Programs: (Zoom) Improve Your Story with Motion – Filmmaking for Photographers With Brian Zwit

Humans have been sharing stories since they first learned to speak. However, the way we tell those stories has changed over time. We started by painting our stories on the walls of caves. We later learned to write and paint on wood, paper, and canvas and still later we invented photography and filmmaking. In the past 20 years, we got Tik Tok, Reels on Facebook, You Tube, and very short attention spans. Progress has been relentless.

Photo slideshows are, however, stuck in the in the 70s and 80s. When dad took out the projector to show the slidesfrom the recent trip to Disney World, there was always a collective sigh in the room and reluctant consent to what was about to be endured during the next hour. Slideshows have not changed much since the 70s. Back then,filmmaking was an expensive and frustrating experience. Today, it is the most popular storytelling media. 

By including some short clips in your slideshows, you can better capture the viewer’s attention and tell a richer story. Improve Your Story with Motion will cover how to incorporate filmmaking into your storytelling, including the following:

• Why add video to your storytelling

• What are the differences between shooting stills and capturing motion

• How to plan for capturing clips for your storytelling

• What equipment you need to capture motion (Hint: Not much.)

• What and how to capture the clips you need for your story

Brian approaches this as well as all of his creative efforts with a simple philosophy: He believes that the most important tool a photographer possesses is their creativity and willingness to put in the effort to capture an image. Equipment can sometimes help to capture an image, but truly great images are the results of creativity and perspiration.

Bio:

Over 40 years ago, Brian discovered that photography provided a powerful means for expressing his vision of the world. Over the years, his love of the outdoors and photography as well as an aptitude for computer technology have morphed into a passion (some would say obsession) for capturing the elegance and majesty of the unique landscapes and flora of the United States. While the pursuit of nature takes him all over the continent, he favors the west, northeast, mid-Atlantic, and Canada’s eastern provinces and, wherever he is, his love of hiking and backpacking takes him far beyond populated areas into settings which few people visit.

In addition to landscape photography, Brian is always experimenting with other genres of photography and has accumulated thousands of architectural, travel, dog, and city and street life images. During the pandemic, Brian learned filmmaking and is working on a couple of film projects. Lately, he has become particularly enamored with instant photography and now owns way too many instant cameras. Brian’s images are in private residences and corporate offices and have appeared in regional magazines. Corporate clients have also used his images for promotional and internal publications.

Brian’s philosophy is simple: He believes that the most important tool a photographer possesses is their creativity and willingness to put in the effort to capture an image. Equipment can sometimes help to capture an image, but truly great images are the results of creativity and perspiration.

Brian has been teaching workshops, field trips, and classes and speaking to camera clubs, schools, and other non-profits as well as for profit entities for over fifteen years. He has taught Lightroom to over 1,000 students. Brian is well-known for his ability to distill complex topics to their essence and explain them in simple, easy to understand ways and is a recognized expert in digital workflow with Lightroom, Photoshop, Nik software, and other editing applications.

Brian has degrees from Purdue University in chemical engineering, the University of Houston Law Center in law, and Northern Virginia Community College in photography.