv]

Has anyone attended a PGLAM workshop and if so what did you think about it? Thanks for any advice , Larry

[MDJAK]

Attended one recently. It was way overcrowded with what turned out to be little opportunity to shoot.

There's a shooter named Pasha who runs them nearby here. He gets beautiful Russian models in an amazing setting, limits the number of photographers, and it looks great.

Two problems: Expensive (not saying it's not worth it though), and more an opportunity to shoot with little instruction.

[ducatiwv]

Attended one recently. It was way overcrowded with what turned out to be little opportunity to shoot.

There's a shooter named Pasha who runs them nearby here. He gets beautiful Russian models in an amazing setting, limits the number of photographers, and it looks great.

Two problems: Expensive (not saying it's not worth it though), and more an opportunity to shoot with little instruction.

Thanks Mark...I was considering attending one, but only if i could actually learn something.....

[PashaPhoto]

Attended one recently. It was way overcrowded with what turned out to be little opportunity to shoot.

There's a shooter named Pasha who runs them nearby here. He gets beautiful Russian models in an amazing setting, limits the number of photographers, and it looks great.

Two problems: Expensive (not saying it's not worth it though), and more an opportunity to shoot with little instruction.

hey that's me... and thank you :)

that part in bold is true, but only partially true... and it's that whole "workshop vs. shootout" type of thing... i host both types...

when i host workshops, there is instruction... i don't teach... i am not yet at the level where i should even think of teaching... i let my good friend and Canon's "Explorer of Light" - Stephen Eastwood (http://stepheneastwood.com/) do the teaching... no one seems to mind :)

for shootouts, there is no official instruction... there is no curriculum... the goal is to let the guys shoot... but to say that you won't learn anything at one of these is false...

you learn by shooting... you learn by examining the setups and asking questions... by shmoozing with other guys there etc... Stephen and i are always around to help out, to help with setups etc, etc, etc... the help is always there, and there is a lot of teaching actually happening - it's just informal and has no official curriculum...

for example, one of the guys at the last shootout wanted to know how to turn the white cyc wall grey... we talked about light dropoff, i showed him how to feather the light, and then setup a quick two light setup with which he took this...

http://iramonko.com/Anastasia/_MG_5618-Edit-Web.jpg

he was very happy :)

and while there was no curriculum with "learn how to get catalog fashion/beauty lighting", he learned how to do it... and it was done informally in a matter of a few minutes so it left him plenty of time to shoot this setup and experiment with variations...

for shootouts, i try to create an environment that's conducive to learning... i give guys plenty of time to shoot... i have Stephen Eastwood do the lighting setups, so guys can shoot with quality light... and, of course, i make sure that the lineup is filled with gorgeous models :)

sorry, btw, MDJAK... i'm not really addressing all of this to you... i just kind of used your post as a jumping off point and next thing i knew it i started waxing poetic and wrote a plug the size of a novel... what a shameless, shameless plug :)

[elipkin]

Here is my 2C worth. I have been to a couple of different workshops, and Pasha/Stephen's is the only one I would come back to.
I have seen some workshops that are really more shootouts, useful but a different beast If you do not have a studio and just want to shoot different models these are fine, but you do not learn much.
I have also attended a taught workshop where there was instructor teaching, but honestly I learned a lot more in my conversations with Eastwood over a diet coke.
Stephen helps with the original set ups and he is always there to answer questions "why? how?" etc.
The way to get your money's worth out of this workshop is to ask a lot of questions from both Paul and Stephen. Yes, the models are beautiful an the sets are nice, but that you can get this elsewhere. What you can not get elsewhere is ability to ask a world class photographer "Who do I do this?" and he comes over and shows you how.

[MDJAK]

Hey Pasha, no reason to apologize at all. And I certainly didn't mean for a moment to state one can't learn at your workshops. I'd give my son's left arm to attend. ;)

Notice I didn't offer my appendage. ;)

I know John Galt here has attended a few and he's raved about them. One of these days.

mark

[DisrupTer911]

The FAQ on PGLAM says you're not permitted to shoot RAW and must give over your card for them to copy. Must be highest JPGs and you can't post them on anything but your own personal webpage...

[elipkin]

That's a pretty RAW deal :)
The FAQ on PGLAM says you're not permitted to shoot RAW and must give over your card for them to copy. Must be highest JPGs and you can't post them on anything but your own personal webpage...

[Stickman]

The FAQ on PGLAM says you're not permitted to shoot RAW and must give over your card for them to copy. Must be highest JPGs and you can't post them on anything but your own personal webpage...

I wonder what the reason is, it doesn't sound quite right.

[PashaPhoto]

i didn't see the "no raw" thing in their faq... but i will admit to not reading it too carefully...

what i did see, thought, is that their group is limited to 12 photographers and only one model... in other words it sounds like a 12 to 1 photographer to model ratio, which is a bit high to say the least... and it's only 2 hours... how 12 guys are supposed to get shots of one models in those 12 hours, i do not know :)

[DisrupTer911]

About licensing rights:
You will absolutely own your photos. .....
[B]So, to satisfy the lawyers, we also have to tell you that your paid tuition is also your agreement to*allow us to copy*your digital media card*after*you remove it*from your camera before going home from*the Workshop.* Once copied, your digital media card will be returned to you with all of your ORIGINAL images intact.* Further, you will not be permitted to post your photos anywhere on the internet (such as on myspace.com, facebook.com, etc.) other than on your own personal proprietary website (if you have one).[\b]* You will, however, be able to print your photos as much as you wish (especially to use them for your own personal portfolio book).* OK, now the lawyers are happy.* Thanks for understanding.

That's what I don't like the most.
And their professional quality digital cameras as 3-4 year old Panasonic lumix FZ50s

[PashaPhoto]

That's what I don't like the most.
And their professional quality digital cameras as 3-4 year old Panasonic lumix FZ50s

you're right... that doesn't sound "quite right"...

there's a lot of what i read in that FAQ that throws up red flags...