alexisgc33
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 p.3 #4 · What Workshop Are You Doing this Off Season? | |
I can't comment on what someone is personally willing to pay for a workshop or to learn something. That's up to each individual to decide and the return in their investment. I can't tell you what's right or wrong or what you should do with your money. That's completely up to you & it is a free country 
With that being said I can express my own personal opinion. I personally, would never pay into the 4 figures for a group workshop and would never pay to learn from someone with little experience. By little experience I mean 10yrs or less. I've been doing photography for about 6 yrs and there's people w/ that much experience or less who are constantly teaching & doing workshops all the time.
I'm personally still learning a lot & developing my own style & evolving as an artist & photographer. What I have believed a 1yr or 2 ago is different then what I believe now. I also see this A LOT with inexperienced photographers teaching (10yrs or less) regardless of how cool, popular & how many sponsors they have or facebook friends/fans & twitter followers. That's 1 reason why I'm reluctant to teach at the moment or to pay for someone with little experience. It's almost sad sometimes seeing the blind leading the blind. I've seen A LOT of speakers over the years as I'm a board member in my local PPA and go to meeting every month. I'm also the current print comp chair and I get to see honest objective critique of photography work from very experienced photographers.
I think what people need to realize is that there is no magic bullet, no one workshop or seminar that will make you better. “When you think you got it all figured out & think you know everything... you actually know nothing at all”. What it comes down to is how much you put into your craft, art & life. You have to sincerely find out what you love, what moves you personally and what you like. And that comes from within and not everyone gets that. I see A LOT of people take workshops & seminars over & over & over again and it's sad to be completely honestly because at the end of the day, they NEVER find their own vision. They just end up copying the style of another photographer or the workshop people. Or worse!! They just end up learning how to teach & sell workshop themselves! By doing that, you're not finding your own voice, your own vision and you're living someone else's dream. Which in turn means never leading a life that makes you feel fulfilled. You're always looking at what person to copy next.
It amazes me sometimes how people fall into the marketing & packaging and how some people are willing to spend $500, 1k, 2k, 3k 4k+ etc. to feel like they belong to part of something to “improve” by taking a workshop/seminar that only last anywhere from a few hours, to a few days. There's only so much you can learn in a few hrs let alone a few days. What I'm about to say is going to be really looked down here & I'll probably get flamed for it and people will come up w/ 1,000's of excuses as to why I'm wrong... but god forbid anyone actually go to school & study art & photography for a year or 2 or 3 (doesn't have to be full-time).
One of the 1st excuses that will probably come up is time. The 2nd will probably be followed by money. If you have enough reasons, and they are honest to you, those 2 wont get in your way. Investing 2-3yrs in your craft and learning art, photography, the history of art & photography will help you tremendously in finding your own vision & exposing you to many great things. You will truly have a greater appreciation for everything your doing. Unfortunately, 2-3yr's in school is not cool or give you the instant gratification to posting to your facebook wall or tweeter feed that you took “So & So's” workshop & that only took about a 1 week to complete! I was actually fortunate enough to go to school & study art, photography & graphic design for 3 years and it has helped me tremendously. I know it's no big deal and people have done a lot more, but I worked full-timed & also went to school full-time. If it's important enough for you and you have enough honest reasons, you'll find a way.
But back to the question in hand about workshops. Right now, as I said I can't see myself paying into the 4 figures for a large group workshop. I AM, however, willing to pay 2-2.5k for a 1 on 1. Here's what I do to seek out a mentor or make an effort to go learn from someone or hear them speak.
FIRST, I see their work. if I ABSOLUTELY don't love their work or it doesn't move me. I wont seek them out as a mentor or make a great effort to hear them speak. I DON'T CARE how nice they are, how cool they are, how popular they are, and how pretty they may be. Bottom line, the only thing we leave behind when we're gone is the work we produce, which becomes our legacy/legend as an artist. To ME, that is very important, and if it's not to you, we just have very different points of view.
SECOND which is just as important as #1 if not more!!! I see what they are doing and their morals/values and how they are living. For example, if the person you are seeking is doing workshops 3-4 times a year, selling products and speaking all the time... IF that's WHERE you see YOURSELF in a few years and that's what you want to be doing, then go see them. I PERSONALLY don't want my life to be like that or mainly about that at the current moment. All the photographers I like not only do good work, but also make a living from their photography, are happy w/ their life, are married and able to maintain a happy family and do what they love doing. That's what I WANT, not only in my photography, but in my life. That's what I look for in a speaker/mentor. and usually those people aren't too popular for obvious reasons, because they are busy working, and if they are not working, they are with their family.
You will also often find that people like that will help you out or mentor you for free! When you are ready to learn, you WILL find a teacher. It's not always easy to find a good teacher, but it's equally hard to be willing to learn & check your ego at the door.
One workshop, that I actually came back from in October, was truly life changing, had amazing legendary photographers teaching with 10, 20, 30+yrs experience, had 1 on 1 time, and also had nearly almost every major photo editor from the top magazines, news papers & agency's from around the world to review your portfolio was TUITION FREE!!!!!!!!!
If anyone here is still in school or has been out of school for >3yrs and you can get in, I strongly recommend EAW. As I mentioned it is tuition free. You cannot BUY your way in and you get accepted base the merit of the portfolio you submit. Everyone there, from teachers to students is highly skilled and willing to teach & share! The most 4 intense days of my photography career. But like with anything, you get what you put into it.
If you've actually read this far into my post I thank you! Please understand that I'm not saying that these paid workshops are bad. I'm sure there are good/great ones. But at the moment, they are not for me. I'm not saying that my point of view is better then anyone else's or even the right one, it's truly just what I personally believe.
ANYTHING worth having & keeping is a lot of hard work. Doesn't matter if it's art, photography or relationships. If you're not growing, your dying. Invest your time and money in what you truly believe NOT in what's popular or hip at the current time. Your sincere passion & love will NEVER get old or go out of style.
Best of luck to everyone & I hope you find what works best for you!
-Alexis
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