One of the things that people frequently ask me is how I learned photography. For those of you who may have also read the About section of my website, you’ll know that I have never taken a photography class, but have lectured previously at the Walter Kronkite School of Journalism at ASU on the subject. The transition from hobbyist shooter to full-time professional was not an easy road, and I chose to get my degree in Business and Communication rather than take any photography courses in high school or college. Now, that is not to say there were no classes or opportunities for me during this time, but the reason I chose not to take any formal classes was actually quite simple. The reason was…digital.
I’ve never owned a film camera and I never really got into shooting film. I started with digital photography in 2001, and by 2003 when the Canon EOS10D and Canon Digital Rebel were first announced I jumped right into DSLR technology and never looked back. Through countless nights spent researching the fundamentals of photography on the internet, followed by endless amounts of “field testing” and bringing my camera everywhere with me at all times, it wasn’t before long when I started to meet other photographers and began pushing the boundaries of creativity and light. I truly believe that in today’s world the best methods for learning photography are not in a formal classroom or even behind a computer screen. The best way is to actually be out in the field shooting and enjoying the craft with other like-minded or up and coming photographers who are willing to help and inspire.
It is with this idea in mind, along with the evolution of some one-on-one mentoring sessions and more recent group sessions that I have done, that I introduce the Mike Maez Photography Workshop.
This is not a workshop where you sit down and listen as I lecture for hours on end about photographic theory and the inverse square law. Nor is this a casual meetup in a random city park where we will shoot pictures of birds and water features. This is an awesome interactive workshop that is a 100% hands-on live shooting experience with real people and real cameras in real life. Again, there is NO better way to learn photography than to actually be out in the field doing everything hands-on, and of course I’ll provide some instruction and direction along the way. I am very excited to be in a position where I can really share as much as I can about a subject that I am so passionate about, so if you’ve ever even considered doing a photography workshop, I’ll do my absolute best to make this worth your while!