My friend, Cuban Photographer, Ramses Batista, and I have been co-leading photo workshops for about six years. Most of our events have been in Cuba, where we met, and has involved photographing farmers from the Vinales region and, our favorite, dancers from the Cuban National Ballet in Havana.
With the onset of the pandemic, Ramses and his family moved to Atlanta where he lives and works today.
Always looking for opportunities to work together and with travel to Cuba not possible this past year, Ramses and I created the workshop, Eclectic Atlanta!, which we co-led this past October and plan to repeat when conditions permit.
The Atlanta workshop is "eclectic" in that it includes two wildly different and specular gardens – The Atlantic Botanical Gardens and Gibbs Garden, the rusty old cars of Old Car City, and the opportunity to photograph ballet dancers and fashion models in a variety of locations throughout the city, including the rustic Goat Farm, the edgy Little Five Points, and the Centennial Olympic Park.
Our workshop was announced just as the Delta variant of Covid reared its ugly head, so several who registered, understandably, opted not to travel. We decided to go forward with the workshop since most of our locations were outside and many were able to drive (instead of fly) to Atlanta. This made for a small, intimate group of four participants, and created the perfect environment for learning and photographing in these fantastic locations!
Ramses is known for his remarkable photos of dancers and models, often achieved with remote flash. With local dancers and models, we used Godox flash units and triggers. Our approach is for each photographer to have his/her own trigger and flash unit. Each camera requires specific setup, but once the light is determined, the camera settings right, and the flash set, the shooting can begin! The models and dancers Ramses lined up were AMAZING!
Using flash requires attention to detail and an understanding of how ambient light and the light from flash work together to freeze motion and eliminate shadows. Ramses worked with each participant to allow everyone to create images with this technique. This approach often results in modern, edgy looks.
I specialize in mobile photography and infrared photography with both traditional cameras and the iPhone. During the workshop, participants learned to take advantage of today's mobile phone technology to photograph and process RAW files, do intentional camera movement, and to create long exposure photos. Some participants borrowed accessories and experimented with iPhone infrared, and some borrowed my converted Fuji XT1 to have a traditional infrared experience.
Here are a few of the favorite images shared by members of our great group composed of Debbie Westerhold, Kim Reynolds, Silvia Schneirov, and Wendy Kaveney.
Debbie Westerhold
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| Atlantic Botanical Gardens ©Debbie Winchester |
Kim Reynolds
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Silvia Schneirov
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| Intentional Camera Movement at Gibbs Garden © Silvia Schneirov |
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| Atlantic Botanical Gardens © Silvia Schneirov  Old Car City © Silvia Schneirov  Model, Centennial Olympic Park © Silvia Schneirov |
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| Old Car City © Wendy Kaveney |
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| Old Car City, Average Cam Pro © Wendy Kaveney |
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| Gibbs Garden, iPhone Infrared © Rad A. Drew |
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| P101 Workshops with Ramses Batista |
