“Learning to See” Workshops with Chris Marquardt (2 remaining)

Chris Marquardt from the Tips from the Top Floor audio and video podcasts has put together a 4 city tour of 4-day workshops entitled “Learning to See.” I’ve been listening and watching Tips from the Top Floor since the show started about 2 years ago, and I think Chris is both a fantastic photographer, as well as a great educator. I’ve had an opportunity to meet him on two occasions at the Podcast and New Media Expo over the last two years and I highly recommend you subscribe to his show if you are interested learning more about photography. You can also take a quick listen or look by clicking on one of the play buttons on his home page (selected in red below).

I asked another podcaster and recent attendee to a Learning to See workshop, Tom Wiles (host of the Trucker Tom Podcast), to answer a few questions about the workshops, and here’s what he had to say:

ImagingBuffet: Which of the seminars did you attend and why?
Tom Wiles: I attended the Fort Collins, Colorado seminar. I attended primarily because of Chris’ expertise with photography and from the enthusiasim from previous workshop attendees I knew it would be very beneficial.

IB: What are three of the top things you learned?
TW: (1) The feedback of other people is extremely important. This is especially true in a group circumstance where the other people are physically present. Everyone went through the same process of picking a photo to show to the group for feedback multiple times over the four days, and this proved to be an extremely valuable learning opportunity.

(2) Think about not only the design elements that make a good photo as you are taking it, but also think about what the subject of the photo is and whether or not you can change the angle a bit to eliminate competing elements, eliminate distractions, clutter, etc.

(3) One of the interesting things I noticed after the seminar was over is that now when I see photos I immediately notice if there are problems with them and how they might have been improved just by changing the angle and overall framing a bit.

IB: Do you have any suggestions for people before they take the seminar?
TW: Go into the experience expecting a great time and a very fun overall learning experience. Also, be careful with memory chips — though they may seem indestructible most of the time, they CAN and DO die at the wrong times. The name of the seminar is “Learning To See” and that’s exactly what happens. The technology of photography is not nearly as important in taking good photographs as is the photographer’s eye and ability to concentrate on what he or she wants to communicate with the photo.

Two workshops still remain, and as of today, I believe that there are still openings available. The next workshop is in Minneapolis, MN (Oct/11-14) and the last is in Port St. Lucie, FL (Oct/18-21). For more info or to register, visit this page.

Video Interview from the Podcast & New Media Expo

I just returned from the 3rd annual Podcast & New Media Expo held in Ontario, California. It was a fantastic show, with a lot of educational content in the general sessions (held in large ballrooms and other conference rooms) and on the show floor. The “Podango Unconference,” held in Podango’s booth was especially good. I’ll be posting photos and highlights from the show over the next few weeks, but for now, I’d like to post a link to a video for which I was interviewed. I spoke with Kara Ratliff from WebProNews about the presentation I gave during the show on Saturday entitled: How To Make Your Content Easy For “Grandma” to Consume: Simplifying RSS Feeds, Video Formats and Flash Players for Your Audience. Click on the screen shot below to view the video on WebProNews.com.

You can also find more than 15 other interviews on WebProNews.com from the Podcast & New Media Expo here.

Podcast & New Media Expo Just a Week Away: 9/28-9/30, 2007

Next week (9/28-9/30, 2007), the Podcast and New Media Expo (PNME) in Ontario, CA (about 50 miles east of Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)) will begin. This is the third year of the annual event, and I’ve attended the Expo the first two years it was held. In a word, the show is fantastic. Unlike many conventions which bring together people of just one profession, this one attracts people from many different walks of life–from professional musicians, to independent podcasters, to radio show hosts and producers, to CEOs of Silicon Valley startups. This year, from looking at the list of seminars and exhibitors, the show will have about a 50/50 mix of topics covering audio and video. There will also be many business-related topics which cover not just audio and video, but any type of publishing.

At this year’s Expo, I’ll be doing a one hour session entitled: “How To Make Your Content Easy For ‘Grandma’ to Consume: Simplifying RSS Feeds, Video Formats and Flash Players for Your Audience.” I think that those who have compelling content and who make their content easy for anyone to listen to and/or view will attract a larger audience and will have greater potential for making more income with that content.

There will also be a trade show at the Expo with companies representing products and services tailored to audio and video producers. Besides all the opportunities to learn at the conference sessions, the show offers great networking opportunities. I’ve made many new friends at the show and met many of the people who I listen to and watch on a consistent basis, like Joanne Colan and Andrew Baron of Rocketboom (one of my favorite shows which I now primarily watch on my TV and subscribe to through my TiVo DVR).

Joanne Colan, Andrew Baron and me (center) on the show floor at the 2nd annual Expo. Photo credit: Mark Williford

If you haven’t been to the show, or if you just want to get a feel for what it’s like, I have two articles with many photos available on this site: Article with photos from the 1st Annual Expo (2005) and Article and photos from the 2nd Annual Expo (2006). You can also just do a search on your favorite search engine or Flickr.com for “Podcast Expo” and you will find many images and comments from attendees.

A day before the Expo begins (Thurs. 9/27/2007), Podcast Academy #6 will be held. I attended the first Podcast Academy in 2005 and it helped me to better understand what hardware and software options are available (in many different price ranges), as well as how to brand, promote and “monetize” a podcast and blog. I also met many people at Podcast Academy who I continue to stay in touch with, and look forward to seeing them at the Expo. You can find out more about Podcast Academy #6 here.

Also on 9/27 will be PodCamp SoCal, a free full day event (10:00am – 5:00pm) with sessions on audio and video podcasting, blogging, marketing and much more. I highly recommend attending Victor Cajiao’s session if you are interested in learning more about using Talkshoe, a live interactive way to produce audio programs and make them available as podcasts. I had the opportunity to be a guest on one of Victor’s Typical Mac User Talkshoe programs, and it was a great experience. I spoke about digital photography, gave some suggestions about what digital cameras one might consider depending upon a number of factors. I also discussed software like Apple Aperture, Adobe Photoshop Lightroom and Apple iPhoto and answered questions from “the floor.” You can find that show here: (TMUP Live 29).

In case you wanted more events to attend during the PNME, on Friday 9/28 starting at 4pm will be the Attendee Networking Reception and 2007 People’s Choice Podcast Awards Ceremony. You can find out more about the awards on the Podcast Awards site. Also, on Friday evening (8-11pm) will be the Culture Catch Salon (Video, Music, Art…and much more), and on Saturday evening (6:30 pm – 9:00 pm) will be the 1st Annual New Media Expo Concert. The Culture Catch Salon looks like quite an event, with an aerial ballet and a raffle with over $7500 of gear (including a Gibson Les Paul guitar). I also can’t wait for the New Media Expo Concert because I think all the artists performing are fantastic.

And on a related note, I highly recommend checking out Jason Van Orden’s article: How to Get the Most Out of the Podcast and New Media Expo. I’ve learned an incredible amount about podcasting and marketing from Jason’s books, websites and podcasts, and I thank him for highlighting my upcoming session at the Expo in that same article.

I hope to see you there! -Andrew