Athens Street Photography Workshop Weekend
DAY 1
Meet at 10am at Syntagma Square to get to know each other and receive some preliminary instructions on the photo assignments of the day*. Enough time for all to receive a one-to-one tuition during your stroll to the busy streets and landmarks of Athens is one of the benefits of the small group workshops. Action area: around Syntagma
*On each photo walk you will photograph on specific projects.
4 hour break (free time) to follow this 3 hours photo tour; enough time to rest, to have a lunch and download photos. After the free 4-hour break gather again for the second part of the photography day.
In the afternoon, action area : A beautiful and wondrous walk around the Acropolis, Filopappos Hill, Thiseio, and Dionysiou Areopagitou street. All these areas intertwine and produce a magnificent picture of the ancient Athenian past waiting to be captured by your lenses. As you walk the pedestrianised Dionysiou Areopagitou street admiring the houses and passing the ancient Herod Atticus amphitheatre, the Acropolis stands majestically above you watching patiently.
After a 2 hours photo walk you will have a drink in one of the artistic hubs around, to review the results of the first day, the photos taken by all participants, discuss them technically and aesthetically and then explore post-processing options.
Evening: free
DAY 2
The human factor is the central point of the second day of this photography workshop tour. The noisy neighbourhoods of Psyri and Monastiraki are quite easily characterised by the craftsmen in the area who work their magic with jewellery, pots, leather and the well-known handcrafted ancient Greek sandals, made by a plethora of small shops. The abundance of colours and smells in the area test the senses whilst the light in the small streets leading to the area of Plaka teases us around the small narrow streets showing us a path leading to the past.
After a break for brunch for whomever wishes to do so, in the afternoon the group will review the results of the second and last day.
Topics Covered
Shoot in the Field
Train your eye to capture images that make an impact. Learn how to navigate your surroundings and work with light, color, background, and other influences and challenges inherent in each unique setting. Gain a better technical understanding of how to use your camera’s body, lenses, and various settings.
Tell Stories through Pictures
More than just taking pictures is to express powerful ideas through photography. So you will taught to how to expand your ability to choose compelling subjects and portray them in more meaningful ways.
Improve Your Photographs of People
Learn to capture a person’s true character and special moments in their lives while making it a rewarding experience for both of you.
Create Compelling Compositions
Understand how to create stronger, more interesting compositions using wide angle, normal, and telephoto lenses. Discover new ways to use color and pattern to add depth, emotion, and graphic power to your images.
Use Light to Add Drama
Learn how a professional photographer bring his images to life by skillfully using special lighting techniques, experimenting with flash, and making the most of any lighting condition.
Enhance Your Travel Experience through Photography
The best travel experiences usually happen when meeting locals. A camera provides the perfect excuse to go beyond simply what can be seen, to discover the authentic culture of a new place. By stopping and talking to people, the search for great images turns into a quest for more fulfilling travel experiences.
About your instructor:
Born in Patras, Menelaos Myrillas was attracted to photography in a young age. He traveled the world and was lucky to learn the fundamentals about photography by some of the best in the field. He cooperated with the most important Greek Magazine titles and quite a few international ones. He is known for the storytelling character of his work that derives from his need to add both past and future references in present moments. Although inspired by the masters of photography Menelaos is often using modern techniques in order to accomplish a contemporary result.
He was influenced by: John Loengard, Richard Avedon, Robert Doisneau, Dave Hill, Federico Fellini, Orson Welles, Karl Barks, Alfred Hitchcock, Karl Marx and Marx Brothers, DaDa, by flemish painters especially by Johannes Vermeer and some others…
Top tip: Proffessionals talk mainly about the money and prizes, amateurs mostly about the equipment. Real photographers talk mainly about the light.