Say Cheese?

I love pictures...always have, always will.  Not only do I love being in pictures ;)  but, I love taking them and seeing all the memories they capture.  My pictures however have always been amateur at best.  While my pictures served their purpose to capture the moment, they was certainly room for improvement.  After moving to Perth, I quickly started looking for photography classes.  Just as quick, I realized how expensive classes could be. So being the avid couponer that I am, I was super pumped when I found a Groupon for a photography course.  "Protrack 1 and 2"  was being held at the Freemantle Prison and promised an interesting background to learn basics of my SLR camera.  

Of course I hate doing things by myself, so I was even more excited to find out that my friend, Marie, was also interested in taking a class.  So the two of us signed up and were surely on our way to becoming the "next big thing" in photography!  

After several attempts and scheduling mishaps the day had finally arrived to attend our class.  This Friday I packed my bag with everything I thought I would need and was ready to go.  Did I mention I forgot to charge my battery?  Yeah that would have been a good choice do to the night before.  Hmmm, now some of you might be worried at this point that the class would be ruined for me because I would not get to use my camera due to no battery.  HOWEVER, I once again lucked out and was able to charge my battery onsite before we started shooting some pictures. And since we did not even start taking pictures until FIVE hours after the class started, my camera battery was plenty charged.   

Yes, you read that correctly....a photography class that boasted an interactive site with excellent photo opportunities gave us a total of 60 minutes of practical hands on picture taking time.   Hmmm...not what I was expecting.

Now don't get me wrong, I really did learn more about my camera than I would have on my own.  And I know I need to understand the theory behind taking pictures before I can become good at taking pictures...but really FIVE hours?????  One thing I did discover is that I am not cut out to be a student that has to listen to lectures.  My ADD kicked in big time and I had to work really hard at not talking to Maria the whole time.  I suppose I should understand where Addie gets it from huh?

Back to the topic at hand however.  So when we finally did start taking pictures, they were of this 20 year old model whose dress would probably have been too big on Addison.  I felt like the paparazzi, and it was a bit uncomfortable to be honest.  

What did I get out of the course?  Well it did make me want to be a better photographer and figure out how to "design" a better picture.  But I can assure you I will not be attending Protrack 3 - 6 at a cost of $1500.  Instead I signed up (with Marie) for a 6 week CREATIVE photography course with a local art center for $187.  I do think this will be a better fit and I cannot wait to see the pictures that Marie and I learn to take.  Thanks Marie for "giving it a go" with me again =)

Hopefully this time I will actually have pictures worth posting on Facebook and my blog!  

XOXOX

Amy