Owen Biddle
Photo School
photo by Ayodele Gansallo
April Photo Newsletter
SPRING ABSTRACTIONS
Dear Photographers,
Spring offers an infinity of photo opportunities. Simply stepping outside your door, you are confronted by the tantalizing possibilities of flowers blooming, trees blossoming, leaflets unfolding, birds and squirrels hopping. But maybe you are wondering if there's any way to add new dimensions to the classic beauty of spring photography. This month we are exploring the potential of combining spring's bounty of subject matter with the arresting possibilities of abstraction. Flowers offer the essentials: color, shape, texture. And, once you get used to seeing in this way, everything around provides the same. This month our field trips and workshop are designed to help add interest and dynamism to spring photography by highlighting these powerful principles of composition.
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photo by Owen Biddle
Spring in the Abstract​
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Want to up the ante for your flower shots? Want to turn a tiny leaflet into a commanding image? This workshop goes deeply into use of such compositional matters as negative and positive space, high and low key color, compressed and expanded space and contrasting textures to turn you photos into original and exciting images.
Wednesday, 4/2 and 4/27 7:00 - 8:30
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Photo by Owen Biddle
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Photo Field Trips
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Two field trips: Follow the flowers. Owen will be offering on-site tips for searching out the abstract in nature.
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This stately turn-of-the-century mansion, surrounded by formal gardens, complete with a beautiful old fashioned swimming pool, offers great opportunities for photographing both intimate scenes and grand vistas. The grounds feature unusual plantings as well as some quirky post-modern garden statuary. Our exploration will range from the macro abstractions of flower-portraits to the wide angle accentuated perspective of deep space landscapes. And we won't miss the reflections on the beautiful lotus pond. To learn more about Chanticleer check out this link: Chanticleer Gardens
Location: Radnor, PA
Saturday, April 16 10:00 - 12:00
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The Barnes Arboretum in Merion, Pennsylvania, a mere 8 miles from the city, is another place to practice your macro skills - or just take beautiful images of early spring. If Albert Barnes expressed his passion through art appreciation, his wife, Laura, expressed hers through the cultivation of beautiful plants in stunning gardens. Come celebrate the season in this hidden treasure.
Location, Merion
Saturday, April 23 10:00 - 12:00
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New Two-Session Class
"The negative is the score, the print is the performance" Ansle Adams.
The masters knew how to get the absolute most out the negative using dark room techniques such as adjusting contrast, dodging and burning, and cropping. Today we have an even more powerful array of editing options to bring out our pictures' full potential. This class is an introduction to basic editing adjustments, including straightening, cropping, color correction, histograms, exposure, contrast.... it's a long list, but with a little instruction you will be able to realize your visions and produce pictures worthy of printing. Also essential for preparing images for books and websites.
To schedule call (610) 626 - 7854 or email owenbiddlephotography@gmail.com.
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Announcements
*In-Person Photo Salon we will triple your $10 admission to donate to Razom, https://razomforukraine.org/
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*Introducing New Class: Editing 101
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* Unique Photo's 2022 Photo Contest up to $300 prize
Submissions now open
(Thanks to Walt Miles for tip)
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DSLR Fundamentals Tutorials
Below are descriptions of the basic units of our curriculum available to students ranging from beginner to advanced. Most units are five lessons and include a set of assignments designed to give practice in targeted skills with opportunities to get feedback from the instructor so that you learn from your experiences.
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Just give a call and we can set up individual sessions to keep you moving forward with your photography.
Call (610)-626-7854 for details.
​(click on links for more information)
Fundamentals 1: Camera Operations is for students who are just starting out, or want a good review of the basic camera functions.
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Fundamentals 2: Applications is for students who have some comfort with the camera and want to start applying their skills to expand their photographic range.
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Fundamentals 3: Composition takes photography beyond the subject, and encourages you to see the artistic and compositional opportunities in everyday life. Here is a chance for your right brain to come out and play!
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Fundamentals 4: Lighting Across the Genres is for students who are ready for the next critical step: lighting. Explore sophisticated means of controlling both natural and artificial light for portraits, landscape and still life to get just the mood and effects you want.
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Advanced Photography - Using self-generated assignments and in-depth critiques we will help you move forward in your work.
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Not a photo, but ...
Painter, Georgia O'Keefe (1887 - 1986), shows us how it's done!
RETURN of
IN-PERSON PHOTO SALON!!
(ALSO A FUND RAISER FOR UKRAINE - WE WILL TRIPLE OUR PROCEEDS TO MAKE A DONATION TO Razom, https://razomforukraine.org/
Saturday, April 30 3:00 - 4:30
These are very friendly, relaxed get-togethers at my apartment in Lansdowne. Photographers of all levels are welcome to share pictures, get photography tips, and discuss camera equipment. Feedback from the group provides encouragement and inspiration to go out and take more pictures. These informal photography critiques offer an excellent opportunity to start identifying themes in your work and to get ideas for new directions. Group size is limited, so if you can come an RSVP is required by email or call (610) 626-7854. Cost is $10. These Salons often fill-up, so it's best to get your spot early.
Things being the way they are, we can't guarantee in-person salons in the coming months, but we are excited to take advantage of this month to see everyone.
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photo by Owen Biddle
**************************************************Photographer of the Month
Ayodele Gansallo
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"My first foray into photography was as a young middle-schooler. My father owned a Russian camera of which he was very proud. He was astonished when his precocious daughter asked if she could take it to school one day to take pictures of her friends, and I was equally surprised when he said yes! That he trusted me with his favorite possession spoke volumes about our relationship. At the time, I wore glasses, but did not fully understand the photography process. Those were the days of film photography and processing. Suffice it to say that all of my efforts were blurry and indistinguishable. I had focused the camera lens to my uncorrected eye! Since then, I have dabbled in photography on and off as an amateur, although I am taking the time now for more concentrated learning as a way to escape my very stressful job. My first love is travel photography, which allows me to explore this art from very different perspectives and terrains. I confess that I am a point and shoot photographer, but my time with Owen has demonstrated to me the rewards emanating from framing and thinking more abstractly. I have not made the time to manipulate my work through Photoshop and other software, but see that as my next learning frontier!."
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Although she has only been a student with us for a relatively short time, we asked Ayodele if she could come up with a set of pictures to fit our April theme, Spring Abstractions. Look what she came up with!! We love how she uses her mastery of depth-of-field to add one more ingredient to the abstract quality of her images.
Ayodele is one of those who comes already equipped with a great eye and a special sensibility. Her hard work, her willingness to try out new techniques and above all, her adventurousness pay off in pictures like the below!
Click on thumbnail to see full images.
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