Workshop Aprofot Spain

APROFOT July the 6th 2009, Reus, Spain

Workshop Henk van Kooten

The evening on sunday the 5th of july, Christina and I left to the airport of Eindhoven.
It was a evening,soft and warm weather, close to raining and for that a little moisterous.
We arrived in Reus at about 23.00.
Waiting for our arrival we saw Ferran and Janusz, waving to be recognized.
After a short drive we arrived inthe hotel.
There were more people waiting for us to say hello.
Sitting in the warm and moisterous heat of the evening we had a talk about what next day would do.
After some drinks and some late evening food, we all went to bed.
Monday morning was 8 o’clock breackfast, than chequing the laptop, digital projector in the special presentation-room of the hotel.
People came in early to have a look at the sponsors boots.
Hasselblad had everything arranged to make the photography work.
The soundcheque was not easy, for the line to the sound equipment didn’t work, and needed to be fixed.
By than it was about 10.30, almost an hour late.
But as easygoing the Spanish are, it was no problem.
My carefulle made scedule was only completely gone.
The talk started with introducing me and my photography, aswell my history.
This went into my vision about photography.
Small breaks with slideshows to show where I am talking about.
Janusz translated my English into Spanish.
That took the spirit out of my being, for I was more focused not to miss anything. Also the breaks in my talking were dfficult.
I had the feeling I could not be as spontanious like I normally am.
Still it worked fantastic, cause Janusz (who knows me already
for a long time) could extend my speaking into a lively entertaing way of communication.
Next was the photoshoot where I demonstrated some posing and the way it effects the bodylanguage.
We prepared some outfits and styling, combined with basic make-up going into expressive make up.
In a short time we could make a variety of pictures, as shown in our output imaging.
Different ways of photoshop-usage gave also a multi presented imaging.
I also shared the now famous “crazy faces” as a positiv way to end a photoshoot.
Something we use in our studio to finish a lot f photoshoots.
It is based on a very importing prinnciple.
Customers do a lot effort to have the result for there familypictures done.
It is hard working to achieve to personal touch and kind of family-language into the finalimage.
At the end of each photoshoot we do something crazy to give the customer a present and a positive ending of the photoshoot.
All faces together and on 1,2,3 we make the image with all of them putting a crazy/funny face.
It really works. Lot of fun at the end.
This crazy/funny face feeling went into the feeling of the workshop and everybody started to make pitures like that.
I really hope this spreads into the world of photography to show customers the importance of photography.
Even the big group-picture of all the present photographers was a crazy-faces picture.
The lunch-breack was Spanish beauty of course. Lots of fantastic food and a great lunchtime.
I wishe I could speak Spanish to make more conversation work without being translated.
But hey, I am learning Spanish now for three months and could already understand more than before.
Spain is not just a beautyfull country, but also having great hearts and souls as the Spanish people are.
After the break we id more presentations and talk first.
About my latest book : building blocks to imaging.
Showing how you can change photography in yourself:
Building Blocks to Imaging
Discover your personal handwriting in photography
A photographer who can fully ralise his talents. With products and customers that are suited to him or her. What photographer would not?
Building Blocks for imaging is a guide on the path to success, individual style and, perhaps, more importantly, satisfaction.
Building blocks to Imaging teaches photographers to deal consciously with their own perceptions.
Building Blocks for imaging is about personal development and photographic reflection.
Success, individual style and satisfaction cannot be reached without trial and error. The aim of the book is to teach an awareness about your own image and imaging
based on choices. If you know what you can and tune your photography and customers can seamlessly implement this commercial line. With a good balance between individuality and photography, your individuality identifiable. Your own style.
Style becomes identity,
Identity becomes a style.
Henk van Kooten used himself as a red thread of pitfalls and failures to successes.
The book offers a practical guide, step by step and richly illustrated with superb photos of the naked core of the message clearer.
After this it was showing the results of the photoshoot, showing some photoshop trics and how to finish.
Cause we lost a lot of time I only showed briefly the ways to go and did the real finishing in my studio.
By that time (and another short break) everybody was getting tired, and I could not show my marketingways and photographic art as well my commercial photography, like fashion and advertising.
Basicly that was not a big problem for this group was mostly portrait and weddingphotography.
I ended with a talk about our weddingphotography, our different aproach to do only portfolio’s and a art-line of what we call now ‘photography of love’.
It is still evolving into something I know where to go, but must earn new ways of imaging to achieve this.
Photography of Love is the approach we choose to do, instead of doing the reportage way of working.
Nowadays most people can do the coverage of what happend on the day of the wedding themselves.
Digital photography is so much into the world of amatures nowadys that I choosed to go a different way.
This approuch needs arketing and explaining why and how.
Our website is instructed to give this information through pdf information-downloads.
I finished the day with a long slideshow about my weddingphotography.
When the last music ended I got a huge applause, completely surprising me.
I really was overwhelmed by this appreciation.
Sorry that I could not respond immediatly because of this.
My wife was waving: stand up you idiot.
And so I did.
Thank you all so much for this.
By than it was almost 20.00 o’clock and Ferran (president of Aprofot)
Had some nice ending, and presented Christina and me a beautyfull piece of art.
Thanks again.
It now is standing on our counter to show to our customers.

After saying goodbye to everybody, signing books and kissing, on the picture with of course crazy-faces, I went to my hotelroom with Christina, still shivering from everything that happend this day.
Hasselblad even asked me to come back in october in la Coruna.
And I will!

Late evening dinner, going to drink something outside, we met a Irish couple.
So it was about 3 at night before we went to sleep.
Next day Ferran and Erik took care for us. They showed us there studio and took us to Tarragona.
And we looked into this very old city.
What a beautyfull tow this is.
In the evening Ferran and his wife joined us for a dinner at the beach.
And at 22.30 there was a huge fireworks.
The dream went on.
I have so many great friends after this.
Janusz phoned me to tell he enjoyed himself so much, and it touched me immense.
Again a great day.
The next day we went again to Ferrans studio.
And now I did a photoshoot of this beautyfull family.
If they are happy it will be on the weblog as well.
I tried some new techniques.
And of we went to the airport of Reus.
Surprising me there was Israel wth his wife to say goodbeye aswell.
And I hate saying goodbeye, for it makes me emotional and wanting to hold my moments of happyness.
But going home means going to my children, and really I love them so much that it is a good thing to look forward to.
And so it ends.
Doing workshops is not just sharing my thoughts and photography, but also meeting good people that become friends.
It enriches my life so much. I am priviliged to have a talent, but I am more priviliged to meet people like you Ferran, Erik (family Blasco), Janusz, Israel and Cristina.
I really hope to be back!
Everybody: THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sorry my English is not polished, but to have everything translated into proper English will take too much.
This writing must be seen as an understanding way of what happens in my life.


Henk van Kooten

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