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So extremely educational, yet students
say they are
too
fun to be called 'work'shops, so
we call them 'fun-shops'!
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These classes are run by someone with knowledge
gleaned from:
- Childhood painting classes;
- A collegiate photographic degree;
- Workshops taken from other masters;
- 30 years of hands on practice making a living
at his art;
including over 55 solo worldwide photographic trips.
- Entering and winning dozens of national and
international competitions including 'Best of Show' or 'Jurors' Choice'
in many of them;
- Instructing HUNDREDS OF STUDENTS in photo
workshops, and fine tuning his instruction by being critiqued by them,
SINCE 1985, in locations all over the world.
This has honed his
skills in such a way as to help him garner the multitude of endearing and
uplifting testimonials.
San Diego class of 10.1.'06 by John Garcia.
Click photo to enlarge.
Dear Photographer,
How
many times have you seen an image worth taking only to get your prints back
from the lab, (or most likely nowadays looked on your monitor back home, and wondered "What was I trying to capture here? Was it
those tiny trees on the far horizon that I can barely see now? And
what are these two bright orange blobs on the
lakes edge that look like - oh, yeah they are - big trash cans!!?"
"And what are these strange, out of focus
lines in the foreground
- oh - it's a fence. Oh yeah, now I remember. I was trying to get
those tiny clouds
reflecting in the lagoon by that boat. There they are in that little area in the
middle part. Boy, how beautiful and dramatic they looked; how
disappointing now though- what happened?"
Sound familiar? Even the auto-focus, auto-exposure cameras are not
'auto-composing', that's your job. And that is something that you can and must
learn to get better.
_______________________________________________
"I'm re-infused with excitement about my
existing work....I feel I received more than my moneys worth!"
Chris Barley, Advanced photographer,
Cardiff by the Sea, California
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Well, there is GOOD NEWS. Master
photographer Michael Seewald is willing to share his techniques, and reveal
all of the 'secret formulas' that have won him dozens of national and
international competitions, including 'Best of Shows' at:
* The 'International
Photographic Competition',
San Diego Fair (besting 3,500 entries);
*
The San Diego Museum of Photographic Art
(besting over 700 world-wide entries with his sold entry,
the only time he's ever entered);
* San Dieguito Art Guild
(local competition, winning dozens of times);
* San Diego Art Institute
(both national and international divisions).
________________
Click on image to enlarge.
Here, Seewald receives 'Jurors Choice' Award, San Diego Art
Institute
for his oil painting (yes, Michael paints too, his techniques work for both
arts)
entitled
Lonely Road and Vapor Trails.
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Michael does not have time to enter many
competitions but
when he does he often wins.
Here, Michael takes 'First Place
Color' and then 'Best of Show' at the
International Photo Competition at the San Diego County Fair,
1996. That's top honors from over
3,500 worldwide entries with his 'Canal Reflection, Venice,
Italy'.
More astonishingly, hundreds of Seewald's collectors consider his eye so extraordinary that
they have purchased, sight unseen, over
$250,000 of his art in the past decade! He now receives an average of $2,500 per photograph, sight unseen, a year in
advance of the patron even seeing what they have purchased! Many of
them have now sponsored 8 or more times, showing great happiness with his art and
program! Some of his older, and thus more limited edition images, are
running well over $10,000 apiece.
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"...Given the
in-depth portfolio review we had over the weekend, (and in comparison
to other workshops I've attended)
I believe that your
price could have been $1,750...
"
Dorothy
Gantenbein, advanced photographer,
Fremont, California - Class of 4.16.'05
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Michael's
weekend compositional workshops
(fun-shops) are held in North San Diego County, in
Southern California, and now he offers them up in Carmel and Napa, with some that run
a whole week. Europe and China are also destinations you can learn
with Michael at now too. He leads you step by step through the critical thinking process necessary to make,
not take, a photograph or painting worth looking at, not just for a second
or two, but for many seconds, captivating your audience with well thought
out images. He'll give you the 'map' you have been missing to make you
'art'.
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Photo copyright / courtesy John Pohlman, class of 11.5-6.'05.
Artist Carol Foster peeks out of her studio, Spanish
Village, Balboa Park.
Using many of Michael's newly learned principles, student John
Pohlman made
this strong image while in the class and entered it into the Del Mar
International photo completion, on Michael's suggestion, and he WON AN AWARD!
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Michael's two, three or
four day class covers:
Day I - Theory
This first day zeroes in on what
Michael finds to be the weak link in every
photographers (or painters) arsenal; composition. That 'ability to see'
on how an image translates onto a 2-D surface from a 3-D world. It's an 'indoor classroom
setting', (if it's a San Diego
class) but no photos are made this day.
But what is made is a lot of great art, as we go over your existing photos and see
where they 'worked' and where they did not, and how to improve them 'after
the fact'.
Yes, EVEN for those that adamantly say composition is their
strongpoint, soon realize that maybe it's not as much as they had
thought!!! That's because with the learning of all of the myriad of
thought processes to make it even stronger, from a true master of
composition, they quickly realize there is way more to it than they had
imagined.
_______________________________________________
"Michael Seewald is amazing to work with!
...the class was so very helpful and surprising to someone like me who
'thought' they had a good eye for composition. He pushes you to
the limit of frustration to better bring about the artist in you. At the
same time he is fun, generous and kind. And most of all, PATIENT! I am
amazed at his graciousness with everyone no matter what the skill level or
equipment brought to the class.
His suggestions are never without merit
and always helpful. Oh, and his story telling isn't bad either. At the end
of the class you will want more and guaranteed you will want to go on at
least one trip with him in the future. Very Addictive. Very fun! Very
educational!
Thank you Michael for all your generosity!"
D'Arcy Lewis,
Temecula, CA
Class of 5.'06
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Day one
-we 'build a race car', but that does not make us race car
drivers.
Day two -we not only learn how to drive our newly built car, but we are soon driving
it VERY FAST!! Make sure seat belts are fastened, ok?
Day II, III or IV - Practicality
San Diego classes are held in
beautiful Balboa Park, near downtown San Diego, if you are in that area.
The Carmel class would have this at the Mission and at Point Lobos Start
Park. Napa at many of the wineries.
This part is where the photographer learns the
technical aspects of creating, and gets to practice the compositional
elements that were taught to them in the Part I class at the same time.
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"You must know that when you finish my
class you won't be making good photos...", Michael Seewald promises,
"You'll be making great ones." (We call 'em WOWS !)
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Usually, a visit into the Museum
of Photographic Arts, which is located there also, is included at no
additional charge just for our students in that region. The Carmel and
Napa
classes have gallery 'walk-through'/ critiques sessions instead.
Photo copyright Michael Seewald
Seewald's students, now knowledgeable in 'proper' cropping techniques-
the why and how,
use their hands it to
see if cropping here can strengthen some art at the museum.
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San Diego / Balboa Park locations
we shoot in:
1. The 'Spanish Village', a cornucopia of painted walkways and dozens of
artist's studios in an old, rustic set of small white buildings made for the
1920 (or some such date) San Diego World's Fair. (As was the entire
Park/Museum arrangement).
2. The Botanical Gardens and reflecting pools.
3. The Baroque architecture and arches of the Museums.
4. Miscellaneous other areas in Balboa Park.
More of what Michael's weekend class generally covers:
(Note: Due to time constraints we may not cover every
process due
to participants needs of extra instruction in varying departments.)
* Rules of composition, and why they can make or break a piece
of art. From the elementary ones to the more highly developed ones.
* How to actually
control the eye of the viewer of you photographs, and how to place certain
elements in certain places to control that eye's movement. This is
Michael's forte, and few photographers, or painters for that matter, have reached his level of
expertise in this department. If he were a college professor, you'd
be calling him Dr. Seewald.
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"I really
enjoyed the class and I came out with a lot more value from it than I
thought I would. It made me want to use my camera for other uses
besides my commercial photography too. It opened the door to the joy
of photography ...."
Rick Whitehead,
N. San Diego County
Class of 11.'05
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* 12 deadly elements that will kill what would otherwise have
been a good photograph, and how and
why to turn around and have them actually 'work for you' at certain
times. (Find out about tonal merger, line merger and color merger
problems, how to define them, how to see them, how to control them or how
to eliminate them- either in the ones already created or in future images).
How to crop portraits and landscapes to make boring art come alive, how to
keep an eye out for elements that work against the composition instead of
helping it.
Photo copyright / courtesy Doug Peck, class of 11.'05
Students with no skills at all end up making exciting images such as this,
with knowledge taught by Michael throughout an information packed two day
fun-shop.
* Learn how a light meter 'sees'
and why IT IS NOT REALLY A 'LIGHT' METER, BUT A 'GRAY' METER. Learn
how
to measure a scene properly, DAY OR NIGHT and set your own aperture and
shutter settings, thus foregoing the 'auto' settings, if you wish, so you
can create art that suits your needs. This is a must for shots as the
one above- auto setting will never get you there folks!
* 'Pre-visualizing' the image.
How to get what you originally intended through a series of techniques
Michael has discovered that work great in his own art making- techniques not
taught to him in four years of college photo classes. Take the
'guesswork' out of the process; no more 'luck only' images. (Or
"Man, Michael sure gets 'lucky' winning about HALF of all of the
competitions he ever enters!") They could soon start saying that about
you!
Photo copyright Valerie Seewald. '94
Michael Seewald working a stormy winter's day
in San Sebastian,
Spain.
* How to get the perfect prints from the lab,
whether you use film or digital recording devices, and how to communicate
with them to get good work delivered to you in the first place.
* What the digital
world has to offer, and how to incorporate it into your work-flow.
Which materials and processes are archival. What 'digital darkrooms'
will help you do over standard darkrooms, if anything. What's the
latest!
* Mounting, matting and framing tips of the finished, and now soon to
be, 'award-winners'.
* Both color and black and
white techniques;
* What, when, where and how
to use filters on your lenses;
* And if that was not
enough, much, much more.
(As Michael always says...
"Bring
a big brain and a large notepad!")
From beginners with instamatics
and digital cameras to those
advanced folks with view cameras,
all
learn through this truly gifted instructor. With proper instruction this art form
becomes less mysterious and more fun!
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"...Like many amateur photographers, I subscribe to several photo magazines,
have purchased dozens of books on photographic technique and technology, and
spent more than I probably should have on equipment. Why wasn't I making
really great photographs? I found most of the answers in Seewald's
Workshops,
the best photographic investment I've made,
short of sponsoring one of his works."
Bill Landon,
advanced photographer,
Murrieta, California
Class of 5.'96
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Photo © Al Joseph 2000
College photo class instructor
Leland Forrester, along with Michael Seewald, judge a photograph for the
North County Photo Society's annual photo competitions.
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Seewald not only knows a thing or two
about winning competitions, but because his art is so strong, and because he
wins so often, he's recruited to judge them too. He turned down a request to
judge the San Diego International Photography Competition in July of 2006-
"I'd rather leave the option to enter" he told the recruiter.
Students have said:
"Michael makes it too fun to be called workshops, you should call them 'fun-shops', so we do.
Designed so that beginners,
intermediate or advanced
photographers (AND PAINTERS) move to their next level.
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..."and Michael, I was surprised you're as good a teacher as
you are a photographer"....
Don Dreyfus,
Atty., Solana Beach, California
Class of 2.'03 (and now 'refresher class' of 1.'08)
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Click photo to enlarge.
Click photo to enlarge.
Photo courtesy/copyright class participant Doug Peck,
class of
11.5-6.'05.
Reflections, San Diego Museum of Photographic Arts building.
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"If you feel, as most do, that you
received
'more than your monies worth', from the fun-shop GIVE ME MORE MONEY... (nah, just
kidding, you keep the difference, it's on me)." MS
_______________________________________________
Some photographers don't actually believe we have so many
great testimonials (boy, if that doesn't give Michael a big head...) and they
have tried to call him on it- but they can't, he has the contact numbers/ e-mail
addresses of all of them for real live testimonials, by the dozens if needed.
So if you too are a doubting Thomas and you want to talk to a recent grad or
two, or three or twenty, just to see if these
testimonies are really real, just let us
know.
And we won't just give you someone from a class years ago either,
(unless you want to) but someone
from the very latest to report on his/her recent skill level improvements and enthusiasm. Any of them would gladly share how they
have improved so much, now that they are
making much stronger pieces of 'art', (ok, photographs for you beginners) just as you will after you take the class!
Again, if you need a referral or two just let us know. We will give you
some contact names and numbers; it's so important that you take the class to get
a jump start on making exciting art from here on out that we will do whatever it takes to make
sure you don't miss the boat, OK?
Seewald's motto, as in his sponsorship programs:
"Thou shalt have no unhappy campers."
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Click image to enlarge. / San Diego, May 2010 class.
Are we having fun yet? Let's step into
the Way Back Machine! Entitled 3-D Students, this was taken
by Michael during their brief break from
creating, at MOPA (Museum of Photographic Art) in Balboa Park. It was
after the entire class donned 3-D viewing glasses to peruse some 3-D
enlargements. Michael arranges a free, self guided tour for each
of his classes here.
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And yet another testimonial.
"Hi Valerie,
Well, I'm back in cold New England, and just read your e-mail, referencing the
Fun-Shop of last week. Thank you BOTH very much; the class was worth all of
the '6000 mile' trip; you can quote me;). "
Steve Silberstein,
Class of 2.'03.
...Unless you're the lead dog, the scenery never changes.
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BUT, as always,
nothing could be perfect!
So here is the small print, the 'down side',
the 'let down',
the 'I knew there was a catch' of these Seewald classes, as
it all sounded too good
to be true, there is no free lunch,
yada, yada, yada.
And since we are so upfront about everything, here it is...
The Seewald Class
WARNING
Warning: Seewald's photo classes have
been found to cause sleep deprivation!
What the heck? Sleep deprivation? That's
right, sleep deprivation. How's that you ask again? Well, after day one on
learing 'the theory of seeing photographically',
where participants learn how to take the images they have brought to class and,
through Seewald's tutelage, turn many of them into award winners, many
students have reported they have been just too excited to sleep when they get
back home!
Yes, they
come to the next days class a bit tired, a cup of java in both hands, admitting that instead
of sleeping they were thinking about the myriad of possibilities from all of their other images
sitting in boxes- bringing many out and applying their new found knowledge to
improve them immensely one by one, mostly thru cropping out the problems they
have now been taught to notice that will ruin the image if left in! Problems,
and distractions, that you will not find in of Michael's work. (Thus him winning
so many awards).
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More critique replies from the same Bobby Brooks as
above:
Question to beginners- was day two too hard?
"No, the second day was really great, but I
spent much of the night of day one thinking about the 2-D vs 3-D and
how it affects my photos, along with merger problems, object intrusions,
etc. that I also learned about, while I looked at my old photos. I thought a
lot about how light makes or breaks the photo and I was really impressed
with how I really could see what Mr. Seewald was talking about. The
concepts we discussed on day 1 were right there upfront and personal.
...Day 2 was great because it reinforced, with live examples, the concepts
of composition etc. that we talked about the whole day before...."
_______________________________________________
Here is a statement from
Dan McGeorge's weekend fun-shop:
"Day one presented clearly and graphically the core fundamentals of
effective composition, and how it is achieved in photography. The night after
the first day I was unable to sleep well, conceptualizing in my mind what had
been learned, reapplying it to photos I had brought to class that day as well as
to many more which I could not wait to revisit at home and apply the principles
Michael had presented in class. I have not been so excited about my photography
in years. Michael's instruction would help any photographer improve their work,
and allowed me to take "nice" photos I had, and turn them into dynamic pieces of
art.
Day two: The practical application of theory is always a challenge,
and that is what day two essentially involved. The greatest benefit I received
was finally arriving at a realization of what a center of interest is in a piece
of art, and how better to end up with the concept in a photo on purpose rather
than by accident. "
Dan McGeorge,
Lakeside, California
Weekend Class of 3.'05.
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Are we having fun yet?
We hope so, and it's just the beginning of your 'fun-shop' experience.
We look forward to entertaining/ educating you further in our next class.
Just don't make the mistake of not taking it, like many of the, how do you say,
'ho-hum' artists that almost did. Yes, Michael is dead serious about his art, but
you'd never know it... or would you? Anyway, he has fun with it, and you
will too.
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Now even with such a sincere and wonderful, not to mention enlightening and
captivating sales pitch, and since you are only
half way sold 'cause you are so (insert description of yourself here),
just like we would be, go read dozens of additional
testimonials here!
Or, just give up to the fact that you will be
a Seewald class grad sooner than later and just sign up right now, (IF there is
space- a 50-50 chance the next class is not sold out already) ...links to dates and prices follow...
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Again, if you still need to (?),
read
dozens of
photography
class. workshop testimonials here
Otherwise just E-Mail us to receive info
on the dates of our next 'fun-shop' or call to reserve now.
Someone will get back to you pronto.
760.633.1351
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