Student Work

Note: I have published the work of other photographers before, usually to make a point about something I am teaching, but I especially love posting images from current and former students which showcase their talents. All images are published with the photographers’ permissions.

Student Work

by William Lulow

Over the last couple of decades, I have been fortunate enough to be able to teach what I know about photography to a wide range of people with various levels of commitment to the art and correspondingly varied abilities. Anyone who reaches out to me to learn photographic techniques obviously has the interest and desire to improve their picture-taking results. So, I decided to publish a couple of their stories along with the results they have been able to achieve. Learning photography varies from wanting to know how to get proper exposures each and every time up to, and including how to begin to build a business from one’s passion for picture making. And, I have been very proud of the efforts of several of those who have studied with me over the years. I actually began teaching back in the late 1980s because I had seen one of my mentors, Philippe Halsman (creator of over 100 Life Magazine covers), transition his career to include more teaching as he got older. He was the inspiration for a course I originated at New York’s THE NEW SCHOOL FOR SOCIAL RESEARCH in portrait lighting. This course was very popular from 1988 until 1998 when I closed my New York City studio and had to withdraw the course. I sometimes had two sessions each week (and often back to back on the same day) to accommodate all those interested. These days, the instruction schedule is a bit less intensive, but I have been continuing teaching with mostly one-on-one instruction and the occasional workshop. The results I get from my students is simply invigorating. It should also be the goal of every teacher to have his or her students actually “graduate.” Here are a couple of examples of students who have obviously learned very well:

Zsuzsanna Winn is a fabulous set stylist who worked with a furniture retailer for a great many years designing their photography shoots, arranging sets and styling various props used in the store’s many catalogs and sales sheets. She decided that even though she was responsible for the way the photographs actually looked, she wanted to be the one making them as well as just styling them. When she reached out for photography lessons, she was actually afraid to pick up the new camera she had just received. After the first few lessons, not only was she no longer afraid, but she studied the technical aspects of making images with a passion and was quite meticulous when it came to understanding what made a perfect exposure. After about eight or ten lessons, she managed to become quite adept at not only styling a shot but also applying correct lighting techniques to produce really stunning images. Here is one:

Not only did she study exposure technique, color balancing and combining natural light with artificial light, she went out and equipped a small home studio with some very sophisticated lighting. As you can tell from this image, she learned her lessons exceptionally well. (Photograph (c) by Zsuzsanna Winn) Zsuzsanna Winn

Another of my students from several years ago was Susan Lawi. Susan basically wanted to know not only about how to improve her images but also to learn a little something about studio lighting. This was not because she wanted to establish her own business, but simply to improve her knowledge of artificial light in order to improve the images she made of her own family and their endeavors. She even went so far as to purchase a kind of lighting “starter kit” which consisted of some of the same studio lights I actually use in my studio. Susan’s progress with understanding light and its effects were readily apparent in one of her trips to Cuba. As a matter of fact, she mounted an entire exhibit of her images at a local library in Westchester, NY. Here is one of her efforts:

You can see that Susan really knows how to recognize interesting, natural light when she sees it and has also mastered how to record it for posterity with her camera. (Photograph (c) by Susan Lawi)

Another example is John Baiata who came to me already knowing quite a bit about his high end, Canon camera, but finished a six-lesson intensive course on how to get even better use from it with the goal of producing much better images of his family, friends and his various trips including camping, nature walks and the like. Here is one of his efforts:

(Photograph (c) by John Baiata)

This may look like a simple snap shot, but notice the soft background, great expressions and overall soft light of the image. Definitely some good photographic technique is on display here.

There are many reasons for wanting to learn just about anything. Photography is one of those art forms that can be a very valuable recording tool as well as an expressive one as well. It all depends what you are willing and able to devote to it. Nothing quite takes the place of expert instruction however, to get one started or help push someone greater understanding of what is involved in the creative process. It has been my privilege to help each one of these folks on their way to obtaining more knowledge about photography.