Dylan’s Candy Bar and Candy Cafe inside the resort offered the perfect location for a Christmas themed photo shoot. The resort was a little busy and we had people walking back and forth by the window watching us to see the action. We even had people coming up and taking their own pictures of the models. It’s no wonder. The girls were sporting their Sexy Santa outfits. We drew a lot of attention.

In all it was a great experience. Hopefully I can do more of these in Traverse City and East Lansing.  We had so many great pictures it is hard to get them all in. This is just a sample.

Once we got bored with the candy shop we walked around looking for other locations. The Grand Traverse Resort doesn’t disappoint.

Bevin and I were chatting on Facebook when we decided to host another photography workshop. This time the workshop was located at the barns in the former State Hospital Grounds in Traverse City. We didn’t have too much time to plan. We gave ourselves less than a week. We invited people through Facebook and word spread. The turnout was HUGE. I’m not sure exactly how many people, models and photographers, showed up but everyone seemed to have a great time. We were honored to also have a former National Geographic Photographer attend. How cool is that?

Bruce Dale approached me during the workshop and handed me his card. I never met him before and didn’t recognize the name. We talked casually about the workshops and how they operate. Generally people just show up and start shooting. I believe that the only way to improve is by doing. It helps to compare your photographs with the photos of others and to talk about technique and share ideas. My own learning process is by trial and error.

Bruce was with me when I was talking to one of the moms about our model release forms. I told her that the photographers who attend the workshops normally use the photos for portfolio and not for selling. Just then Bruce piped up and said that he has 2,000 images in the National Geographic and was there to test a prototype Panasonic camera. I later discovered it was a Lumix GH2. He said he was going to use the images at the Photokina fair in Germany. My jaw dropped. Wow! That’s impressive! Bruce has too many accomplishments to list here. It’s probably best to hear it in his own words.

30 Years of BAD Pictures from Bruce Dale on Vimeo.

I am glad he came to our workshop and I can’t wait to see the resulting video and images. As I said. We had several very talented photographers and models who attended. I love to see all the creativity that comes from getting people together with a common interest and artistic goal in mind. It’s the main reason I do these workshops. (update: The local newspaper did a story about this. You can read it by CLICKING  HERE.)

Lindsy Laway and Kent Wicksell. These two didn’t know each other but they look like they do.

Lindsy Laway came all the way from Charlevoix.

Katie Withrow

Katie is a student at Michigan State University.

Michigan State has some of the prettiest girls. (I may be a little biased because of my alumni status)

Charlotte Morgan has been wanting to come to a workshop for a long time. She finally made it.

These two are sisters. Can you tell? Amy and Leslie Sevenski. I’ve worked with Leslie before. This is Amy’s first time.

Amy has the look of a great model.

Arielle LaHaye

I had Arielle look at me from under a sunflower. I love the effect of the color reflecting on her face.

Michelle Michael and I went to the corn field to try and get a good shot.
It was difficult holding the reflector with one hand and the camera in the other.

Bevin and I are planning more workshops in the future. We love getting together with people and exercising our creativity. Besides, you never know who might show up to a workshop. Maybe next time it will be Annie Leibovitz.

This time the workshop was looking like the biggest one yet. I didn’t know if I could handle it. Once people arrived, however, the workshop started really humming with creativity. My main focus was helping photographers figure out how to use their cameras and the various lighting set-ups they brought. It was interesting to see all the different lights that people use for their photography. One local photographer brought a whole studio set-up. He had all the Alien bees and diffusers. I was very impressed with that.

We had a pretty good turnout of models but it wasn’t as many as I expected. We also had Victoria Mather there to do make-up and hair. She calls herself an MUAH (make-up and hair).

Here are some of the reviews I got from  a few of the photographers who attended:

Bevin Buchler  of Sweet Pea Photography said;

Todd, thank you so much (and others who helped) make the workshop happen. I had SO much fun, and it was amazing to meet so many talented people! I can’t wait for

Casey Lynn Browning said;

Had a great day today … thank you Todd L Church and all who made it possible … and thank you to everyone who was there who helped me … you guys are amazing!!!

My friend Joe and I set up a website forum for the workshops. It’s at www.modelphotoworkshop.com.

Here are a few of my images from the workshop. I didn’t get the chance to take too many because I was running around helping others.