About
More than just a photography studio, we teach modeling, posing, lighting, camera and photoshop. We are a full service images, styling and photography studio with studio bases in NY & CA. (Lessons taught only in our San Diego Studio at this time or onlocation around San Diego)
FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS:
We offer both In-Studio professional lighting and camera as well as outdoor onlocation shooting. We focus on the advanced beginer or intermediate clients who understand the basics of using their camera and want to step up their skill set. Understanding how to use studio lighting, how to see natural light, choosing the right lenses, more advanced understanding of camera settings, or working with models/subjects in posing & creating expression more naturally. We also teach workshops on how to work with Hair & make up artists and create on-camera looks and magazine style looks. Learn how to improve your skills for yourself or talk to us about how to start your own photography business. Call us for a free consult to see if our lessons are right for you! 201-803-5262
FOR MODELS:
We teach aspiring to working models on what it takes to be a working models. We'll teach you the foundations of posing from body breaking, flow posing and touch point posing. We'll help you understand what it means to work with agencies and designers and what are important elements to master both in front of the camera and within the industry. This is a hands on one-on-one instruction focused on your body type. Call us for a free consult to see if our lessons are right for you! 201-803-5262
Watching people learn, grow and come into mastering their own craft is incredibly rewarding. There is a certain excitement when you see people start to understand and really get into their groove naturally. They start to achieve what they hoped for and see results and that's an exciting moment for both me and my students.
Specialties
Interest in additional skills
Student's age
Experience level
Photography type
Photos and videos
Reviews
Carol G.
Maria S M.
Erin D.
Frequently asked questions
What is your typical process for working with a new student?
I always start with a free pre-consult call. It gives me and the student a chance to understand each other and what's important to know. Every person is looking to achieve something different and stuggles with different areas, so the pre consult call gives me a chance to understand what the client wants to achieve most. In that call, the client gets a chance to hear how I can help them and what they can expect. Having an understanding of each other is so important to me.
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
Learning by text books (so to speak) is a great foundation to begin with, but photography and even modeling is really an artform. It takes time to develope an 'eye' for things or even how to work with subjects. I'm not a very technical photographer that is going to give you a sheet of fstops and give you a standard histogram to shoot towards. Photography is an art of understanding light, basic camera functions and manipulations and understanding one's subject.
For photography it's about understanding how to see light and how to manipulate it to create the artistic images you want. Understanding how different camera lenses work and how different camera settings can make a difference in setting different moods and capturing different styles of photographs. For portrait or modeling photographers, its also very much an art of understanding how to work with your subjects and how to guide them into natural poses and capture great expression.
FOR MODELING, its all about understanding your body type. How to break out of the shell. How to 'fill the frame'. How to understand what are your best angles and how to be aware of light so you are always captured in the best light. It's about understanding how to break free in front of the camera to be more dynamic. This is a very hands on exercise that needs to be learned through experience and gettting comfortable with what you have learned.
Do you have a standard pricing system for your lessons? If so, please share the details here.
Lessons are tailored by what you want to learn. I like to set a package pricing for what you want to achieve more so than just an hourly rate. But overally you can expect lessons to cost between $40-$60 hour. Most often people want to learn more, so it's not uncommon for people to spend between $100 - $300 for a halfday lesson or learn by joining a photo shoot that includes seeing how we style a client, how we pose them, camera settings, lighting set ups and more.
How did you get started teaching?
My business developed out of all referrals. As people saw me work, they started asking me how I do it so well. I started giving little tips and tricks I use and then people seemed to want to know more and more so I started teaching. Models and photographers have all seemed to love what they have learned, so I just kept getting more referrals.
What types of students have you worked with?
I tend to work with aspiring photographers and models who know the basics and want to learn more and go to the next steps. If you are a newbie and want to learn basic camera functions, I can do that but mostly I enjoy teaching slightly more advanced students.
Describe a recent event you are fond of.
I started out as a sports photographer then was asked to do a dance portfolio. I got picked up by modeling agencies after and so my breath of experience is wide. I've been lucky to have had such success in such a wide array of photography events and set ups. From events, to in-studio, to on location photography. I like the diversity of shooting different types of sessions.
What advice would you give a student looking to hire a teacher in your area of expertise?
Connect with someone! Find someone who is willing to listen to you and what you need. Find a teacher who is not just looking to fill an hourly paid time slot but someone who genuinely loves what they do and wants to share that with you!
What questions should students think through before talking to teachers about their needs?
1. What do you struggle with?
2. What do you want to learn more of (be specific)
3. Give examples of the type or style of photography you aspire for. (for models, give examples as well such as lifestyle modeling, print modeing, fashion modeling, etc)
4. What are your dreams with what you want to learn. (ie, do you some day want to own your own photography studio? Do you want to someday be a booked agency represented model? if so, are you focused on runway modeling or print modeling, etc....)