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| ©Christine Becksted - all rights reserved |
Gulf Photo Plus brought together 13 mega talented photographers for a week of workshops and "aha" moments in the desert for GPP2012. The week provided exceptional opportunities to gain perspective from the likes of photojournalist David Burnett, who shared the story behind "that Ayatollah shot" and other monumental moments he has witnessed as a photographer. And for those of us who signed up for the ride, the absolute madness of Flashbus provided a forum to interact with and listen to two masters of flash, David Hobby and Joe McNally, who enlightened the audience with conflicting philosophies about flash photography. The week was pure Inspiration Soup and left me with the desire to really do more with the tools and skills I already have. So, I woke up this morning with a little dash of courage -
I think I can....I think I can... I think I can....
Two workshops in particular really gave me an opportunity for nearly one-to-one training with photographers David Nightingale and David Tejeda. Both workshop groups were small and both photographers had the patience of a saint.
The week closed with the famous GPP shootout. Three of the 13 photographers were challenged with what seemed to me, an impossible task: One at a time each had to compose, shoot and edit a shot in 20 minutes. They were able to use anything and anyone in the auditorium, but they weren't told the subject of the shoot until just before the timer started. When up, they were tethered to the big screen so we were able to see everything that they were doing with their camera.
This year the subject caused all three of the participants to die a little bit inside - this year they had to do a self-portait.
It was absolutely brilliant to watch David Hobby, Martin Prihoda, and Greg Heisler work under pressure and deliver tremendous results. David Hobby has an excellent blog post about the evening so I won't reconstruct the event here - he also has the resulting photos. Heisler spanked the group but I honestly really love all three results. What an experience.
The week wasn't cheap but it was an investment in something I love and worth every penny. I'll be back next year for sure - especially if Prihoda gives a light painting workshop (HINT HINT HINT).
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| ©Christine Becksted Images - All Rights Reserved |
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