I have several programs that I present to photography groups, camera clubs and other organizations. When I talk to photography groups, I don’t just show pretty pictures from various locations, I instill inspiration in the crowd and give practical tips and advice that people can use right away. For non-photography groups, I excite and inspire the crowd to get out and explore the natural world. Talks are typically an hour to 90 minutes but can be customized to fit your needs. A darkened room is required and I can bring a projector and screen if needed.

Light Painting Objects Large and Small

One of my favorite things to do is light up things at night. The bigger the better! In this presentation I show how to light things big and small with a flashlight. I go over the equipment needed, I have an assortment of flashlights that I use, from the light of my iPhone to a whopping 18 million candlepower monster that fills 1/4 of my suitcase. While viewing many scenes I have light painted, we’ll talk about the camera settings needed, most people will be surprised to learn I shoot almost all my night scenes at ISO 100. Attendees will learn how to tell if the scene would be good for light painting and how to scout for great scenes. It is a fun evening that always generates lots of “Wow, I didn’t know I could do that!” comments.

Night Photography

Taking photos during the day is fun, but some dramatic photos can be made right after the sun has gone down and into the night. You’ll be surprised to learn how much light is in the sky well after sunset and I show how to make the sky look great, even if it is cloudy, and how the light on buildings looks different as darkness settles in. I talk about and show how light painting techniques using various flashlights brings brightness to the darkness.

Travel Photography

One of the biggest problems of traveling is knowing what to shoot when you get there, especially when you want to get away from crowded tourist locations. I’ll show you how I do research and the tools I use to find well known and hidden photo locations. Plus I’ll show you how to find cheap airfares. We’ll talk about all the issues we face when traveling like how much equipment to bring, how to pack it, airline regulations and thwarting thieves. (I had my passport stolen in Guatemala, getting a new one is not fun, especially when you need to be able to speak Spanish just to get into the U.S. embassy!)

Personal projects

I always have a personal project in the works, something to keep me focused and inspired. They can be location based, theme based or technique based. Some projects are big but having a small project makes it easy to have something to shoot when you have a bit of time. One of the hardest things for many photographers is knowing what to photograph but by having a personal project in the works you will always have something in mind. I’ll show how I keep track of photo locations and photo ideas. Learn what creating personal projects can do for you.

Why it is worth dragging my butt out of bed to photograph at sunrise

The light at sunrise is the best of the day, it is clean, directional and pure. And yet I usually don’t have the sun in my images. I’m not a natural early bird, but I am rarely disappointed when I’m out early. Planning, researching and knowing where to be before the sun comes up will make your experience much better. Know where the sun will be and the direction of the light before arriving is key. Learn how to make the best of your mornings.

Photographing the stars

There is an amazement to standing out in a dark field and staring up at all the stars on a cloudless night. Making pictures of the stars and especially the colorful Milky Way is equally amazing. In the old film days it took expensive special equipment and special film to make images that today’s digital cameras can handle. In this presentation Loren Fisher will show you how to make stunning photos of the Milky Way, which includes how to know where the brightest and most colorful area known as the Galactic Center will be, how to know where to go, even how to know when the International Space Station will be flying overhead. Loren will talk about total solar eclipses and what you need to make photos of upcoming total eclipses. Loren will show you what equipment you need for the stars, including smart phones apps that are essential. You will learn how the tell the difference between a meteoroid, airplane or satellite streaking across your image. Loren will show you tricks to focusing in the dark, how the focal length of your lens affects how long you can leave your shutter open before stars start streaking and how to do some light painting to increase the interest of your foreground.

Capturing fall foliage

Autumn colors are fun to see but can be intimidating and hard to photograph. I’ll show you how to get the best foliage photos.

If you can do it here, you can do it anywhere

Taking photos in the world’s great locations is fun and yields great results, IF you are ready. I’ll show techniques and habits learned at home can be used no matter where you go. Mastering techniques and your camera locally will give you the experience and confidence to make great images when you travel. Learning to see great photos at home will make your big trip photos even better.

Finding inspiration

Getting in a rut and not being motivated to make pictures is a common problem for many photographers. There are many techniques I use to keep me wanting to make new images. Some involve changing my mindset, some involve changing subject matter and there are times when I need to change my location. Many times it just requires changing the way you are approaching your photography to make it feel fresh again. We’ll talk about some ways to stay motivated and keep your creative juices flowing.

Fun Photography Gadgets

I’m a bit of a gadget nut and my favorites are the ones that do a lot for not much money. While I don’t get a kick back from any equipment companies, I’ll show you things you can get that will enhance the light, let you shoot from different angles, steady your camera, capture things you can’t see or just make photography life easier. I’ll show some cheap things you can make and some not so cheap things that let you make unique photos.

Creating a Photo Story

Taking a single image is easy but putting together several images to create a narrative is much more difficult. We’ll talk about planning a story, thinking about what shots are needed for the story, how to cull down your images to create a concise package, what makes a good photo story, how to get story ideas, where and how to display your story and more.

A non-birder photographing birds

I like photographing birds in a way that shows their natural habitat and personality. I’m not a bird watcher, if I can’t get a bird fairly large in my viewfinder, I’m really not interested. I don’t keep a “life list” but knowing some simple tricks and bird habits makes getting fun photos easier.

Enjoying the natural world

This presentation is for non-photography groups and is designed to inspire people to get out and enjoy the natural world, both close to home and in distant locations. I show images from around the world and talk about how lucky we are to have nature give us an amazing daily show of beauty and we only have to be willing to slow down and look.

The legal aspects of photography

Loren isn’t an attorney but he has studied many of photography’s legalities, especially when he was president of the New Jersey chapter of ASMP. We’ll talk about what rights you have while making images, where you can and can’t go, copyright protection and what you need to do to copyright your photos, online usage of images, how to find online usage infractions, the difference between editorial and advertising use and more. This isn’t meant to be a substitute for getting legal counsel, only as informational so you know your rights.