Learn From Your Mistakes

Workshop  Comment
0 Likes

I made a lot of mistakes on our South American Cruising Through Life workshop. It could have been that I was getting used to a new camera – Canon 5D Mark II. It could have been that I was out of my element and trying new things. Am I kicking myself? No. I’m learning from my mistakes. Sometimes I feel like I learn more from my mistakes than my successes.
Here’s one example. Shooting hand held bracketed bursts (one scene, 3 exposures, 1.5 stops apart), I often found I hadn’t set or reset the bracket function correctly. It takes setting the mode and then confirming the settings on my 5D Mark II. I often missed the confirm step. And if I got distracted, I often forgot to take it off auto bracket mode, which means single shots were varying exposure unexpectedly. After repeating the mistake several times, I’m now on alert every time I slip in and out of these modes. In fact, I think this camera and this experience has made me more vigilant about all of my camera settings.
Failure is only failure if you don’t learn from your mistakes. And making mistakes in situations where the pressure’s not on and stakes aren’t high is ideal. I recommend you make a little time to shoot and use it to become more conscious of your equipment and your habits.
Plans are brewing for future international Cruise workshops.
Sign up for Insights for pre-announcements and special offers.
Find out more about Cruising Through Life here.
Find out more about Vincent Versace here.
Find out more about my upcoming workshops here.

Cruising Through Life in South America

Workshop  Comment
0 Likes


I’m just getting back from my Cruising Through Life (run by Sean Perkins and Andrew Tepper) South American workshop with Vincent Versace. (Internet limitations made posting difficult during the trip. Stay tuned for coming highlights.) Sean and Andrew, always ready to help, did a great job organizing the logistics of the trip – facilities, scheduling, locations, guides, etc. We had a really nice group of people who learned a lot. It was a smaller than expected group so Vincent Versace and I made the most of this intimate environment and quickly customized the curricula to their needs. We provided many of our Acme Educational DVDs to supplement our lectures. We did more shooting exercises and reviews than planned, which made the learning even more concrete and practical. The Star Princes was a huge boat and despite the 2600 passengers and 1200 crew, we never felt overwhelmed by people. Still, a private balcony is a must for a trip like this for private quiet moments and for constantly monitoring the weather and quick shooting. There was always so much entertainment – spa, yoga, pilates, dance lessons, music, shows, movies on tv, in the theater, and under the stars – we were only able to sample a small portion of the offerings often choosing to miss the onboard activities to focus on our photography. Boats really reduce travel logistics enabling you to focus more on shooting and processing. All in all, it was an incredibly comfortable way to sample South American ports.
This was our itinerary.
2/2    Valparaiso, Chile
2/3    At Sea
2/4    Puerto Mont, Chile
2/5    At Sea
2/6    Punta Arenas, Chile
2/7    Pio Xio Glackier, Chile
2/8    Ushuaia, Argentina
2/9    Cape Horn, Argentina
2/10    Port Stanley, Falkland Islands
2/11    At Sea
2/12    At Sea
2/13    Montevideo, Uruguay
2/14    Buenos Aires, Argentina
Stay tuned for more thoughts from the trip.
Plans are brewing for future international Cruise workshops.
Sign up for Insights for pre-announcements and special offers.
Find out more about Cruising Through Life here.
Find out more about Vincent Versace here.
Find out more about my upcoming workshops here.

Picture Perfect South American – Cruising Through Life

Workshop  Comment
0 Likes


Vincent Versace, Laurie Excell, and I will be coteaching in a South America cruise February 5-17.
There are some fabulous landings scheduled. Find out more here.
M, February 5   6 PM                 Valparaiso, Chile
T, February 6                             At Sea
W, February 7    7 AM – 6 PM     Puerto Montt, Chile
T, February 8                             At Sea
F, February        7 AM – 8 AM     Pio Xi Glacier, Chile
S, February 10    6 AM – 7 PM     Punta Arenas, Chile
S, February 11    12 PM – 8 PM   Ushuaia, Argentina
M, February 12    8 AM – 9AM    Cape Horn
T, February 13    8 AM – 6 PM    Port Stanley, Falkland Islands
W, February 14                          At Sea
R, February 15                           At Sea
F, February 16    8 AM – 5 PM    Montevideo, Uruguay
S, February 17    6 AM               Buenos Aires, Argentina
What do we do at sea? Seminars. Find out more here.
T February 6
9-11    Excell     Photography Basics
3-5    Excell        Beyond the Basics
R, February 4
9-11    Caponigro    Illuminating Creativity
3-5    Caponigro    6 Simple Steps to Good Color Management
F, February 6
9-11  Caponigro    Creating a Master File
1-2    Caponigro    Essential Camera Tests
4-6    Versace    Lighting on a Laptop Like a Sunbeam
S, February 8
9-11    Caponigro    Creative Sharpening
M, February 9
9-12    Caponigro    The Power of Color
1-3    Caponigro    Black & White Mastery
4-6    Caponigro    The Art of Masking
T, February 11
9-12    Versace    Lighting on a Laptop Like a Sunbeam
1-3    Versace    Seeing Is Believing
4-6    Versace    Image Harvesting
W, February 12
9-12    Versace    Retouching on a Laptop
1-3    Versace    Unleashing the Raw Power of Capture NX
4-6    Versace    Framing Versus Composition
What do you do with the little remaining time? Have a great meal at one of the many onboard restaurants. Get a message at one of the onboard spas. Go swimming in the pools and hot tubs. Or, enjoy retail therapy in the onboard shops. Find out more here.
Want to come? Sign up now here!
Insights Members get $1000 off. This offer is good for the next 5 members that register only.