☯ intense ☂ cerebral ✌︎ practical ☀︎ mind-bending ✈︎
☛ extraspecialdoubleamazingtremendouslyspectacular ◉
on Composition
a photography workshop +
with Zalmy Berkowitz
stop!
There are no more live workshops. Everything (and more. how can you have more than everything? well this is photography and if you could focus past infinity than you can have more than everything) is now online in a go-at-your-own-pace format.
Now you may continue. As you were.
The On(line) Composition workshop never goes on sale (I don’t like how sales can feel manipulative).
It costs $456.78 and there is no subscription fee*. It’s a go-at-your-own-pace type of shindig. Way more details below, I just wanted to get this info out of the way :)
* (might change in the future, but if you buy it before that goes into effect you’re still subscription free)
“This class is outstanding! One of the most eye opening and inspirational courses I’ve ever taken!”
Woah, hold on there cowperson, what even is this thing?
“This thing” is an intense photography workshop covering everything (every thing, all things) related to composition. It's a no-fluff, information overflow of all I've learned and know (and made up) about composition. (More details 👇🏼 )
So… Who is this thingamabob for anyways?
It's (mostly) for documentarians! All ye who seek to document life through the magic medium of photography come hither! Gather round the electric campfire of distilled pixel juice and drink from the fountain of compositional wisdom.
Whether you photograph your own life or others; paid or not; weddings or funerals; war or peace; if you want to improve your storytelling through the calculated use of your camera and the world out there, this workshop is for you. Unless of course you know all this stuff like really well, then maybe it's not.
It's not particularly geared towards a certain level of photographer. I really feel that almost all will gain (though from past experience those with the most experience gained the most). We will be throwing around a lot of camera and industry terms so a basic understanding of how a camera works will really help (if you don't have that, I suggest reading Understanding Exposure before the workshop :) ).
ALLRIGHT! GOT IT. SO Like WHAT WILL IT LOOK LIKE?
well, you probably won't cry
I mean it's okay if you do, but this here workshop isn't of the fuzzy sort. No "you can do it!"s or "the sky is the limit!"s (though those may be true. No Yolo or #liveauthentic here. Just hours and hours of liquid information poured down your... (okay I have no clue how to end this metaphor).
“Best workshop I ever took was ON COMPOSITION with Zalmy B... It seriously was the best workshop I’ve ever taken, and I’ve paid waaaay too much money on workshops and got pretty much nothing out of them.”
The workshop will be divided into 5 sections:
Introduction to Composition
What is it, what it isn't, why is it so important, why do we even need it? and how do we use it? This includes sections on why we see the way we do, and loads of deep dives into psychology and neurology. Fun stuff.
Camera side choices
How our choices of lens, aperture, shutter speed, etc. all contribute to the way our story is told, understood, and felt. Super important, usually ignored, so… yeah.
Elements of Composition
This will be the bulk of the workshop. How to use the elements "out there" to best tell our story. Framing, balance, adjectives, cropping, contrast, repetition, complementary elements, lines, layers, and more!. We’ll talk about what they are and aren’t, and how they can help (or hurt us!) in telling our stories.
We will be going through photos from various masters of the craft and seeing how they used these elements to take their photos to the next level.
Practical tips and takeaways
As much as I hate to talk in terms of “rules” there are definitely actions we can immediately take to make our images more precise and legible. We’ll call them “tips” and we’ll go through quite a few.
But there’s more! (Much more)
There will be monthly video updates (hence the subscription, which is no more and has been canceled! woohoo! down with subscriptions! Long live the one time purchase! Also, not monthly videos , that was too ambitious but definitely a few juicy ones per year)
Clarifications or deep dives into specific aspects we talked about in the workshop.
Interviews with other photographers and artists about how they see and why they compose the way they do.
Critiques!
Often the best way to learn how to do things "right" (as if there is such a thing) is to see what we've done "wrong". Every so often I’ll grab some of the images you beautiful people share in the Facebook group and see, based on what we learned, how we could have better told our story.Behind the scenes, how (and why) I got the shot type of thing.
Send me ideas!
details yo!
WHAT WILL IT COST?
The price to access the workshop is $456.78.
(You may ignore this next paragraph, for now)
Additionally there is a yearly subscription (no there isn’t!! All updates come with the initial purchase, forever! (okay, at least a decade, I don’t know what’s gonna happen to civilization)) of $34.56 (less than $3 a month) for monthly (not monthly, but definitely a few juicy ones per year) videos updates and /other goodies.
What to bring?
What? I don’t know. Just put on pants. Actually , who cares, you do you boo. Just come with an open mind and something to take notes on. Oh, and snacks, lots of snacks. If you need suggestions for parings (“excuse me waiter, which artisan, fair trade chocolate goes best with filling the frame?”) just shoot me a text or something.
🦄 🌵 🤘🏽 🐳 🍻 🐙 👑 🐌
We interrupt this broadcast to remind you that there are no more live workshops. This is good and bad depending on if you think its good or bad.
The end of an era!
I absolutely love teaching real people in real time, but I’m cutting down on travel to focus on the online workshop (and other endeavors). So this is the end.
However, the online workshop contains more than I can ever teach in one day AND keeps growing as I learn more, as well as including things I can’t teach in a live workshop (like behind the scenes, how I got this shot, editing, etc.)
okay! back to regular scheduled programming…
ACTUAL PHOTO OF STUDENTS DURING after WORKSHOP
What we will cover
MarketingFinding your voiceFilm developingBelieving in yourself- Composition
Finding the perfect clientThe history and political significance of retrofocus lensesSEO and bloggingShooting in manualPosingHow to take the perfect selfiePrinting and framingPhotography and social justiceHow to create ridiculous websitesFine Art and you
“To other photographers out there, I cannot recommend Zalmy B’s online workshop enough. Pure documentary photography is where my heart is so learning about some of his secrets is so wondrous to me!”
why composition?
I've been pretty obsessed with composition for some time now (yes, I realize how ambiguous that is), and I feel like it's an oft-ignored aspect of photography, especially in the wacky world of workshops. I mean we might talk about the rule of thirds and what not (golden rule, whattup?!), but the why and what of it all, why we need composition (do we even) and what it even is, how it works and why it works, we are left to figure out on our own.
Composition is not just where in the frame to stick our subjects so all looks good. Composition is to images what grammar is to words (or maybe it’s just what composition is to words?). Without it, our stories can be incoherent, aimless, and confusing. It’s what takes a plot and turns it into a story, maybe even poetry. In this workshop you will learn what composition is and isn’t, how to use all the elements of photography; focal length, aperture, shutter speed, etc (not like how to shoot in manual or whatever, that stuff is easy and there’s a lot of great courses on that) and the world out there (the “things” that come together to make a photo) to tell remarkable narratives (actually that's a bit of a stretch. If you have a remarkable narrative, then this workshop will help you express that via the photos you take, and it may even help you figure out what you want to say in the first place). Yikes, far too many parentheses. Get with the program!
I?
Who even is he?
the supers. and a unicorn, a bear, and, well, me
Holy shishkabob!
I haven't even introduced myself.
My name is Zalmy Berkowitz and I'm a photographer specializing in documenting weddings and families (yeah yeah, basically a wedding photographer). I currently live in South Lake Tahoe with my wife and six little monster-angels whom we homeschool (and photograph. A lot).
I'm not a big name in the industry, and kind of like it that way (I wonder if I'd say the same if I was actually a "big name" :) ). I've spoken/taught in conferences in Vancouver, Australia, and New Zealand, given workshops all over the US and Australia, and was named one of Rangefinders 30 Rising Stars of Wedding Photography of 2017 (that was like 8 or 9 years ago I think).
You could see my work here
And we are working on starting a school up in Berkeley, which we are pretty darn excited about.
this is not a climbing workshop.
green shoes always acceptable
Buy now or forever hold your... whatever, you can buy it whenever you want to
What if I don’t like it?
What? How dare you?! go wash out your mouth!
Fine. FINE.
I get that not everyone will be expecting the same thing and some will finish happy and others will be all “seriously?!”. So if you’re not sure which category you fall into, there is a 100% money back guarantee. You’re not satisfied? Just tell me (and please tell me why so I can make it better!) and I will refund the entire amount.
And if you still have questions or concerns or whatever, please shoot me an email!
100%
money
back
guarantee
(I just wanted to put that in big letters for all the twitchy thumb scrollers out there :) )
Frequently
asked
questions
Q. Is this live or is it a go at your own pace sort of thing.
The latter. Watch it whenever you want, wherever you want, however many times you want.
Q. Can I just buy the workshop and not subscribe monthly? I’m kind of sick of all these subscriptions...
Me too man, me too. Yes! If you want to just have access to the original workshop, just unsubscribe and let me know, I’ll send you a link. Keep in mind though, you’re automatically subscribed for one year, so stick around for a bit and see if it’s worth it.
Q. I’m not sure this workshop is for me, are there any video previews or something I can check out?
Yes! Make an account and check out the course, there are a few free videos there.
Q. What happens if it’s not what I expected?
There’s a 100% money back guarantee. No questions asked. I mean I’ll ask a few questions ‘cause I wanna know what you didn’t like or if it was marketed wrong or whatever so I can make it better, but how (or if) you answer those questions won’t matter in regards to the guarantee.
Q. I don’t have a fancy camera, would I still learn from this workshop?
Absolutely! What we talk about applies (well the vast majority of it) whether your shooting with a Hasselblad or an iPhone.
Q. Does the workshop ever go on sale?
Nope.
Q. What? Why? How are you gonna push it?
I’ve gone back and forth about this. On one hand sales allow people to get things at a lower price point. On the other hand it seems quite manipulative. It’s an artificial push, with artificial supply and demand, artificial time lines, all made to push people into buying something they’re not absolutely sure they want, or even afford. “You must make up your mind within 2 days!”
In regards to actually selling, I want this workshop to be so darned good that whenever someone says something like “hey! Anyone know of a good composition workshop” someone else would be all “yeah! Zalmy’s Composition Clinic is a no-brainer”.
In that vein, as mentioned all the way on top, I would be very obliged if y’all do share this workshop with your friends (only if you actually think it’s worth it though), so there is a little 6% off if you do that (it’s a trust system :) )
Q. What if I think you’re wrong?
Please tell me! My views on composition and photography (and life in general) are constantly evolving and I’d love to be shown I’m wrong so I can correct.
Q. Will the subscription price ever go up?
Well it just disappeared so yeah, I’m a magician like that. So cancel the next sentence. Cancel culture, amiright? (what. are. you. on?!) (Probably, at some point, but whatever price you start at, that’s locked in for you for as long as you stay.)
Q. How long did it take you to grow your beard?
Dude, stay on topic, but I never cut it… So like 20 some years.
that's All folks!
I'M KINDA TEMPTED TO KEEP ON GOING THOUGH...
oh right! Email me yo!
Comments, questions, concerns, compliments, insults, advice, whatever. Get at me!
or call me 510-309-7701. no prank calls. unless they're like really funny.
okay this is really the end. woohoo!! now get your bottom over to the checkout page and check yourself out! ummm yeah, that sounded better in my head.
