I have seen only one other blog on the subject of Photo Workshops. In that case the blogger was not much a fan of glamour workshops -- but I am a bit more positive on the subject as workshops can be a great place to network and exchange ideas. But admittedly, there are two types of glamour workshop attendees: the GWCs versus those who are serious about their work.
Several months ago Rolando Gomez approached me to ask if I would be interested in private instruction with Arny Freytag in the Playboy Studio West facilities in Santa Monica. He quoted me a price that was rather substantial. Since I try to fall in that latter category of those serious about my work, I said yes immediately, hoping that exposure to one of the true gurus of glamour photography would give my photography a needed leg up.
Finally, last week the day arrived for the shoot. My wife, our model, and I arrived at the studios just a little early last Saturday morning. Rolando was already there. All too soon the day was over, far surpassing my expectations.
I was admittedly intimidated in front of Arny. Unnecessarily.
Arny turned out to be extremely helpful, open, and a genuinely nice person with extraordinary knowledge of his field. My concerns that he and his team would be put off by me as a stranger in their midst was completely wrong. The makeup artist, the stylist, his IT specialist, photographic assistant, intern, and Arny, himself, rolled out the red carpet.
During the day we shot on three sets. Arny and his team went over the lighting, posing, and set design. Arny was insightful. Indeed, what I took away from Studio West has radically changed my approach to studio shooting.
There were some additional pluses. My wife, Alison, who has become quite proficient at photographic makeup, used the opportunity to observe and learn from both the makeup artist and stylist. Both of us came away enlightened – albeit, for the price of one.
Finally, the third member of our team – our model, Eleya Maureen. We had worked with her before and were impressed with her professionalism. Eleya arrived in LA in time to celebrate my birthday with Alison and me at In-n-Out with candles on my 4x4 cheeseburger. We not only had our extraordinary day at Studio West, we shot at a beach in Ventura County. Plus Eleya and Alison made two shopping trips to the L.A. Fashion District.
Despite some recent misgivings about dealings with Rolando, I am glad to say that in this case, he hit a home run. For my part, I don’t expect that instantly I will be a clone of Arny or can reproduce Playboy centerfold quality. But I am now working to incorporate many aspects of what I have learned into my own photography. (And, Arny, if you are reading this, I’ve ordered sandbags.)
The picture of Eleya above was taken in our Studio West session.
