An interview with Bluedog Tutor Lisa Kurtz

We continue with our questionnaire to team members in the Bluedog kennel. Today the lovely and talented Lisa Kurtz, based in Brisbane gives us her answers.  

Q. Tell us briefly your photography journey to date. 
A. Always into photography, but the turning point was when my husband gave me my first digital camera 11 years ago for a birthday present. It was the catalyst for a career and life change.

Q. What inspires you – photographically?
A. Italy has always been a source of inspiration and I imagine it will continue to be forever. On a personal level, it is the desire to photograph my son and his ever-developing spirit. 

Q. What is a highlight of 2012?

A. As corny as this sounds, becoming part of the Bluedog team and beginning my personal project on the anonymity of the streets (b&w). 

Q. Do you have a ‘most memorable’ moment to date?
A. Yes – through a series of unfortunate events my camera and I were separated from each other during a recent trip to Sydney. I was forced to use a 3-megapixel phone camera (no, not even an iphone camera) and this taught me two things – if you take photography back to its basics you can even take decent photos on a 3-megapixel camera, and that not having my “real” camera made me free to experiment and take risks… in short, it was a wonderful experience!

Q. What lens can’t you live without?
A. 24-70 2.8 – wide enough for travel, and because I use my feet it is also perfect for my style of portraiture. I know it was only meant to be 1 lens, but I would try and sneak my 50mm 1.8 in as well for those low light situations.

Q.  What is your favourite type of shoot (and why)?
A. Children. They test your photographic limits every time as, by their very nature, they never do what you expect them to!

Q.  What do you do in your spare time?
A. I go to art galleries, I take photos of my family and friends, I talk regularly with my mother and grandmother who live interstate.

Q.   What's your best 2012 photography advice or quick tip?
A. Travel light with the least possible gear. You really don’t need it all! (But if you travel light, make sure it’s with fast lenses…)

Q. What are your plans or highlights for 2013?
A.  I am going on the Bluedog Japan tour and I know already this will be wonderful. Of course, I am also off to Italy which is always a highlight.

For more information on Bluedog's workshops, retreat and tours visit: 
www.blue-dog.com.au 

A few of us will be joining Lisa on her Capture Italy tour in May 2014.

For more information visit Capture Italy

All images (C) Lisa Kurtz

An interview with Bluedog 'apprentice' Caitlin Allen

Caitlin has been hanging around here at the Bluedog Photography studio for over 18 months now and her motivation and young energy is loved by us all. We invited her to answer this year's tutors and photographers questions.

Q. Tell us briefly your photography journey to date. 


A. I am 16 and have only been interested in photography for a few years now. It wasn’t until I found Bluedog photography during work experience in 2011 that I decided photography was what I really enjoyed doing. From there I have continued working at the Bluedog Studio, receiving lots of tuition, helpful tips and advice. I have participated in many workshops and also attended the Fraser Island Tour which really opened my eyes as to what I might be able to do as a photographer if it becomes my career path.

Q. What inspires you – photographically?

A. As a kid I was always amazed at the images and moments captured within a photograph, whether it was a documentary on the Discovery channel or in a national geographic magazine. They portrayed a totally different perspective of life through the photos and that was really inspiring for me!

Q. What is a highlight of 2012?

A. Gaining membership into Griffith University for a photography course!

Q. Do you have a ‘most memorable’ moment to date?

A. A memorable moment for me would have to be my trip to Fraser Island with Bluedog.  It was also my 15^th birthday. It was a great experience, a great holiday and I learnt so much!

Q. What lens can’t you live without?

A. My EFS 15 – 85mm Zoom Lens, it is my favourite lens as it has the ability to photograph anything from landscapes to close-up portraits.

Q. What is your favourite type of shoot (and why)?

A. At the moment my favourite type of shoot is wildlife, I love capturing a moment through the animals eyes and portraying them as characters through their expressions.

Q. What do you do in your spare time?

A. In my spare time I find anything I can in my room and photograph it using my macro lens, I love to experiment with lighting and WB.

Q. What's your best 2012 photography advice or quick tip?

A. 
Practice makes perfect! Picking up the camera everyday to photograph anything can make a big difference, there are always new things to try and learn!

Q. What are your plans or highlights for 2013?

A. My plans for 2013 are to study photography at Griffith University and hopefully learn a lot of important skills and techniques. I am also really hoping to get a place in the Cambodia tour next year with Bluedog!!

Images taken by Caitlin during 2012:

An interview with Bluedog Tutor and Photographer Anita Bromley

And another of our Bluedog Photography tutor interviews this time from Anita Bromley who toady is jet setting off to the UK for Christmas.

Q. Tell us briefly your photography journey to date.
A. My interest in photography grew after my first son was born in 2003 and I found myself at a Bluedog Beginners Workshop wanting to learn how to control my camera more. From there I did numerous Bluedog workshops and continued to learn and love photography. In 2010 I launched my business 'Splash Photography' where I specialise in portraits, newborns and corporate events. Quite ironic seeing I once used to say 'I don't do (photograph) people' !

Q. What inspires you – photographically?
A. I love long exposures, night photography and light painting - capturing things you don't see with the naked eye. Photographer Lance Keimig inspires me to get out, be creative and play.

Q. What is a highlight of 2012?
A. Introducing my husband Grant to Siem Reap, Cambodia - the place and it's people along with rediscovering my love for Outback Qld on Bluedog's Outback Odyssey tour this year. Such an amazing place we have just in our backyard.

Q. Do you have a ‘most memorable’ moment to date?
A. Considering I've sat here for the past 10min trying to think of just ONE I would have to say there are too many to have any one in particular in the 'most memorable' category!

Q. What lens can’t you live without?
A. 24-70mm f2.8. It's my 'go to' lens.

Q.  What is your favourite type of shoot (and why)?
A. Newborns, newborns, newborns! I love the smallness of them, their smell, their teeny little toes, fingers, ears, nose & lips. I love how in that very moment they have their whole wide world in front of them. That they will grow and change so quickly, each day, week, month, year......... I love how they give parents a new perspective on life.

Image by Anita Bromley

Q.  What do you do in your spare time?
A. Spare time.....that sounds familar?? Lol. Whenever I get any spare time the only thing I want to do is hang out with my 3 boys (husband + 2 sons) and my friends.

Q.   What's your best 2012 photography advice or quick tip?
A. Think about what you want to capture before you click the shutter. Image the outcome and think about the settings you need to achieve it.

Q. What are your plans or highlights for 2013?
A. I have so many plans for 2013! Revisiting the outback and Cambodia (I've fallen in love with both), putting the final touches on my Studio in early Jan, continuing to learn and push myself photographically, to start a few personal photographic projects, to find and connect with photographers who inspire me, to watch my husband realise a long term dream and finally (and not least) to spend more quality time with my family. *Phew!* See why that spare time thing is so foreign to me ;)

For more information on Bluedog's workshops, retreat and tours visit:
www.blue-dog.com.au

Images by Anita Bromley

Photoshop Elements: Who knew?!

Guest Blog and image by Julie Martin

So one day the boss calls and asks me: "Julie, can someone with Photoshop Elements come along to your One Day Beginner Photoshop Workshop?”

"Sure thing!” I reply.  "I'll just have a wee look at Elements and see what the differences are so we can let them know what they'll be missing during the day."

Photoshop Elements is a pared back version of Photoshop, which covers the main "elements" of full Photoshop.  Whereas full Photoshop will set you back around $1000, Elements is around $185 (price in AU and may vary), so I was expecting the differences to mirror the price difference.

So I dutifully downloaded a trial version of Photoshop Elements 10 and worked my way through the workshop tutorials, looking for what is missing in Elements.  The further through the workshop notes I went, the more I discovered that virtually everything I was going to be teaching was possible using Elements alone.  I was amazed, and impressed! For a fraction of the cost it is possible to achieve virtually everything most photographers need to achieve.

What are some of the differences?  Bridge and MiniBridge are not part of Elements, which has the Organiser instead.  However, the Organiser is felt by many to be better than Bridge.   In Camera Raw, there are only three panels - the Basics panel (which covers the majority of what we do in Camera Raw), the Sharpening and Noise Reduction panel, and the Camera Profile panel.  The panels that are missing cover some of the "finishing touches", but I found ways to achieve the same thing elsewhere in the program.

Onto Photoshop Elements itself, I discovered that the layout was slightly different but in a more user-friendly way, with the option to choose Quick, Guided, or Full Edit functions.  The Guided edit option, as it sounds, takes you through the changes you can make to your image, in a way that teaches you at every step. 

Layers are said to be the heart and soul of Photoshop, and they certainly exist in Elements also.  While the adjustment layers don't always appear in the same way or in the same place, every adjustment I wanted to make was possible in Elements.  The majority of the most used tools in Photoshop were present, and in fact the Text tool has more features in Elements than it does in Photoshop.  There is also a Recompose tool (absent in full Photoshop) which comes with complete instructions on how to use it, as well as a link to a video tutorial on its use!  How I wish Photoshop had that for all its features!  Content Aware Fill, an awesome function of Photoshop CS5 is only present within the Spot Healing Brush, but it did a great job here.  

Image by Julie Martin