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THE WASHINGTON SCHOOL OF PHOTOGRAPHY




I have been a faculty member of the Washington School of Photography (WSP) since 1983, was made Associate Director in 1991, and am now the Technical Director as of 2002. The School was founded in 1976 by two professional photographers in order to provide quality photographic education in the Washington/Baltimore Metropolitan area. Since that time, the School has more than quadrupled in size and grown to be respected by both amateurs and professional alike.

For more than 10 years now WSP has offered a diploma in Professional Photography that is approved by the Maryland Higher Education Commission. In addition, WSP offers numerous photography workshops and special topics classes that are designed as a complete learning program. The workshops and special topics classes are intended to be either vocational or avocational. Any photographer - from amateur to working professional - can take any of the classes in order to enhance their skills and abilities. In September of 2007 WSP will be initiating an approved Advanced Professional Program, designed for WSP graduates who desire to further their photographic education and abilities, and for other experienced photographers who might want to do the same.

The School is staffed entirely by working professional photographers, and empasizes learning by doing. Participants practice all aspects of their technique under the direct guidance and close supervision of their instructors. We currently have an area of over 6000 square feet, including a large and a small working studios, and a film darkroom with 20 fully equipped enlarging stations. The school also provides additional classrooms, a library, a print finishing room, and a dedicated digital photography room for the use of students. Quite recently the working area was doubled, and we now also have a large gallery and exhibit space, where we regularly hold national, regional and local exhibits, under the name of "The Washington Gallery of Photography". Go to the WSP web site to obtain current information on the gallery exhibits. The web site also contains complete information on all of the classes and workshops offered by the school, and allows you to register for those classes online.

The professional student will learn the techniques involved with the use of 35mm, medium and large format film and digital cameras, studio lighting and lighting equipment, and the many tools used in lighting control. In addition, the student will learn composition and aesthetics of the photographic image, and how to apply these to their particular photographic interests. Our digital photography department has both Macintosh and PC computers for use by students, and a series of required and optional digital classes. If you are interested in learning more about the Washington School of Photography and its programs, you can call the school at (301) 654-1998 and/or access their web site. Finally, the school is an IRS approved 501(c)(3) non-profit educational institution.

In addition to the information above, I am including here a number of photographs below which were taken by me at the School during clases or workshops that I teach, or which illustrate some of the techniques taught at the WSP.





"Stained Glass Memories" - I took this photograph as part of the Wedding Photography workshop that I teach at WSP. We hire a bride and groom, rent a church, and take the participants through the church ceremony from start to finish, describing all of the possible photographs along the way. Participants get the opportunity to practice taking wedding photographs without the pressure of having to produce an album. They can experiment and try new techniqes without fear of failure, and with sound advice and close supervision. For example, I demonstrate how to meter the stained glass exposure and coordinate that with the flash exposure to get the above photo. I then take the bride and groom back to the WSP studio and students take a series of bridal portraits and bride & groom photographs. The business aspects of wedding and special event photography are also covered, as well as complete coverage of equipment and special techniques.





"The Window Light Portrait" - Window light portraiture is a technique that I recommend for all wedding photographers as well as regular portrait photographers. If you are able to pull the bride and groom away from the hustle and bustle of the wedding for a short time while still in the church and right after the formal wedding photos have been taken, something magic seems to happen when you place them in front of a clear window or open door. This is an available light portrait that was taken during our simulated church ceremony... the technique takes only a couple of minutes. It is also very beautiful with a soft focus effect, applied either on camera (soft filter or lens) or in the computer.





"Laura" - The Outdoor Portraiture Workshop is a full day of photographing several models in a beautiful wooded outdoor park location. I took this portait of Laura while framing her with tree branches. Skills demonstrated and used in the workshop include light metering for accurate exposure, use of reflectors and fill flash to improve the lighting and fill shadows, composition & posing for interesting and flattering images, and practice, practice, and more practice. Of course, I also cover the equipment and accessories available to make the photographers' job easier.





"Wood Nymph" - Another Outdoor Portraiture image is shown here, with an available light portrait of Jade taken during a workshop. She brought along a headpiece which adds to the "Wood Nymph" feeling. She is in a shade area, leaning against a tree trunk, with a reflector fill.





"Tori" - Glamour photography is one of the most creative, most beautiful, and most rewarding specialties available to a photographer today. It also is very difficult to do a truly good job of glamour photography which is both sensual while still high class. This workshop is a challenge to participants' creativity by offering opportunities for experimentation and problem solving, while teaching many of the "tricks of the trade" in how to make a woman look glamorous. Working in the studio with electronic flash allows complete control of the lighting. The possibilities for different lighting techniqes, clothes, props, backgrounds, and posing are endless... some of them were used in the photograph above that I took in one of the workshops. The participant leaves with written notes which includes a lot of information including clear diagrams for different lighting effects. In addition, in one glamour workshop the basics of makeup are covered while the model does her makeup in front of the class; all photographers should at least be aware of the possibilities available from good makeup. In a different glamour workshop digital techniques used to improve and enhance the images taken earlier in the workshop are described and demonstrated.





"Monarch" - During my Macro, Copy and Closeup Photography workshop all of the equipment and techniques needed for macro and copy photography are covered. I took the "Monarch" photograph above using a "prosumer" digital camera, handheld with available light. Whether you use a good quality digital camera like the Nikon 5700 (used for the above photo), a DSLR, a film SLR. or whatever, you will learn what needs to be done to get good macro photos. Other subjects may require different equipment and techniques, but all of these subjects are outlined and discussed, and substantial time is provided for students to shoot macro images (with my advice and suggestions) of items they have brought to the workshop, using their own cameras.




I hope that you have enjoyed the above photographs. Please continue on to other Sections of my web site if you have not already viewed them. There are links below to take you to either the beginning of my web site (Home), to the WSP web site, or to my Links Section, which contains some links to other web sites that I like and look at a lot. There are a lot of very good sources on the web for photographic information, and if you are interested in learning more, these are some suggested places to go.

[bullet]...Home

[bullet]...The WSP Web Site

[bullet]...A map showing the location of WSP in Bethesda, MD

[bullet]...Photography Links


All photographs Copyright © Donald Becker