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February Workshops Announced: Chinese New Year Special Workshop & Hutong Photography

Sunday, January 31st, 2010

Chinese New Year Special Workshop: White Cloud Temple Fair

February welcomes a very unique time of the Chinese calendar; Chinese New Year! To mark the most important holiday of the year, we are running a special workshop to coincide with the celebrations here in the nation’s capital. We continue in the vein of trying to introduce our workshop participants to less-visited and authentic locations, therefore will be holding this workshop at the White Cloud Temple, in XiCheng District on Tuesday 16th February from 11:00 a.m. to 16:00 p.m. This spectacular Taoist temple is over 1000 years old and is one of the city’s hidden cultural gems. It will be the perfect place for photographing the true, authentic and traditional new year celebrations. To find out more details about how to join us on this special workshop, please head to our workshop page here.

For those of you leaving Beijing for the holidays and won’t have a chance to attend the Chinese New Year workshop, do not worry! The increasingly popular Hutong Photography Workshop is back again on Sunday 28th February from 10:00 a.m. to 18:00 p.m. and will again offer participating students the chance to explore the maze-like hutongs whilst improving their photography. We were delighted to learn that this month a former student from this workshop was featured in Beijing City Weekend Magazine talking about her experiences taking this class. Read a snippet of her interview here and then find out how to book your place here through our workshop page.

We look forward to seeing you!

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Tags: asia, Baiyun guan, beijing, china, city weekend, education, ideas, inspiration, photographing people, photography, photography workshops, street photography, the hutongs, weekend workshops, white cloud temple

Inside a Photographer’s Notebook #3

Friday, January 22nd, 2010

Inside a Photographer's Notebook | Images (c) Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos

I haven’t done one of these posts for a while, so thought it was about time I shared another page from my notebook. If you haven’t seen the previous posts on this, you can head here and here to see them. The concept is simple. When I was beginning in photography I compiled a notebook of pictures, phrases, poems, sayings etc. that inspired me. I did so that when I was out shooting and I maybe had a down moment, or was lacking inspiration, I could turn to it to help me get going again.

The above page are pictures by the legendary Magnum and National Geographic photographer Steve McCurry. I chose them because for me they represented the exoticism of the places he photographs and I wanted to be reminded of the dynamics of a photo that you could create using objects within a frame (see pic on left) and the power of a simple, well-lit portrait (see pic on right).

At the time, I believe I was reading a book by the Japanese writer Haruki Murakami. I was completely captured by how he wrote about life and losing love in Japan. One small haiku that stuck with me was the following:

“furin ya, koenaki kaze wa, uta wa seru”

The translation, although not literal I believe, was interpreted as:

“alone, the wind has no voice, but when it moves through the wind chimes, it sings”

For me at that time, the photographer became the wind and the camera the wind chimes. I liked that idea very much and wanted to remember it.

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Tags: haruki murakami, ideas, inspiration, magnum photos, national geographic, notebook, photography, steve mccurry

A Great Quote…

Friday, November 27th, 2009

Read this quote here today and I just had to post it here…

“What kind of typewriter did Hemingway use?” Jim Estrin, photographer at the New York Times for the last 20 years, asked his news photography class by way of an introduction this morning.

Nobody knew.

“That’s because it doesn’t matter,” said Estrin.

Have a look at the original article for some more useful tips and thoughts on photography. The writer of the original article is Kristen Joy Watts, a production intern at Lens, the photojournalism blog of the New York Times. You should check out her work.

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Tags: ideas, inspiration, jim estrin, kristen joy watts, new york times, photographing people

New Photography ‘Weekend Workshops’ launched in Beijing!

Sunday, August 23rd, 2009

Weekend Workshops Beijing Logo

I’m delighted to announce here on my blog the launch of my new photography workshops here in China. The first will be held from Friday 18th September to Sunday 20th September here in Beijing, offering students a chance to change the way they approach their photography through a tailored 3-day programme introducing them to photographing China’s capital under my guidance and that of other China experts.

More information can be found here:

WEEKEND WORKSHOPS

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WELCOME to the home of WEEKEND WORKSHOPS, a 3-day intensive photography course that centers on introducing the participants to the fundamentals of photography through the eyes of established professionals, in diverse locations throughout China.

Student Level: Beginner / Intermediate / Passionate Amateur

The concept of WEEKEND WORKSHOPS was created by award-winning photographer Sean Gallagher and professional guide and interpreter Jessica Zheng, in response to the demand by photographers for a more affordable andpersonalised approach to workshops with professionals possessing a unique knowledge of the workshop location.

Over the course of 3 days, photographer Sean Gallagher will help participants cover essential topics such as ‘portfolio reviewing’, ‘photographer shadowing’, ‘night photography’, ‘productive editing’ and ‘visual presentation’. All the components will combine to give each participant an intensive photography experience from which they can develop their own style and voice and approach to their work in the future. The workshops location and the places visited during the 3 days will be fully guided and introduced by Jessica Zheng, contributing to the participants’ deeper understanding and knowledge of the workshop’s location.

REGISTRATION: To register for any of the workshops below, please send an email to sean@gallagher-photo.com after which a registration form will be sent to you along with payment details. A 30% deposit is required to secure a place, payable online through Paypal. The remaining fee is due 1-week before the workshop commences.

Click to continue »

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Tags: beijing, china, education, ideas, inspiration, photographing people, photography workshops, websites, weekend workshops

Inside a Photographer’s Notebook #2

Wednesday, August 19th, 2009

Inside a Photographer's Notebook #2 - Quotes

“I would stare at the grains of light suspended in silent space, struggling to see in my own heart. What did I want? And what did others want from me? But I could never find the answers. Sometimes I would reach out and try to grasp the grains of light, but my fingers touched nothing.” – Haruki Murakami – Norweigan Wood

“If there is something in a picture that you cannot explain, it’s a sign there is something interesting.” – Luc Delahaye

“I only know how to approach a place by walking. For what does a street photographer but walk and watch and wait and talk, and then watch and wait some more, trying to remain confident that the unexpected, the unknown, or the secret heart of the known awaits just around the corner.” – Alex Webb

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Tags: ideas, inspiration, magnum photos

How Would You Hang This Exhibition?

Saturday, August 8th, 2009

I have been invited to have an exhibition next week, which will showcase 48 images from my work on desertification in China over the past 2 years, at a Science and Technology Conference on Desertification Control in Inner Mongolia.

The details of the space I have available for the exhibition have been sent through to me at the very last minute and I am trying to brainstorm ways to hang this exhibition in an effective way.

I have been informed that I will have 40 wooden boards, measuring 120cm x 80cm, almost like an artist’s sketching easel, standing on wooden legs.

The prints aren’t going to be able to be framed in the time we have, so I also need to find a way to ‘stick’ the prints to the boards. Pins? Double-sided tape? Needs to look professional either way.

I’m completely open to ideas from my readership here, so if you have any thoughts, I’d be more than happy to hear them. Make them quick though, as I have 24hours before I head to the printers!

Many thanks in advance!

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Tags: china, china's growing sands, desertification, exhibitions, ideas, the environment

Inside a Photographer’s Notebook

Thursday, July 16th, 2009

Inside my notebook. 'Look' photo (c) Peter Marlow/Magnum. Quote: Bruce Lee

Inside a Photographer's Notebook 1. 'Look' photo (c) Peter Marlow/Magnum. Quote: Bruce Lee

When I first started entertaining the idea of being a photographer, about 7 years ago, I had a million and one ideas in my head and nowhere to put them. I can’t remember who first suggested it to me, but someone gave me the idea to put them down in a notebook, to collect all my ideas and sources of inspiration in one place. So, I did. Over the following few years I would cut out pictures from magazines, write down quotes that inspired me, have friends write down their thoughts and log important deadlines for competitions and exhibitions.