When dashing about day to day, it’s easy to miss the many interesting sights close to home. Local social enterprises The Photo School and Walk East are organising two free photo-walk courses in May to help Tower Hamlet residents take a closer look at the East End.

There are two photo walk courses to choose from; starting 1st or 24th May.

1) The ‘First Steps in Photography’ Course

Over ten weeks, the group will get to know the streets of the East End including Shadwell, Wapping and Whitechapel. The course is aimed at local Tower Hamlets women who are currently unemployed or work part-time.

Run in conjunction with the Wapping Women’s Centre, the ten-week course starts on Tuesday 1^st May. Participants might enhance their job prospects by developing their camera skills and producing a photo portfolio. Contact Natalie (see top of webpage) for more information.

This Saturday, you can get to know your camera and learn how to compose photos for the price of just one workshop. £45 for 6 hours.

Camera Settings & Creative Composition are suitable for those looking for more confidence with their camera. Ideal for complete beginners or those looking for a refresher photography course. This is a similar offer to those you will find in Groupon.

Come and enjoy a Spring afternoon photographing in the splendid St. James Park. For those that want it, the focus will be on getting the right technical exposure.

So if you don’t know your matrix from your center-weighted average, or spot metering is leaving you a little confused, come along and I’ll show you otherwise through bite-size tuition.

You’ll be able to, with hands on tutor help and exercises, practice on subjects such as:

• Cherry blossom – one of the best parks in London for it
• Wildlife – home to pelicans, herons and so much more
• Flowers – a stunning array of flowers you can get close up to
• People – old and young chilling at the fab ‘Inn in the Park’

And if you want to get close-ups of the squirrels, don’t forget to bring some nuts!

It is an ideal event if you have completed the Explore Exposure workshop (or similar) and now want some dedicated time to focus on your exposure settings.

Over 3 hours and for £15 you’ll experience:

• A recap on meter readings and metering modes
• Themes/exercises to try out and keep you focused
• 1:1 time to help with your camera’s modes
• A group check-in at the cafe halfway through
• Feedback on your uploaded photos post-event

• Dates: Sun 15 Apr, 3-6pm
  
• Meeting Point: St. James Park tube station. Take the Broadway exit
• Price: £15 which includes 1:1 time
• Group Size: maximum 12 participants
• Prior Knowledge: Explore Exposure or similiar

Lost or late? My mobile 07773 819053

Come and enjoy a Saturday morning photographing in the magnificent Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park. The focus will be on choosing the right aperture to make creative shots.

So if you want to know more about depth of field and when to use f4, f8 or f22, come along and I’ll show you how through bite-size tuition.

With hands on tutor help and exercises, you’ll take away some unique, unusual and atmospheric photos of:

• Woodland – scenic shots of the various green spaces
• Monuments – close-ups of the elaborate angels and ivy
• Wildlife – home to butterflies, squirrels and foxes
• Flowers – a range of wild garlic, carrots, rocket & berries
• People – dog walkers, local residents and cyclists

It is an ideal event if you have completed the Switch to Manual workshop (or similar) and now want some dedicated time to focus on your creative picture taking.

Over 2.5 hours and for £15 you’ll experience:

• A recap on meter readings and metering modes
• Themes/exercises to try out and keep you focused
• 1:1 time to help with your camera’s modes
• A group check-in
• Feedback on your uploaded photos post-event

• Dates: Sat 14 Apr (10-12:30), Sat 5 May, 2 Jun both 10am-1pm
  
• Meeting Point: Mile End tube
• Price: £15 which includes 1:1 time
• Group Size: maximum 12 participants
• Prior Knowledge: Switch to Manual or similiar

Lost or late? My mobile 07773 819053

“It was a great chance to learn more about the camera. The weather was great for the relaxed session walking around the cemetery park.” Ross

“Clear instructions and the chance to try things out without distraction. Free time and then the chance to review with instructor. Just the right amount of time.” Laura

“Hi! I really enjoyed the event and the personal tuition that Natalie give to us individually and to the group. It was new information regarding how to use our cameras. It was a great day to enjoy. Looking forward for the next one.” Lourdes

On the 12th of each month (TODAY!), upload a photo to The Photo School Flickr Review Group to share and receive feedback on your photo from others.

I think it is important to receive comments on your photos from various people (say a minimum of 5) as the critique of just one person can often be too subjective. But if lots of people are all saying the same thing, it’s probably worth listening to! So…

1) Upload a photo

2) Post some feedback (remembering this group is for beginner/improver photographers)

3) Check-in throughout the day to see what people are saying about your photo

Please note, this is an online, flickr event only. If you are new to flickr, you can sign up for a free account.

Spend a Sunday afternoon photographing inside the NHM and V&A museums.

You’ll be able to practice photography subjects such as:

• Architecture – vistas and close-ups
• People – interacting with the space
• Exhibits – rare artifacts to the huge sculptures

The museums have a wealth of photographic opportunities and provide a good venue for practicing settings such as ISO, WB, B&W as well as composition. We’ll split our time between the NHM and then go over to the V&A.

The photo challenge lasts about three hours which includes:

• An intro to camera settings for interiors
• A chance to be in the company of like-minded individuals
• A group check-in at the cafes halfway through and at the end

The cost of this practice event is £10 which includes the chance to receive feedback on your photos post-event. Please note, the ‘photo challenge’ event is a practice event and I will be taking photos myself.

• Dates: Sun 18th Mar, 2-5pm
  
• Meeting Point: NHM in front of dinosaur
• Price: £15 which includes 1:1 time
• Group Size: maximum 12 participants

Lost or late? My mobile 07773 819053

This ‘Focus On’ event is a chance to get to grips with night photography whilst photographing some amazing views across the Thames. You will need to bring a tripod.

Tonight we will be using Tower Bridge as our location before heading onto More London to photograph around the Pool of London. We’ll finish at London Bridge station about 2.5-3 hours later.

At the beginning of the event, I’ll recap on night photography settings. Then throughout the evening, there will be 1:1 time with exercises to try, and I can answer any questions you have. We’ll be practicing:

• Short shutter speeds: make people become ghost like
• Long shutter speeds: light trails of cars and buses
• Using M: metering to get a correct exposure

It is an ideal practice event if you have completed the Explore Exposure, Switch to Manual or Night Photography workshops and wish to experiment with what you have learnt with hands-on professional help. It is not suitable for complete beginners.

• Dates: 22 March, 6:30-9:30pm
  
• Meeting Point: Tower Hill tube. Next to Roman Emperor Statue of Trajan
• Price: £15 which includes 1:1 time
• Group Size: maximum 12 participants
• Prior Knowledge: Explore Exposure, Switch to Manual or Night Photography

Lost or late? My mobile 07773 819053

“It was a really good night. I learned loads of new techniques from Natalie. I am now much more confident about taking night shots.” Sandra

“Great session. I learnt so much but really need to practice more with the tips that were given to me. Let me know when the next night session is :o) ” Claudine

“Great location; great tips – thank you.” Gail

This ‘Focus On’ event is a chance to get to grips with your camera’s exposure settings whilst photographing one of London’s Magnificent Seven Cemeteries.

It is an ideal practice event if you have completed the Explore Exposure or Switch to Manual workshop and wish to experiment with what you have learnt with hands-on professional help.

Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park, built in 1841 and now 33 acres of “managed” woodland across an old burial site, will provide you with some unique, unusual and atmospheric photography opportunities.

During the session, we will recap on important exposure settings such as:

• Exposure compensation: a chance to brighten woodland photos that look too dark
• Spot metering: expose the headstones correctly with spot metering and lock
• Histograms: reflect on the exposure after each shot

The event allows more time for exploring and photographing the various private and public graves, some with elaborate headstones. There are also various green spaces where you might be luckily enough to photograph butterflies and other wildlife.

Throughout the morning, the tutor will recap on settings, offer 1:1 time with exercises to try, and answer any questions you have.

Read more about the history of the Park over at the Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park website.

• Dates: Sat 7 Apr, 5 May, 2 Jun all 10am-1pm
• Meeting Point: Mile End tube station
• Price: £15 which includes 1:1 time
• Group Size: maximum 12 participants
• Prior Knowledge: familiarity with Exposure

“Hi! I really enjoyed the event and the personal tuition that Natalie give to us individually and to the group. It was new information regarding how to use our cameras. It was a great day to enjoy. Looking forward for the next one.” Lourdes

“It was a great chance to learn more about the camera. The weather was great for the relaxed session walking around the cemetery park.” Ross

“Clear instructions and the chance to try things out without distraction. Free time and then the chance to review with instructor. Just the right amount of time.” Laura

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“I thoroughly enjoyed this event and Natalie’s valuable advice. Quite lucky with the weather, too – time definitely not wasted then. I can’t wait to join you guys on another event… Thank you.” Damien

“It was fun and a valuable learning experience. I can’t wait to attend another!” Barry

“I found it to be a very relaxing lesson. The content was very easy to understand. Nice bunch of people were there too.” David

Build your knowledge of how to shoot in black and white, by practicing to see images which work best in monochrome.

To help with this you’ll need to develop the ability to abstract away colour well before you press the shutter and so you will be searching for shots that have:

• Shapes, patterns and textures
• Shadows, lighting and contrast
• Curves, lines and other strong composition

The Barbican is a great place to practice B&W images. The architecture has strong features and the Barbican Conservatory allows for stunning, black and white abstracts of nature. This event takes place on Sunday 19th February.

The photo challenge starts at 11:30am lasts three hours which includes:

• An intro to B&W shooting
• Time to ask questions about your camera
• A group check-in at the Barbican Food Hall halfway through

The cost of this practice event is £10 which includes the chance to receive feedback on your photos post-event. I will be taking photos myself at this event.

Due to tube engineering works, I think meeting at St. Pauls tube station is the best option and it’s a 10 minute walk or so to the Barbican.

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