In this talk, Von Wong will share with you how he is leveraging his skills as a photographer, storyteller and social influencer to make a positive difference in the world. He will explore the genesis of several of his projects and how he constantly innovates to stay current with the social trends.

Through his stories, he hopes to inspire others to do the same with their skills and talents, regardless of where their skills lie, because he believes that anyone can change the world. 

A photographic ethnography on Saudi women who have to face society in order to receive any recognition. Cultural stigma and social pressures are major obstacles standing in the way of their freedom, as well as their personal and professional fulfillment and independence. However, in a region that is always portrayed as sexist, many women have been successful in empowering themselves, proving they can hold jobs that are higher than their male counterparts.

Making a living out of photography has become harder than ever, but with determination, skill, and passion it is still possible to create a significant body of work independent from the usual constraints. Starting from his personal experience, Davide will provide an understanding of his way of producing different forms of narratives and different ways of structuring work as well as his strategy to efficiently produce independent projects.

Zack Arias has been pursuing photography for twenty years and has been in and out of creative ruts more times than he can count. In the last few years, he found his deepest rut yet and was ready to walk away from photography for good, even though his career had been growing.
Faced with growing stress and depression, he just kept his head down and kept working but he hated his photography.
He came across a Chuck Close quote that he had read and talked about many times and for the first time it really struck him personally: “Inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just get to work.” Zack stopped moaning and complaining and “got to work” and began shooting some of his best work to date. In this session Zack will talk about what led up to this rut and the steps he took to get out of it, as well as share the technical information about the images he’s now making.

Where do ideas come from? Most people don’t think of themselves as “creative”, but creativity is a muscle that can be whipped into shape: all you need is a little bit of willpower and a game plan.
We’ll talk about the importance of separating work from consumption, recognizing creative patterns, honing your skills effectively and finding your own compass.
During this seminar, Sara will talk about different sides of the creative process and will give you practical tips for you to find inspiration for your next photo shoot, turn those ideas into a plan and that plan into compelling images.
The emphasis will be on not letting limited resources limit your vision: resourcefulness, ingenuity and experimentation will become part of your toolbox by the end of this fast paced talk.

In this 90-minute lecture RC shares how Photoshop and Lightroom make your artistic life faster, more organized, and complete. From simple solutions to photographic problems, to pushing the edge of creativity, you'll get proven tips you can take back to your projects and to make them even better.

Martin Prihoda is going to take you on the journey of his career from his beginnings as a portraiture photographer to photographing children in the slums of India for international NGO’s, Bollywood celebrities for fashion magazines and eventually international ad campaigns. He is incredibly open about his experiences and how he transitioned from each phase of his career to the next — including the good, the bad, and the ugly. All of which have helped him find his path and helped his vision evolve.

Martin will explain the importance of evolving as an artist and finding your personal style. Along the way he will also demystify celebrity portraiture and show you how it is possible to take a beautiful portrait in any setting and under extreme pressure.

Lastly, Martin will share his business strategies for marketing and social media to portfolios as well as the importance of working with a good agent and producer.

The 90 minute talk will fill you with inspiration and answer many of the questions you may have about how an international celebrity photographer works.

Matt Armendariz will share how a nascent interest in photography became a full-time creative endeavor which led to working with some of the world's leading food brands, publishers, advertising agencies and celebrities. He'll discuss his path, what worked and what didn't, and offer ideas and tips on taking your interest in food photography from your kitchen to the studio.

In photojournalism, the camera is most often turned to what is wrong with the world. We are drawn to depict this suffering for history and news and, while it should and must be covered, it sets an image of a place or its people that lacks the full picture. Getting at the heart of a story takes connecting with people and this is what the camera allows us to do; to inform, to hope, to create change for the better, to learn lessons for ourselves.

In Audacity of Beauty, Maggie Steber, who has worked in 66 countries and has spent the last 30 years as a working photojournalist, shows the beauty found in the most unexpected places. It might not be the sort of beauty we are normally used to, but it is audacious of it to exist at all in a world filled with hardships and sorrows.  

Join documentary photographer Asim Rafiqui as he gives an overview of how his work has moved away from being photography-centric to being issue- and question-centric while still based in photographs; he also shares ways in which other photographers are re-designing the concept of the photo project, using simple tools and digital products to re-work how projects are produced, distributed and published. 

Using a combination of traditional in-camera techniques, targeted times of day, drone technology and advanced post-processing methods, Elia has developed a widely recognized and highly unique style of travel and aerial photography. With each photograph, his goal is to share his vision so others can see the world as he does: full of color, texture, depth and emotion.