Loyd Rosen Workshop

I had the pleasure of attending a workshop by Lloyd Rosen a couple months back. But lacking time I have been bad about finishing up the review. Let me start as always by saying any training or workshop is only as good as the effort you put into it. That being said let’s begin.

Having taken many workshop’s there isn’t a lot of difference other than instruction method and theme. Lloyd does ok with instruction but tends to be less formal than others. I tend to disagree with a few of his suggestions. First I think one should always set the camera white balance but loyd told the group he doesn’t worry about it in RAW mode as it isn’t needed. That is kind of true because you can adjust it but for me it seems to make things much easier to set it at the shoot and save post adjustments, just my 2 cents.

Second I asked about a light he was using because I have a couple and they seem to run hot so I only use them as background lights. Lloydm said a light is a light. True but mixing lights for me has always seemed to give unreliable results. Again, my 2 cents, I just prefer to keep things as consistent as possible. I will agree to disagree on these points. Like I said I want to shoot it with out additions post work if at all possible.

The main reason I like workshops it that you get so see how other photographers think. We were shown how to look at a location and how he picks places to shoot. Not just where but how he would use the space. It changes the thought process some when you have additional input. Once we have the space then it comes down to lighting the model. Again, insight on the direction of the light for the location and the amount of light. Very informative and useful information.

The Style was more editorial again not what I normally do so it was a great change of pace. I like doing things that are different you always learn more when it’s new to me. The set was simple using a bar area, living room and bedroom. The model was great, she knew where the light was and how to play to it. Workshops are always better when the models are experienced.

What I liked about this workshop. 1. The editorial style was fun and different for me. 2. I liked the mix of strobes for some parts and natural lights for others. 3. The laid back atmosphere not so structured that you could not suggest changes in pose or setup.

What I didn’t like about this workshop. 1. The white balance comment still bothers me. Especially if there are new photographers that don’t know anything about white balance. 2. I did not get a release for the images. Not even for my portfolio so that is why none are posted here, no release to post them.

To some it up… I don’t give ratings. Would I take this workshop again? Maybe, if I liked the model and was given a release. Would I recommend this workshop? I think it depends on the person. If you are beginner to intermediate the answer is yes, you’ll most likely enjoy the learning and working with models. If you are advanced to pro then YMMV. If you don’t do editorial, it will be fun… Use your judgement, have fun!