Photography can make you appreciate life. It’s a strong and bold statement but Essdras M Suarez speaks from experience. On the second day of Xposure International Photography Festival, it was full house at the much-awaited professional workshops by top photographers including Essdras M Suarez, Yousef Al-Habshi, and David Newton. The workshops focused on different aspects of photography but one common factor among them was to find greater joy in the small things of everyday life.
Some find joy in capturing small and ordinary things that others notice little. Some others love venturing into the streets to observe faces, cultures, emotions, and relations. A few find joy in capturing abstract arts and many in documenting their lives. The true happiness from photography comes from a combination of adventures, achievements, reflection, and appreciation.
Finding the Extraordinary in Everyday Street
The morning at Xposure, being organised by Sharjah Government Media Bureau at Expo Centre Sharjah, began with the Pulitzer prize-winning photographer Essdras M Suarez asking his students about the most important tool that a photographer can have. “Your brain is the most essential tool you can have,” remarked Essdras, “how you see the world will show in your photographs. The second most important thing is to always have a big smile.”
His session progressed with the class evaluating photographs and understanding the elements of layers and moments that create an interesting photograph. He emphasised that the cameras must be a part of you, otherwise you won’t be able to react to the chaos of life, where the best photos are made. Street photography is like a dance with chaos. Photographers should aim to not be noticeable while taking photos but ensure that their photos are noticed amidst the clutter of our everyday life.
“Photography is a 2D medium that seeks to document the 3D world,” said Essdras. Later, the students ventured out on to the streets of Sharjah to experiment alongside the master himself. They ventured to the Central Souk, Rolla, and Industrial Area 2 in Sharjah, as well as Al Noor Mosque where they documented the movement of people walking in and out before and after prayers.
Macro Photography Workshop
Transitioning from the abundance art of street photography, a three-hour workshop on smaller things in life was conducted by Yousef Al-Habshi, who has won numerous local and international awards for his photography. He highlighted the best lenses, accessories, and lighting technique required to compose great shots. His enthusiasm for capturing beauty that is hidden from the eyes was contagious and several attendees were glued to his detailed presentation.
“Macro photography forces you to search harder for tiny subject matter and to find the extraordinary in everyday objects,” explained Yousef. The most important steps in macro photography is to first understand the terminology, pick the right camera and lens equipment, get sufficient depth of field, focus on the most important part of your subject, learn the common behaviours of various insects, and compose the frame to take your picture. Interestingly, Yousef illustrated through his photos that you can find patterns of the universe in the tiniest of creatures.
Creating DSLR Video – Introduction Course
On the wider spectrum of the visual world is videography. David Newton, a well-renowned photographer and filmmaker, walked his students through creating their first DSLR video. “Photography and videography share a lot of the same combination of elements that make a scene come alive. If you can master the art of storytelling through photography, your videography skills will be sharpened,” elucidated Newton.
The session explored the high-quality video option in DSLR and mirrorless cameras which seem to be a growing trend. Within a span of three hours, Newton covered a wide-range of subjects such as basics of camera function including frame rates, CODECs, lens choice, audio recording, lighting, accessories, storyboarding, as well as the art of constructing a narrative. By the end of the course, one of the students remarked that he was ready to shoot his first narrative idea.
These educational workshops will continue until Saturday, November 24. A full list of workshops is available at https://xposure.ae/events/category/workshop/. The Sharjah Government Media Bureau launched the concept of Xposure in 2016 as an International Photography Festival that would become an annual feature in the calendar of professional photographers, photography enthusiasts, filmmakers, students and educators from around the world.
