Workshop Kiev (UKR) - cancelled

Join Rob Hornstra from Monday July 10 until Wednesday July 12, 2017, for a three-day intensive workshop at Bird in Flight school in Kiev, Ukraine. The goal of the workshop is to gain insight in your personal working process, develop your own methodologies and learn how to benefit from pitfalls, so you can do it all yourself in the future.

In this workshop we focus on the question how to go from a potentially good idea to a satisfactorily completed project. We will raise questions about the core of your ideas, your role in your project, the ambition with your project and of course all the pitfalls along the road (and hell yes, there are many).

How often do we hear people say about someone else’s work: “I could have done that too”! Even your mother or your neighbour nowadays knows how to make good picture. So what makes the difference between you and them? Why do some photographers manage to come up with successful photography projects time after time? And how can you stand out with your independently made project in this oversaturated professional photography field.

REQUIRED MATERIALS
To participate in this workshop you will have to bring your portfolio, a body of work in progress (with or without photos), a project description regarding the work in progress, a pen and an open mind. On the second day you will have to bring as much photo gear as possible.

PROGRAM

Day 1: Monday July 10, 2017

10:00 - 13:00 Introduction: Who are you as a photographer?

We will start the workshop by reviewing portfolios and looking and reflecting on the work in progress of each other. The aim of this session is to discover a (nascent) personality through your work. Who are you as a photographer and what are your ambitions? If you ever wrote an artist statement, please take this with you.

14:00 – 17:30 Work in progress: Pitch your plan.

Every good project has a pitch line. What is yours? In the afternoon session we will look closer to the content of your work in progress. What is your concept? What is your goal? How do you describe your plan? What are the challenges in production? Where do we see potential pitfalls?

Day 2: Tuesday July 11, 2017

Please take as much of your photo equipment as possible (camera, flash, tripod etcetera).

10:00 - 13:00 Photography strategies: How do you visualize?

After clarifying your identity as photographer and narrowing down the content of your work in progress, we will take a closer look to visual strategies that serve both you as a maker and the content of your project. By looking to your work and work of others we will try to define a key image for your afternoon shoot.

14:00 – 17:30 A clear mind: Shoot work!
By taking the previous sessions into account, you will produce new (sketch) material for your project. You may be advised to use other equipment or to work in a different way than you are used to.

Day 3: Wednesday July 12, 2017

10:00 – 13:00 Project on track: A working plan
During this morning session we will review the newly produced images in connection to your project. What did you learn and how are you going to implement this into your working strategy? What are your next practical steps to fulfill your project? What timeline did you set for yourself?

14:00 – 17:30 Opportunities for your project
We have been focusing on successfully fulfilling a project. The process of an idea for a project towards a finished body of work. But once it is finished: What are actually the opportunities with your work? During this afternoon session we will incorporate the aspect of an audience for your work. What possibilities do you see to reach this audience? This is a crucial step towards opening up possibilities for funding and grants.

“I learned more than I expected. Most valuable were the practical and hands on tips on how to make and publish a big project.” —New York, 2014

“Thanks a lot for the very insightful last two days! They gave a lot of new ideas and input…new ways to approach things! So much to do!” —Vienna, 2015

“Thank you for this workshop, by way of feedback it was very useful, particularly welcome was your frankness about the difficulties, contradictions, and rewards of working in this field.” —Bristol, 2017