Category Archives: Pictures

Autumn

Autumn_Leaves-2010-076

Here’s a quick slideshow I put together of images of autumn shot on a Leica M9 with a 35mm Summicron ASPH, 50mm Elmar-M and 50mm Nokton.

The whole thing was edited in Aperture 3. The slideshow, text and music were done in Aperture 3 also. The black and white conversions at the end were done using Nik Software’s Silver Efex Pro.

 

Bespoke Workshops

Custom Tailored Photography, DSLR Video and Software Workflow One-on-one Workshops

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Through the years, on assignment, giving presentations and collecting the occasional award for my work.

I thoroughly enjoy passing on knowledge and tips and helping those new to the industry or a particular aspect of our work to pick up new skills and further their career. Anyone who has been on any one of my workshops or presentations will hopefully agree. Having started as a photographer in 1989, there’s usually a thing or two that I can pass on!

I’ve discovered that there is very much a need for a different kind of workshop however, a more focused and bespoke workshop. We are all at different levels in our photography and therefore have different needs as far as education is concerned. Whilst group workshops are a fine thing, custom tailored workshops mean that in a matter of a day or two, so much knowledge is gained, that it puts the group method definitely in second place.

At the moment I can offer bespoke one-on-one workshops on the following topics:

Photography (photojournalism, portrait, street photography and so on), DSLR Video, Audio, Multimedia / Convergence, Workflow, Portfolio Editing, Photo Essay Construction and Video Editing (Final Cut). As an Adobe Influencer, one of my most popular workshops amongst both professional colleagues and photography enthusiasts is Adobe Lightroom. I will not only share my workflow for efficient and high quality work, but help you design a full backup strategy as well.

Naturally this is a very general list; if a topic isn’t listed, do get in touch and if it’s something I can help with, I will. If not, perhaps I may know someone who can. Also, depending on how in-depth we need to go, several topics can be covered in a day.

I’ve also been a tutor at the prestigious Leica Akademie in London, and having been a Leica user since 1989, am more that fluent in Leica M camera use. One of the most popular workshops amongst Leica M users is my street photography day, so do get in touch.

My years as an Olympus Visionary and more recently as an Olympus Mentor naturally means I’m very happy to help you with your Olympus setup. I’ve also been a Canon DSLR shooter for many years, so very familiar with their system.

More recently, I’ve been working with Panasonic Lumix UK as an expert photographer, using both the m43 system as well as being part of the team of photographers that launched the Lumix S1 and S1R in Barcelona.

My years of writing camera reviews for photography magazines has brought me into close contact with various systems from various manufacturers, so regardless of the system you use, if you need help, get in touch and book a day or two. Over my career I’ve extensively shot with Canon, Contax, Leica, Lumix, Minolta, Minox, Nikon, Olympus and Sony.

To get a general feel for the kind of feedback my last series of group workshops with the extremely talented Jeff Ascough received, have a look HERE.

Here are some comments from recent bespoke one-on-one workshop attendees:

We have always considered photography a complex business, in which technical skills and business capabilities should be developed together. When looking for a workshop to improve what we know and the way we do it, we are not looking just for a technical course, but forsomething that can help us to improve our presence as photographers as a whole. The one-to-one workshop we had the possibility to do with Edmond Terakopian was exactly what we were looking for: photography in the skill and in the business. During a structured day, Edmond analysed both our work and our market strategy with honesty and providing constructive criticism and feedback. After having seen the way we work he always showed us different ways or approaches, always comparing different way of doing things. We have been able to look at our current work from a different perspective, re-thinking our business strategy and our technical approach. I have particularly loved the fact that he did not limit the day to the photography as technical art, but he acted as mentor for the business side of it, sharing ideas, way of working, strategies and tips.”There are no magic shortcuts in this market” he told us, but unlike many others he gave us the tool to build a better future. I think that if you like to attend a course that will help you round up all the sides of photography, Edmond is definitely a great mentor you can learn from. Carlo and Fabiana Nicora

“Just spent the day with Edmond and where there was darkness there is now light! It’s a long time since I learned this much in a day, and my only wish is that I’d done this years ago. Inspired by what’s possible and breathing easy now that the system for processing and storing photos is fully sorted.  Great blend of art and science.  Many thanks!” – Peter Kirkby
“I’ve now had three separate one day sessions with Edmond and loved each one of them. Edmond is clearly a very accomplished photographer but also an articulate teacher and the two do not always go hand in hand. His passion of photography is apparent in his desire for you to get the most of out of the day and I’m sure I have not done my last workshop with Edmond. Highly recommend.”  Jeremy Peters
“Sometimes you come across a real expert in their field, someone with many years experience of the good, and bad, things in a professional area. Sometimes you meet a great teacher, one who takes the trouble to work out what you really need, where your weakness – and strengths – lie, who inspires you, and is not afraid to challenge a little. Rarely do you get both in the same place. Edmond Terakopian is such a person. The time we spent in a bespoke workshop was one of the best investments I’ve made. We covered an enormous amount of ground, and his patience, enthusiasm and attention did not let up for one second. Already I’ve put some of his advice into practice, and very quickly secured a great commission at a proper professional rate only days later, using his direct guidance on positioning and recognising my value. Highly recommended”. Paul Clarke /photographer & technologist.

“I have just done a one day workshop on using video on my DSLR with Edmond Terakopian. I was a complete beginner in video DSLR so wanted a good basic grounding in how to get up and running with my Canon 5D MkII. Edmond took me through story boarding, sound, shooting, essential equipment and editing. He gave me some really good tips and answered all my (many) questions in a clear and understandable way. I now feel confident about going out and starting to shoot small films and editing them on either iMovie or Final Cut Express. Edmond is a great teacher. The day was really enjoyable and taught me more than enough to get me started!” Rosie Hallam / award winning photojournalist.

“The two day one-to-one workshop with Edmond was excellent, both in terms of quality of material and Edmond’s relaxed attitude towards training.  The two days taught me a lot about DSLR HD Video recording and editing as well as an in depth introduction to sound recording and associated peripherals needed.  I can wholeheartedly recommend a one-to-one session with Edmond – the man knows his stuff!”. Kevin Mullins / wedding photographer.

“Edmond is a rare find. Someone who I had hoped would simply teach me how to enjoy using a Leica. However what I found in the day I spent with him was someone who opened my eyes on how to see light, how to look at everything around me with new eyes and took me back to simple ways of days gone by! He inspired me through his personable, flexible and adaptive manner to learn and tune my photography skills. I witnessed a master at work and realised it was the start of a new dawn for me one where I can learn and be inspired but with the support and guidance of a talented teacher who is a delight to spend time with enjoying a shared passion for photography…”. Joel Segal

“Edmond is the ideal teacher: probing, exacting – but always constructive and encouraging. We have had only one session together, but I feel he has already helped to make me a rather better photographer than I was, and I look forward to more. He is hugely generous with his time and knowledge even after the tutorial day, even processing some of my shots himself to show me different ways of doing it. Most of all he is the most delightful man to spend time with; never was learning so pleasurable. I can’t recommend him too highly”. Christopher Middleton

“It was a fabulous day; so much so that I’ve already booked another day with Edmond!  So what made it so great?  Well, firstly, Edmond is a truly delightful person to spend time with…friendly, patient, relaxed, and with an easy-going style.  Secondly, he really knows his stuff…whether it’s anything to do with the Leica camera and lenses (and Canon’s); image processing; or the craft of ‘street photography’, then Edmond has all the answers.  Thirdly, he’s a great teacher…getting the balance just right between giving me advice and feedback, and just letting me ‘get on with it’ and ‘learn by doing’, as well as being patient with my battery of questions!  I also learned by just watching him at work…and comparing his (more successful!) approach to street photography compared to my own.  Lastly, he’s a brilliant craftsman when it comes to street photography…I was both inspired and challenged by the superiority of his (brilliant) images compared to my own!

So I can’t recommend Edmond highly enough and am already looking forward to our next session together.  I had a wonderful combination of great fun, intense practical learning, and inspiration and I came away with more confidence and, more importantly, having made a new friend.”  Jim Grover

“On the recommendation of a friend who had spent time with Edmond in a bespoke workshop, I booked 3 individual days to get me started on a passion I had long wanted to pursue but was limited by my skill and knowledge. Having just completed my 3 days, I feel inspired, confident and read to really pursue photography. We achieved more in 3 days than I could have imagined, for a novice, I feel good with my camera, (his support on choosing the right one for me was invaluable), I now have a grasp of editing and processing and I have a system that works for me. What I think Edmond did really well was his ability to coach me at my pace, whilst constantly providing both challenge and building confidence. He has shown me both technical and creative skills and perhaps most importantly opened up the door to the magic of photography. He has a lovely relaxed style, is great company and clearly a real expert who loves to share his knowledge. The improvement in my shooting is immense and has really given me a fillip. I know I will have more sessions with Edmond as I progress, they are a great return on investment. Edmond, thank you”. Mona Bitar

Fancy Being Exhibited In The Guggenheim?


“The project, called YouTube Play and conceived as a biennial event, is intended to discover innovative work from unexpected sources. It is open even to entrants who don’t consider themselves artists, and actively encourages the participation of people with little or no experience in video. “People who may not have access to the art world will have a chance to have their work recognized,” said Nancy Spector, deputy director and chief curator of the Guggenheim Foundation. “We’re looking for things we haven’t seen before.”

Pictures Of The Decade

Terrorist suicide bombing of London. Walking wounded from Edgware Road tube station. Photo: Edmond Terakopian

I’m pleased to share the news that the Press Association (PA) have named one of my pictures from the London bombings as one of the ten news pictures of the decade. My thanks go to one of our industry’s top picture editors Martin Keene at PA for including my image in his selection. I’d also like to extend my thanks to Phil Coomes for featuring this on the BBC’s excellent blog on photography, Viewfinder.

What Would You Do If You Won The Lottery?

It’s a question often asked by people. Sometimes the answers are more predictable but occasionally they are completely unique and full of character. To mark the 15th anniversary of the National Lottery, I had the pleasure of photographing 15 lottery winners who have spent some of their winnings on the quirky to the life-changing. Its been a fascinating journey that has taken me all over England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, and all the way to Canada. The shooting of the project took around five months, sometimes spending days getting to location. Its been an absolute joy to do, and I’d just like to send a big thanks to all who helped from the Camelot press office, and the kindness and patience shown by all my photographic subjects.


Meredith Davies from Carmarthenshire won £2,069,730 in October 2004. He set up a stud farm with around 25 Welsh Cobb ponies for £100,000. Photographed with his partner Kate Chester.

The project will be exhibited at the Fulham Palace Gallery from November 14 to 22 (check the gallery’s opening hours, on their web site). The exhibition is spread across two huge rooms with some of the images being printed by Metro Imaging to over 2 meters across. Its going to be well worth seeing.

Technically speaking, I decided to carry identical kit to all the shoots. This would help keep the same flavour across the shots. I packed everything into a ThinkTank Photo Airport International, including a Change-Up and Skins pouches to use when on location. Camera kit consisted of two Canon 5D MkII bodies (5D for the first shoot as I didn’t have the Mark II yet!). Lenses were the Canon 15mm f2.8, 16-35mm f2.8L II, 35mm f1.4L, 85mm f1.2L II and the 70-200mm f4L IS. Looking through the images, it looks like my favoured lenses were the 16-35mm and 85mm.

Sue & Peter Busby from East Yorkshire won £1,660,769 as part of the Tesco syndicate who scooped £18,268,465 in July 2005. They purchased a luxury, top of the range Lunar caravan for £14,500. With their dog Jasper by the shore of Derwentwater, Northern Lake District. Keswick Camping and Caravanning Club Site, Keswick, Cumbria.

The many thousands of RAW images, occupying many gigabytes of storage were backed up across several drives, including the brilliant Sonnet Fusion D800 and in the ‘cloud’, giving me peace of mind. All the editing, captioning, colour corrections, raw conversions and output were done on Apple’s Aperture and finishing touches added on Nik Software’s Viveza and Sharpner Pro 3.0. The ultimate compliment came from master printer John Cleur at Metro Imaging when he said that the files looked great and needed very little work done to them before printing!

Thea Bristow, who won £15 million in July 2004, features in this landmark exhibition and is pictured flying over her 13-acres of woodland – a purchase which meant the land was saved from housing development. Over 300 new trees have been planted and a walkway built through the woodland before it is opened up for the public to enjoy.

So, don’t forget to check out the exhibition from November 14 to 22 at Fulham Palace Gallery, Fulham Palace, Bishop’s Avenue, London, SW6 6EA.

First Open Workshop

A montage of images of me at work, ranging from 1994 to 2009

I’ll be having my first ever open workshop on November 28th, 2009. The general themes will be photojournalism and street photography. It’s going to be most suited to intermediate and advanced photographers, both amateur and professional. Although having done many workshops, lectures and presentations in the UK and abroad, this is the first ever open one, meaning anyone can book and pop along.


Part of the workshop is also a portfolio review, so if you think your work might benefit from some one to one attention, you can also book this.
I’ll be showing some work from my 20 year career as a press photographer, answering any questions you may have and then getting down to the actual workshop, so make sure your batteries are charged and your cameras ready!

The business and booking side of things is being dealt by Ghene Snowdon, so visit the Photosocialise site to make bookings.
As it’s a first and there’s a recession, we’ve decided to keep it mega cheap. These prices will definitely never be repeated again, so if you’re interested, do make a booking sharpish – places are limited and are booking up already!

To see a report from the workshop, click HERE.