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I lead a private photography trip into Burma last year. It really is a beautiful country and wonderful for photographers.

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More from this shoot here…

Shoot with Gui

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In the company of some good friends and talented photographers.

For a look a the photos in the exhibition.. Vogue Italia

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workshops@tomhoops.com

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So this year I am taking a small group to Phuket with me.

The vegetarian festival is suitable for all levels and I’ll be on hand to help you along the way. Expect some grisly sights, loud explosions, lots of smoke and some fantastic photo opportunities.

For a full explanation of the festival :..Thaiways

For more details and an itinerary : Extraordinary Exposures.

If you have further questions or would like to book your place then place email us: workshops@tomhoops.com

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A shout out to the team at Tirzen in France for their help and patience while we got this all together. I’m not the easiest client I’m sure.

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With that in mind a few weeks ago I called out to people to submit some images and a short essay on why they might like to participate. The response was magnificent and it was an incredibly difficult choice.

So what was I looking for in the first Bob to grace the project? Primarily I was looking for someone eager to learn and try new things, someone that could improve, not necessarily the most gifted but someone I thought might well benefit and learn something from a photographer like me.

So let’s get cracking and introduce our fist Bob. Mr James Whittey from the UK. A young enthusiastic chap with heaps of potential trying to break into the industry.. Here is his bio in his own words.

So here is a little history of my photography hobby/career so far. Studying art in my teens, I started using my Dad’s canon A1 SLR (which I still have), It came with 2 lens’s a 28mm 1.8 & a 50mm 1.4. I literally took photos of everything, then when old enough, my school let me use the dark room and I ended up spending alot of time in a small room with just my red lamp on. At University I started off taking  alot of photos, but I was studying Fine art and didn’t really take it seriously enough and eventually it fell by the way side. It wasn’t until just over a year ago that I decided to pick up a camera and start shooting again. My girlfriend had just come back from one of these makeover photoshoots & we both thought the results were over priced and very bland. I decided to invest in a new DSLR and see if I could do a better job. Over the past year I have been learning digital technique & deciding what kind of photographer I want to be. I have built up a half decent set of equipment, and a portfolio which needs alot of work, but I’m essentially lost as to where to go from here.

That has all led me to this point & writing this blog. Last month Tom Hoops posted on his his facebook that he was looking for someone to mentor, all of the results would be showcased on his blog in an attempt to consolidate all of his requests for tips & advice in to one neat little package. I was initially apprehensive to apply and didn’t in a million years think I would be selected but after the first talk with Tom my head is already spinning with ideas of where this project can go and what my career could potentially become. Of course Tom’s idea for “Project Bob” is to give back to the photography community and help aspiring photographers, Hopefully I have some good ideas on how to approach this but I would love input from anyone who is following the project.

I have never really run a blog before apart from uploading pictures on to tumblr, I’m not the best writer & my spelling sucks but for 6 months I have a direct line to one of my favourite Pro Photographers and I want to share everything I learn with whoever want’s to listen. I have spent the past 2 days building this blog so you can leave comments & ask me any questions you have.

This should be great fun.

J

And to keep up with his side of the Project Bob story, check out his site,twitter and facebook stuff.

http://www.jameswhitty.com/

http://www.facebook.com/JamesWhittyPhotography

http://twitter.com/skttrbrn

http://jameswhitty.tumblr.com/

http://jameswhitty.com/?page_id=80

So thats Bob or rather James.. As we are both new to this idea I expect things to be fairly fluid and we’ll work to improve things together, Both James and I will add updates on our respective blogs.. So far we have tested the water with a number of chats over Skype. Had a look at his site, some of his work and begun to get a feel for how to move forward.

This is though, designed to be for everyone and hopefully not just Bob will benefit from this Project, so I welcome input on this blog.. Ideas, comment on photos, anything to make this project something worthwhile for the photographic community as a whole. So with that in mind I’d ask anyone reading this post to encourage others to take part and spread the word.. you could after all be the next Bob.

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After conversations with a few photography buddies I ordered a new book a few weeks ago, it finally arrived last week.   I looked at plenty of of companies that make portfolios but in the end plumped for a standard 11/14 black, leather bound book from House of Portfolios in NYC. Very happy with the final product and it should last for years.

It’s now time to go through the exhaustive process of compiling the right images to fill the book before it’s ready for presentations later this year.

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Mentorship refers to a personal developmental relationship in which a more experienced or more knowledgeable person helps a less experienced or less knowledgeable person. …

wikipedia

What is project Bob?

Like many a working photographer I get many letters/emails from aspiring photographers wishing to intern or assist. Sometimes though I just get asked for a bit of advice or feedback, all well and good but that knowledge goes no further than the recipient.

So with this in mind I am looking for ‘Bob’, someone, anywhere in the world who would like to be mentored by me for the following 6 months.  Everything will be done via the internet using dropbox, email and skype.  We’ll then take some of the more interesting parts of the mentoring and put them on the blog, allowing for a wider audience to get involved.

so…

I am looking for one person to mentor for 6 months. the results of which I’ll put up here over the coming weeks.

I’ll review your work, critique you, help you with shoot ideas, give you some suggestions on subject matter, chat to you on skype, answer your questions on the business side of things, go through some real world estimates with you plus anything else I can think of that might be useful..

In return I’m looking for someone driven, someone willing to learn and happy to take criticism on the chin. I’ll openly critque your work on this blog, mark up your work and all sorts of other fun things that might be useful to anyone wishing to read it.

You have 2 weeks  to send me an email with 10 of your best photos and 500 words as to why you are the right man/woman for the job. Images should be no bigger than 750 pixels along the longest side.

You could be any age/sex but you should not have been shooting professionally for more than 3 years.

The winner will be announced mid March.

You can email me here.

I have no idea how many responses we’ll get or how successful it might be, but it’ll be fun trying.

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Would you be the same photographer had you started earlier?
Was listening to a podcast a little earlier that got me thinking.

What makes you the photographer you are? Why do you shoot landscapes and I shoot people? It’s all down to personality and I know mine has changed much over the years. I’m now hitting my late 30s and much has happened since I left school. Had I come straight out of school and become a photographer I think my work would have been radically different.
Maybe better, perhaps worse, we’ll never know.

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Firstly a very Happy New Year to everyone, hope you all got some nice new toys to play with and made some suitably interesting new years resolutions.
We had a fantastic 2010 and as with the previous year, we sat down over Christmas to review the year and make plans for the next, not an easy task and almost certainly subject to change over the coming year as we take on new projects and new directions.
Anyway without boring you with the details here are a few things, a few of you might like to know.

Prints
Print sales will change, poster prints will no longer be for sale and only signed limited edition prints will be available.So if you want to purchase any of my work in just poster format please do so before Feb 15th. www.hoopsprints.com
This leads me onto exhibiting, I will exhibit again this year, so if you are a gallery owner or similar, please get in touch.

Workshops
I will again run a few small (6 person) weekend workshops, currently we are looking at the summer in NYC and May in the UK. South Africa is a possibility also Bangkok.
We are also working on a one week workshop in beautiful Italy, a mix of fashion, portrait and travel photography. A joint workshop with other professional photographers… details to follow.
To join our workshops mailing list… click and get all the details before I publish them online.

Other destinations on the cards for this year. February trips to Singapore and Hong Kong. Japan in Spring or Autumn plus a summer trip to Spain or Portugal.

Website
I aim to use this blog more this year also, any ideas of things that would be of benefit or might interest you please let me know. I’m also toying with the idea of a complete overhaul of the site as a whole and a redesign…
Some great links have been added to the blog, do have a look I think you’ll find them interesting.

Other news
Readers Digest just published a cover and a number of shots of former Vogue cover girl Yui.
Travel and leisure London shoot out in Spring and a number of commercial jobs should be dotted about the place soon very well known brands too.. All exciting stuff.

rock on 2011..

feedback and opinion always appreciated..

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Details from workshops@tomhoops.com

I’ll leave you with a mix of shots from some of the very fine photographers who joined my earlier workshops.

Dawid Czaja: London

David Chang: New york

Natasha Hirst: London

Ashutosh Khandha: New York

Bradford Kim: California

Laura Scott: London

Cris Dahm: London

Thanks to everyone who participated and also the make up artists and models.

See you in November.

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Thanks to my buddy Shane who spotted the article and scanned a copy for me.

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Back in Asia now after a whirlwind month in the States and London. Along the way I got through several meetings with photo reps and a couple of editors, one celebrity shoot, several portrait sessions, a fashion editorial, workshops , family dinners and finally a DJ set for a wine bar in Dorset. All great fun.

Now I’m back I need to get through 10 or more photo sessions and have them edited and sent out, organise the September tour of the Algerian Sahara and look into taking a small group down to the fantastic Vegetarian festival in the south of Thailand.

I loved my time away and will most likely do it again soon. stay tuned.

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I worked with a brilliant team of creatives,  make up artists, Stylists and hair stylists. It was also the first time Ginger joined us for a workshop, along with a stunning  pair of female models. Really enjoyed the workshop and was proud to see some of the  fantastic work the students managed to capture.

Cool weather, great people, actors in front of my lens. great times and i hope to be back soon.

New York

In London now and have just wrapped the London workshop. Two shoots over the next two days and then it’s down to Dorset to meet family and friends.

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I’m now in NYC after an amazing trip to California, met some wonderful people, shot some great people and helped some superb people. I won some cash in Vegas and experienced by fist all American baseball game what an experience!

After a short stay in downtown LA and Las Vegas we hit the very sleepy Palm Springs. Wonderful mid century modernist buildings, clean sweeping roads and dramatic mountainous backdrops. From there we used the amazing Salton Sea as a backdrop.  Having grown up with iconic images from the movies and stills, it was a real privilege to actually see some of these places and photograph them also. The Salton Sea is a huge lake formed by an accidental river diversion and it’s littered with old abandoned buildings and trailers. Buildings remain from decades back, many with furniture still intact, almost as if people had just up and left. Big thanks to Jim and his lovely wife for letting us use their property for the day.. California and the Salton were the perfect start to my trip..

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Martin Angerbauer

It’s been a while. So here is an update on whats been happening and whats in the pipeline. First of all I can’t ignore what’s been going on in Bangkok. Many of my good friends are out there in the firing line and it’s becoming very dangerous for photographers.The city has come to a standstill and I think it’s leaving a few of us with questions about the future. I hope things settle down but one can’t help but feel that the divisions within the country are going to be extremely difficult to repair. My good friend Olivier Sarbil shoots strong compelling work and is out on the frontlines, drop by his website and take a look, you won’t be dissapointed. He’s passionate about his photography and when I called Olly to get permission to run his picture, I could hear screams and gunshots in the background, hats off to him and the other photojournalists down there bringing back some remarkable imagery.

Bangkok

On a much brighter note some of you will recognise a familiar face in the top photo, Ginger was with us again earlier this month, again we managed to shoot some great stuff and we are really happy with the results, more to come on those. Talking of Ginger, I am pleased to say he has decided to join me on my New York and London legs of the workshops, It’s a great opportunity to shoot compelling portrait work. I only have a few spaces remaining, so contact me if you would like to attend.

Lastly plans are finalised now for a September trip into the Algerian Sahara. Myself and UNHCR photojournalist Phil Behan will be taking guests deep into the Sahara on a photographic adventure.. Feel free to email me for further details.

The next week or so I’ll be getting ready for the US and UK, I will have my book with me and will be meeting editors, art buyers and anyone else willing to give me 5 mins. Also very excited about meeting some of the lovely people who have been in contact with me over the past year or so..

See you somewhere soon..

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Hoops workshop

As some of you may know I’ll be in the states in June for my 2010 workshops

Here’s my itinerary for the next few months.

April: South East Asia

May 29: USA, American workshops

LA

Palm Springs 5/6 June

San Francisco 12/13 June

Miami 16/17 June

Chicago 19/20

New York. 26/27

July: London 10/11 July

August :Ko Lipe  Swimwear workshop

September: Algeria Photo tour.

I’m now taking bookings for the workshops, email me for further details.

With a number of days to spare I’ll be doing some testing also, anyone wanting to pop along for those, please contact me directly.  I will also set some time aside for portfolio reviews and private time for anyone who wants it.

Looking forward to meeting many of you.

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So why do some photographers feel the urge to plagiarise?  Some think it will help them learn, others think they won’t get caught, some would just like to be able to shoot something similar to their favorite photographer, the vast majority don’t do it for financial gain and probably mean no harm.

Ultimately though the more you copy the less you’ll become your own person. The less likely you are to stand out from the crowd. You wont generate your own ideas, you wont experiment, you’ll look to others to do it for you and in the end you’ll never achieve what you probably set out to do when you picked up your first camera.

Tom Hoops

Unknown

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print,limited edition, poster,portrait,thailand

Have added several more prints to the print site.  Hoopsprints

Thanks to those of you who have bought prints,both poster and limited editions.

More to come in the following weeks. If you have any questions, please do drop us a line.

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You will, I’m sure notice a major difference between this post and those on my previous blog. You can now do all sort of exciting things like subscribe to RSS feeds etc. it’s a proper functioning blog. So comment away, add me and do your best. A huge thanks to noostyle design for helping me get this off the ground.
Plans on my side include, updating more often, interviews with photographers,editors etc, showcase of local talent. the odd tutorial and whatever else i can think of, so do please subscribe and keep me on your radar.
If there is anything you would like to see in particular, please let me know. looking forward to pushing interesting and useful information your way.

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I found this through a twittering buddy this morning. I’ve put it here for a couple of reasons, one as a reminder to myself and two because I know many younger photographers visit the site.

Words of wisdom from Cheryl Jacobs Nicolai

What Every Aspiring Photographer Should Know

These are my thoughts, nothing more and nothing less.

I get asked all the time, during workshops, in e-mails, in private messages, what words of wisdom I would give to a new and aspiring photographer. Here’s my answer.

- Style is a voice, not a prop or an action. If you can buy it, borrow it, download it, or steal it, it is not a style. Don’t look outward for your style; look inward.

- Know your stuff. Luck is a nice thing, but a terrifying thing to rely on. It’s like money; you only have it when you don’t need it.

- Never apologize for your own sense of beauty. Nobody can tell you what you should love. Do what you do brazenly and unapologetically. You cannot build your sense of aesthetics on a concensus.

- Say no. Say it often. It may be difficult, but you owe it to yourself and your clients. Turn down jobs that don’t fit you, say no to overbooking yourself. You are no good to anyone when you’re stressed and anxious.

- Learn to say “I’m a photographer” out loud with a straight face. If you can’t say it and believe it, you can’t expect anyone else to, either.

- You cannot specialize in everything.

- You don’t have to go into business just because people tell you you should! And you don’t have to be full time and making an executive income to be successful. If you decide you want to be in business, set your limits before you begin.

- Know your style before you hang out your shingle. If you don’t, your clients will dictate your style to you. That makes you nothing more than a picture taker. Changing your style later will force you to start all over again, and that’s tough.

- Accept critique, but don’t apply it blindly. Just because someone said it does not make it so. Critiques are opinions, nothing more. Consider the advice, consider the perspective of the advice giver, consider your style and what you want to convey in your work. Implement only what makes sense to implement. That doesn’t not make you ungrateful, it makes you independent.

- Leave room for yourself to grow and evolve. It may seem like a good idea to call your business “Precious Chubby Tootsies”….but what happens when you decide you love to photograph seniors? Or boudoir?

- Remember that if your work looks like everyone else’s, there’s no reason for a client to book you instead of someone else. Unless you’re cheaper. And nobody wants to be known as “the cheaper photographer”.

- Gimmicks and merchandise will come and go, but honest photography is never outdated.

- It’s easier to focus on buying that next piece of equipment than it is to accept that you should be able to create great work with what you’ve got. Buying stuff is a convenient and expensive distraction. You need a decent camera, a decent lens, and a light meter. Until you can use those tools consistently and masterfully, don’t spend another dime. Spend money on equipment ONLY when you’ve outgrown your current equipment and you’re being limited by it. There are no magic bullets.

- Learn that people photography is about people, not about photography. Great portraits are a side effect of a strong human connection.

- Never forget why you started taking pictures in the first place. Excellent technique is a great tool, but a terrible end product. The best thing your technique can do is not call attention to itself. Never let your technique upstage your subject.

- Never compare your journey with someone else’s. It’s a marathon with no finish line. Someone else may start out faster than you, may seem to progress more quickly than you, but every runner has his own pace. Your journey is your journey, not a competition. You will never “arrive”. No one ever does.

- Embrace frustration. It pushes you to learn and grow, broadens your horizons, and lights a fire under you when your work has gone cold. Nothing is more dangerous to an artist than complacency.

- CJ

PLenty to take from that I think, feel free to add some of your own.

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Tom Hoops – The Dark Knight of The Portrait Photography

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2010 Workshop Weekends

Happy to announce my schedule for next years weekend workshops.
Starting in Bangkok then heading to the States and finally to London.
These workshops include professional models, make up, hair and styling, taking you through all aspects of my workflow. Workshops are held either in a professional studio or from a unique and special location.

The workshops are creative in nature and are open to all levels, beginner up.
On top of the scheduled workshops I will have some limited openings for one on one sessions during test shoots, it’s a chance to participate in a full day model shoot with me.

For bookings, pricing  and or further info please contact workshops(at)tomhoops.com

Workshops are limited in numbers so book early to avoid disappointment.

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