Photography Training | Learn from a Professional
Photographs are the public face of your agency. Yet many non-governmental organizations and foundations rely on photos provided by untrained staff members or volunteers for the images they use. In a media age when professional quality publications abound, non-profit agencies need to be prepared to compete harder, and smarter, for donor dollars. High quality photographs can help your agency gain that edge and tell your story.
While hiring a professional photographer is one option, some agencies still do not budget for photography. Others may be intimidated by the thought of contracts and photo rights, or simply fail to grasp the importance of high-quality photography to their publications, donor materials and web site design.
Drawing on more than 12 years of experience as a writer, editor and photographer for non-profit organizations, David Snyder can help provide your staff with the skills they need to take quality photographs on their next trip to the field. Tailoring each training to the specific needs of your agency, David draws on his own experiences photographing relief and development projects in more than 55 countries to help your staff avoid the mistakes most amateurs make. Whether they are first time camera users with a simple point and shoot, or serious amateurs with the latest digital technology, everyone can benefit from the techniques covered in these relaxed and informative trainings, geared towards the unique needs of NGOs and foundations.
Powerful and evocative photographs have no equal in capturing the essence of those you serve. Give your staff the photography skills they need to make your publications look professional.
Each training is specifically tailored to your agency’s needs, including:
- Digital photography basics: getting closer, going vertical and the Rule of Thirds
- Avoiding the three most common mistakes
- Using flash, fill flash and natural light
- How to say more with your photos
- Framing and composition
- Shooting sensitively: tips for documenting delicate or sensitive subjects
- Understanding photographic rights
- Writing and reading photo contracts
- How best to document individual relief and development projects
- Tips for photographing children
- What makes a good photo?
- When to hire a professional
- AND, any other photo topics that relate specifically to your agency’s beneficiaries, staff, donors or projects
Training I: Understanding the Basics
In Training I, Understanding the Basics, we will explore the basics of good photography by discussing what makes a good photograph. We will review examples of the three most common mistakes people make – and how to avoid them – and we will examine how staff using only point and shoot digital cameras can take far better photos by following a few basic rules of framing, lighting and composition. Using specific examples from photos taken in the field, we will discuss the best ways to photograph individual projects – from health clinics and housing projects to emergency relief distributions and large- scale agricultural schemes – based on the needs of your agency. We will also look at how photos are used, and how best to take shots that fit well with each medium, from web sites and newsletters to donor publications and promotional materials.
Understanding the Basics is an excellent and widely applicable intro in the world of NGO photography for staff at all skill levels and at all positions within your agency. Presented through a highly visual PowerPoint format, with plenty of time for questions and answers, participants will learn first-hand the techniques they need to take better photographs the next time they visit the field.
Training II: Photography in Practice
Training II, Photography in Practice, provides a hands-on photography experience designed to give your staff personal and specific instruction in taking better photographs. From your office building, we will explore the surrounding neighborhood with cameras in hand to practice better photography techniques, using the local lighting, architecture, people, environment and street scenes as our guide. Participants will have access to the instructor throughout, providing feedback and critique as they apply the techniques discussed. This transaction time will allow participants to adjust and refine their techniques while building better photographs. Photography in Practice allows students to learn more about the actual camera they will use the next time they travel, and understand the different setting adjustments before they head to the field.
Photography in Practice builds on the skills learned in Training I, Understanding the Basics, and is designed as a practical follow-up. This training is highly interactive, and allows participants the unique chance to discuss their photos, as they take them, with a professional who can help them better understand and avoid common mistakes.
