NEW WEBSITE

We have a new website now, please find us at

WWW.DAVISWORKSHOPS.COM

Thank you!

Davis Love Story Workshop Promo

Check it out!  Too cool…!  To quote one of our upcoming workshop attendees, Fola Adewole, we are “superdeliciously awesomely, amazingly excited” to share a glimpse of our last DAVIS LOVE STORY WORKSHOP with this AMAZING, beyond words, promo video created by the talented Anton Lorimer of Lorimer Works. Thank you Anton, you never cease to amaze us! And thank you to all of our fabulous new friends who attended our last workshop and for the love you gave to us in this video! You guys rock!

Announcing 2 Day Workshop in the Baltimore, DC, Metro Area

DAVIS LOVE STORY WORKSHOP
WITH BOB & DAWN DAVIS

WE’RE COMING TO THE BALTIMORE, DC METRO AREA.

July 29-30, 2009

ONLY 3 SEATS LEFT.  DON’T WAIT TOO LONG AS THIS WORKSHOP WILL SELL OUT.

Investment $995

Dawn & I know that these economic times are very hard right now. Which means there has never been a better time to invest in yourself, in your craft, and in your business. When our workshop attendees invest in us, we take that  seriously. When the workshop is over, and you still have questions, we are accessible.  It’s not over for us.  We want you to succeed.

Photography is the study of light, as photographers we have to create images in all types of environments.  Often times in places with poor lighting.  In our workshop you’ll become enlightened.  You’ll learn how to create the light you want using Speedlites.  Speedlites are those small Canon, Nikon, or any other on camera type of strobe.  We will share our approach for quality of light rather than quantity.  Using Speedlites and all types of light modifiers from basic bounce and evolving the light to studio quality using Westcott 54” x72″ Softbox.  From basic flash to multiple wireless flash techniques that we use on every assignment.

You’ll come away from this workshop with a new found confidence to create the light you want in any environment.  To quote my first picture editor Bob Kotalik at the Chicago Sun-Times “Come back with a good picture or don’t come back at all.  We can’t publish an excuse.”

We will be shooting at Liriodendron Mansion; over a century of elegance in Bel Air, Harford County, Maryland.  Lunch will be included.  Our amazing friends Kristie Blake Hancock & Armin DeFiesta will be there assisting us as well.  We will have a couple and several models for you to photograph.  You will come away with plenty of killer images to add to your portfolio. So pack your bags, your cameras and laptop and don’t forget to bring your strobes to one of the most exciting workshops since Vegas Love Story and the Neon Graveyard.

This will be a two day intimate workshop with a meet and greet the night before.  Dawn and I will begin each day with a morning seminar covering, lighting overview, workflow and post production, break for lunch and then spend each afternoon shooting on location with our models.  We’ll also share our sales, marketing and branding techniques which is also vital to the growth of your business.  This workshop will be limited to 10-15 people, so Dawn and I can give you our personal attention.

Read what our prior attendees have to say:

• Words cannot express how much we learned from Bob and Dawn’s workshop. Our weddings have doubled since last year; it’s worth the investment in that alone. If there is room in their workshop; I’d sign up now before it fills up. You’ll thank me and be glad you did.  I know we plan on attending more of their workshops ourselves. ~ Cathy Ann and Scott Erickson
  

• I have profited so much from the 3 workshops I’ve attended by Bob & Dawn.  Bob’s lighting techniques have helped to transform my photography & develop a unique look that separates me from my competition.  He has a way of taking the complicated & confusing world of flash & breaking it down into a simple & easy to understand process.  The fact that their workshops are hands-on with live models really makes all the difference for me.  And Dawn’s Photoshop and book design techniques are amazing!  Her easy to follow step by step process has helped me take my images to the next level.  I have made so many good friends and networked with fantastic vendors. To say that Bob & Dawn have changed my life is a mild understatement! ~ Ed Weiland

Click here to find out all the details about our workshop:
http://www.davisworkshops.com/index2.php?v=v1

Or to register:
http://www.davisimpact.com/workshops

Davis Love Story Workshop begins Monday, May 18, 2009..

Hey everyone, Bob and I are looking forward to meeting each and everyone of you!  We’re excited about all the details we have planned.  We know it’s going to be a rockin’ workshop! 

I wanted to post some images of where we’ll be shooting on Day 2 of our workshop.  Pretty exciting stuff!

Although, the yellow T-34 airplanes were not there today, we still got some images that show just how cool this place really is.  Now, I pray we have this kind of weather!!!!

Our daughter, Alli, inside the airport hanger.  Our beautiful model in front of a fantastic backdrop.

And Day 1 of the workshop, our friend, Thomas will be stopping by with his beautiful 1952 Convertible Red Cadillac El Dorado.  It’s smokin’ HOT!  And will make for some way cool photos!!!

We have awesome locations, beautiful airplanes, a hot car, gorgeous models… what more can one want?  It’s going to be AMAZING!!!!  See you all soon!

ShootQ $10,000 Photography Grant

Sherrlyn Borkgren…. when I think of this women, I am in awe. In awe of her courage, of her bravery, of her determination to make a difference in this world. Sherrlyn is the winner from the last ShootQ Grant award. Her proposal was about Congo…. about the militia in the Kivu region of the Eastern Congo and how they rape and violently torture women at will. There were many fantastic proposals but Sherrlyn’s really stood out to all the judges. I was one of those judges. After she found out that she was the grant winner in 2008, she didn’t hesitate to book her flight to Congo and begin her journey of documenting the lives of these women and children, particularly a little girl named Belice who left quite an impression on her.

To find out more about Sherrlyn and her proposal, please visit the SHOOTQ website and look at the 2008 winner. Her bio, her winning proposal, and her work from Congo is there. It’s all there, waiting for you to read…. waiting for you to feel what she experienced in her short time in Congo. I know Rachel, Andrew and Mark, the founders of ShootQ are incredibly proud of Sherrlyn and the work she did with the ShootQ grant. And I am too!

Now, for the really exciting news! ShootQ is offering another $10,000 grant for photographers. Their mission is to empower photographers to invest time working on projects that raise awareness about important issues. If you’ve ever truly wanted to give back and make a difference in the world through the power of your passion for photography, this is an amazing opportunity to do just that. They are accepting applications now and the deadline is May 15th. I encourage you to submit as soon as possible because you don’t want to miss this deadline.

To learn more about this years ShootQ and the ShootQ grant, click on this link…SHOOTQ or http://www.shootqgrant.com/index2.php

I’m totally stoked to be a judge again this year. To be one of the judges, along with Greg Gibson, Laura Novak, Jasmine Star, Ann Hamilton, Jenn Bebb, Matt Mendelsohn and Dane Sanders is such an incredible honor. We are asked all the time about how to get involved in giving back…. well, this is a great place to start!

And I leave you with one of my favorite quotes… “when I stand before God at the end of my life I would hope that I would have not a single bit of talent left and could say, ‘I used everything you gave me!” by Erma Bombeck

Picate – Ask & Learn with Bob Davis

I’m scheduled to do a last minute ASK & LEARN with Pictage tonight.  Hope to see you there!  Click HERE to join the chat tonight.

EOS ESSENTIAL WORKSHOP – MAY 31, 2009 – NEW YORK

JOIN ME – MAY 31, 2009 – EOS ESSENTIAL WORKSHOP

CREATIVE LIGHTING WITH EOS SPEEDLITES

at:  Blilnkoff Studio, 147 W. 15th Street, Suite 100, New York, NY

This workshop sold out quickly last year so register early and join a small group of your peers in this hands-on workshop.  You’ll experiment with lighting systems and creative techniques using multiple flashes, Canon’s wireless system and more. With models on site, you’ll not only come away with a broad knowledge of lighting but with gorgeous prints as well.

Workshop, model fees and partial gear rental: $300

Participant should be very comfortable with their EOS equipment as I will be teaching at an advanced amateur level. Please bring your favorite gear, plenty of memory cards and charged batteries. Lunch will be on your own. You will receive an email with complete instructions and location directions.

TO REGISTER CLICK HERE AND CLICK ON THE CALENDER.

If you haven’t checked out Canon’s Live Learning Site lately, you should.  It’s informative and quite the educational experience.  Pursue your photographic passion with Canon in a city near you.  Go ahead, check it out.  You won’t be sorry.

 

Pocket Wizard Review by Bob Davis

Okay here is my low down on the new Pocket Wizards.  In a word, they Rock!  Pocket Wizard has created the new MiniTT1 and FlexTT5.  

I had a chance to get my hands briefly, about 1 hour, on a set and test them out.  Out of the box they worked as they claim.  I love the clean shoe mount and solid connection.  The set up was easy and straight forward, to quote their website “Slide-n-Shoot” simplicity.  I placed the MiniTT1 on my EOS 1D Mark III and my 580EX II in the shoe of the MiniTT1.  My remote strobes, 580EX II & 430EX II, were each connected via the hot shoe to the FlexTT5.

 Well simplicity once you READ the MANUAL.  Here is a link to the MANUAL:

The Quick Start guide that came with my set is in revision right now.  It has been my experience that most photographers do not READ the Manual.  Instinctually I set up my strobes, as I am accustomed to.  Master flash on camera and I set my remote strobes to Slave flash.  I’m guilty!  I tried the slide-n-shoot and nothing…. So I checked the Quick Start guide and thought I had everything set correctly, not so.  Since all the wireless communication is done through the hot shoe of the strobes and not optically the set up is slightly different.  Once I read the MANUAL I found the problem.  The remote Slave strobes do not need to be in Slave mode, in fact they will not even work in Slave mode.  Once you power up the FlexTT5 the strobes automatically switch to ETTL mode.  After further reading the MANUAL things became clear.  Simply slide the remote strobes into the hot shoe of the FlexTT5, set the group setting on the TT5 to the group of your choice, A:B:C and you are good to go, place your Master flash or STE-2 transmitter into the shoe of the MiniTT1 and full ETTL control!  I like to work simply, my left remote strobe is in group A and my right remote strobe is in group B and so on.  Now I can have the option of Ratio power between the strobes.  Ratio allows one flash to be brighter than the other. 

Now that I have everything set up correct it is “Slide-n-Shoot”.  The first two frames are throw-a-ways, what I mean is the MiniTT1 and the FlexTT5 are learning the camera and strobes.  Each camera type and strobe has their own unique signature, cool.  It takes two to three frames for the system to learn the set up.  Once this is done you are good to go.  The learning is only necessary when using different bodies.  Once you are set for the EOS Mark III you are good to go, if you switch to an EOS 50D then the system needs to learn again, so I was told.  I have not tested this!

The MiniTT1 and FlexTT5 do all the ETTL stuff just fine, Ratio, groups A:B:C and High Speed Flash Sync, Flash Exposure Compensation from the camera body or Master flash, combined with the range and reliability Pocket Wizard is know for.  The fit is clean and solid.  I was shooting around the room using three strobes, two Canon 580EX II’s and one 430EX II all working flawlessly.  Once I READ the MANUAL!!!  The Quick Start guide needs to be clear on this set up.  Also you need to power the units up together.  First turn on the FlexTT5 then power up the strobe.  If you connect them hot, both powered up, the system can become confused and not work properly.  This too, I leaned by not reading the Manual first! 

The MiniTT1 and FlexTT5 are compatible with all other Pocket Wizards and the units come with software that allows you to customize certain features.  These units are deep and the possibilities and combination of set ups are almost endless.

The challenges I see are as follows.  You cannot change from ETTL to Manual control of your wireless remote strobes without physically touching them and putting the remote strobes into manual mode.  Even then you have to physically adjust the power output of each strobe up or down, just like using regular Pocket Wizards. 

At this time you cannot use the Master flash to control or adjust the power output on the remote strobes, but I would bet that the engineers at Pocket Wizard will have this figured out soon.  The cool thing these units firmware can be updated via the accompanying USB cable. 

Think of this! You can have your remote strobes, no matter what they be, Canon, Quantum or Pro Photos, triggered using the FlexTT5, they can be in Manual power at your desired power level and your on-camera flash connected to the MiniTT1 in ETTL mode all working together.  My mind is flashing with ideas already.

 If you mostly shoot ETTL and not that concerned with the ability to control your remote strobes in manual mode, then the Pocket Wizard MiniTT1 & FlexTT5 are awesome.  But if you want to be able to use all the features your strobes have to offer, then I would suggest looking into the Radio Popper PX. 

I have used the Radio Poppers extensively and they delivered!  I can use every feature and function my Canon strobes have to offer.  Anything you can achieve via the wireless optical system can be accomplished via the radio signal from the Radio Popper.  One of the main differences is all your strobes have to be in the same mode.  Using the Radio Poppers I cannot mix ETTL and Manual flash at the same time.  They all have to operate in the same mode, but you have full control.  I sill love the idea of having some remote strobes firing in manual mode to give consistent output of light while being able to use my on-camera strobe in ETTL mode.  This can be accomplished using the Pocket Wizard MiniTT1 and FlexTT5 system.  In the end you have to decide what features work best for you. 

 I should receive a set of Pocket Wizard MiniTT1 and FlexTT5’s shortly.  At that time I will put this system to the test in the real world and I post images from that shoot.

 For an in-depth review on the Pocket Wizards please see Rob Galbraith’s report, he beta tested the units.

3 Day Workshop Announcement!

~ ANNOUNCING OUR NEW 3 DAY WORKSHOP ~

Date:  Week of May 18th, 2009.  Exact dates to follow soon!

Check out all the AWESOME details at

WWW.DAVISWORKSHOPS.COM

and register for this 3 DAY workshop right HERE!

WPPI | Vegas baby!