[little laker]

I should start out by saying that I know Ian Forbes through his reputation as an outdoor writer and photographer.
If you google up his name just about anything fishing related is his work.

I've had the opportunity to meet him once in person about a year before I wrote to him asking this advice.

Hi Ian,

I'm hoping on taking some photography lessons in the Okanagan, but haven't found any courses offered over here.

Is there someone that you'd recommend for either lessons or even an apprenticeship for a while

Thanks
Stu

And this is the response that I got from him

I can't honestly say. Everything I've learned is on my own the long, trial and error way. I was naturally blessed with creativity and just adapted my study of painting into the photography world. It still comes down to composition and lighting.

I "DO" think that a digital SLR will give you some idea of how things work, though. Because you can experiment and get a quick answer it shortens the learning curve. All camera work still boils down to film speed, aperature setting and speed setting. You can experiment with an SLR digital without it costing any money. Knowing WHAT you want to achieve before you start will give you some idea of where you are going. If I have one secret it is to write down notes when you experiment and see what the results are. Do simple tests with a solid tripod and the timer setting so there is no camera shake to alter the results.

Magazines offer SOME techniques, but you have to read a lot of them before finding something with REAL information. Too many magazine writers (on all topics) just rehash the same old stuff.

I would look in some art galleries and try to analize what paintings work for you. Try to figure out what makes one picture better than another. And, of course, realize that everyone has a different taste in what is "right".

All the best, Ian

I took his advice and it seems to be working for me.
I really don't know if it'll help anyone else here, but I still thought that it was worth while sharing.

[MJB DIGITAL]

bump......

[Ari]

Wow. Very poignant. I always think I am seeing what I want to see. And, if I take enough pictures of the same subject, I may get one or two I think I'm happy with. Though I am not familiar with him, I have to agree that it's well said.

[MJB DIGITAL]

ari

a lesson that one mentor of mine has well established in my mind is

to get your shot and move on. you dont need to take many shots of something....
just get your shot, get it right, and continue.

i feel that one of the keys (note: one of the keys) is that you shoot many different subjects....

remember, it is the same light that illuminates all that you are studying....not actually your subject

mjb digital

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Last edited by MJB DIGITAL; 10-02-2007 at 08:48 PM.

[Ari]

ari

a lesson that one mentor of mine has well established in my mind is

to get your shot and move on. you dont need to take many shots of something....
just get your shot, get it right, and continue.

i feel that one of the keys (note: one of the keys) is that you shoot many different subjects....

remember, it is the same light that illuminates all that you are studying....not actually your subject

mjb digital

MJB - well, said, too. Funny, I used to play a lot of golf, and someone gave me very similar advice (minus lighting, and, of course, you take a shot, not make one in golf)

[little laker]

There are some scenes which deserve pictures from several different vantage points.
However there are some conditions where we have to choose our shots carefully.
Like in snow, where you don't want to photograph our own tracks