We’ve been visiting photography workshops to bring you this guide to getting snap happy in the capital
Abu Dhabi Week sits down with professional photographer Jay Alonzo to get his tips for caputring the perfect photo.
What is your career background?
I had my own studio in the Philippines where I taught photography for over fifteen years to an extensive list of international clients. I have recently opened a studio here in Abu Dhabi. My vision is to make Abu Dhabi the centre for photography in the UAE within the next five to ten years.
What workshops do you run?
I avoid full day workshops because in my experience people can’t absorb too much information in one day. People learn best by doing assignments and applying the knowledge that they have learned in class.
I offer different types of workshops; beginner’s level and pro-level.
My beginner’s module teaches the features of a camera. There are so many parts of a camera to adjust that often we don’t know where to start. In this class you will learn how to use the essential camera controls for guaranteed better results.
My creative beginner’s module focuses on teaching you how to tell your own personal story through your photos. You learn how to identify your subject and how to photograph it well.
The third module is SLR for beginners. You learn the essential camera settings and how to take photographs manually. Actually there is no difference in quality if you use manual or automatic settings, it’s old school thought that manual is better. When you drive a car, a manual gear box doesn’t necessarily give you a better quality journey than an automatic car and the same theory applies to taking a photo.
Pro-level classes are divided into several modules, one module is called Pro-light - this covers basic studio lighting skills.
I’ve taught a lot of Filipino students here in Abu Dhabi. Sadly when many of these people return to the Philippines they will be unemployed, so the pro-level photography course gives them a career option to fall back on – it’s the real deal.
What equipment is needed in order to take good photographs?
A compact camera is enough. I don’t believe that you need an expensive SLR. I taught many students in the past who didn’t have expensive cameras but created artistic photos.
My emphasis is not on the camera – it’s on the art that you produce, but of course you can’t create something artistic if you don’t know how the camera works.
What tips do you have for budding photographers?
For aspiring photographers, I encourage them to really think about why they happened to take the photograph in the first place and what is it they want to illustrate through the image.
There’s no such thing as a beautiful or ugly subject, the image is dictated by how you take the photo. Look at images of celebrities in the media, sometimes they look good and sometimes they don’t, it just depends on the photo.
Photography clubs in Abu Dhabi
Shootercada Photographers Circle
“Club members meet weekly to share opinions about each others photographs. Sometimes we take photos during the meeting to practice our skills and occasionally I organise workshops on different aspects of photography,” said organiser Maynard de la Cruz.
“We began in 2009 and now we have 42 members, the majority of our members are Filipino but of course our club is open to everyone to join.
“We aim for our members to achieve full potential in their chosen field of photography by developing their technical and creative skills. We are serious about our passion but are wacky by nature. Having fun is one of our priorities along with doing community service.
“We meet every Friday at 10am. We usually meet in my flat, although sometimes we meet at the Corniche family park.”
Contact: 050 313 9532
Abu Dhabi Photographers Club
“We have 25 or 30 group members of different nationalities. We meet twice a month to talk about all things photography,” said organiser Mr Maneef.
“We choose a subject to focus on that day. Sometimes we take photos during the meet up and post them on our website.
“Often we have competitions to see who has taken the best photograph during
our meeting.
“The venue varies but it’s usually an open area such as the Corniche, Meena beach or another beach. For more information visit Abu Dhabi Photographers Club on Facebook. We are in the process of changing our name to twiching but you can find us by searching for our old name.”
Contact: 055 281 6860
Abu Dhabi Photographers
“If the majority of our members are available we meet twice a month but usually we meet once a month. We have beginners and professional photographers,” said Shahid Saeed, organiser.
“We predefine our main activities when scheduling a meet up, so each member knows what to do. During the activity we discuss the task and help each other.
“We don’t have a specific meeting place. We choose a location and meet according to a scheduled activity. We have met at Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, Al Ain Zoo, Abu Dhabi Breakwater and on the Corniche. It’s useful to bring a camera to the session. If you don’t have a camera but want to learn then you are also welcome to join.”
Contact: Visit www.meetup.com and fill in the online form.
Catriona Doherty
