More experienced photographers may disagree, but as a beginner, I found WSP's "Focus on…read moreComposition" course super helpful. The class tried to instill a habit of thinking through a checklist before taking a picture (or evaluating it afterwards). The checklist included, among other things: * What's the subject? * Do the direction and quality of light work for your subject? * Does the background distract from the subject? * Check the frame's edges: Is the cropping awkward? * Is there comfortable spacing between the elements of your photograph? Our class was small, so in addition to the lectures and the pithy, informative handouts, we could spend more time going over our homework, getting concrete suggestions for how to improve. For example, the instructor (Joe Yablonsky) would sometimes suggest moving the camera up, down, right, left, closer, or further, to get a cleaner background, a more flattering portrait angle, or more interesting "directionality" in the photo's lines. Other times, the instructor would notice patterns-- that my ISOs tended to be too high, or that there's dust on someone's sensor, or that the focusing was sometimes off. He'd then ask how we took the shot, and suggest new settings or focusing methods (or suggest cleaning the sensor!). Sometimes he'd ask the class to weigh in on the critique, so we could also benefit from our talented (and opinionated!) classmates. One session was a fun field trip to the National Mall. At the National Gallery of Art sculpture garden,we chased photogenic squirrels and captured tourists' hilarious reactions to Joan Miro's Personnage Gothique, Oiseau-Eclair. (Google it if you don't know it). I watched as one classmate got several amazing portraits of strangers, just by walking up and asking. The instructor also gave me a demonstration of how to get my camera to focus with a neutral density filter. (I had been having trouble with that). The course just ended last week, and I still need a lot of practice. But it's made my photos noticeably better. (One of my homework assignments even got published last week, as the page 2 photo in the Washington Post Express!) The downsides: Classes can be expensive! (Luckily I had a gift certificate). Sometimes you can find coupons or Living Social deals, e.g. here's one that's on right now (as of late March 2014): http://conta.cc/1jNpdud Washington School of Photography can be a pain to get to without a car. It's somewhat walkable from Twinbrook Metro, but the commute from DC (especially with weekend red line schedules) took me more than an hour.

Love these guys...they've taught me so much about the technical and functional aspects of…read morephotography, from how my DSLR works to how to better frame and compose my shots. I'll be taking my third class, on composition and design, next month. The 2 teachers I've had, Joe Yablonsky & Cortney Jackson, are instructors that I would recommend to anyone who wants to pursue photography as a hobby or as a profession.

I can't exactly remember how I found Liz but I don't care, I'm just glad I did!…read more We booked a studio newborn session for our first little one and the entire experience and final product was more than we could have hoped for. It started with a lovely phone call for us to get to know each other and for Liz to get to know what our goal was for the photos. In our case the studio session was the right call. Our little one had some minor issues that left our hospital discharge date in limbo but Liz was so kind and accommodating in working with us to find the best day. It was a relief because it allowed my husband to join and worked around his crazy schedule. The studio is warm and welcoming. Liz is such an easy and gentle person and it was such a pleasure to chat with her during the session. Being a nurse and having little ones herself made me feel extra safe handing over my two week old for a couple of hours. She was really receptive to our wants for the photos. They turned out absolutely adorable! I squealed when I got the final images. We got some family shots, some cutesy shots, and some detail shots as well. A perfect mix to remember our baby girl's first few weeks of life. If you're anywhere in the DMV area I encourage you to reach out to Liz. Once you chat with her for a minute I'm certain you'll book her for your maternity or baby photos. We can't wait to return for more photos as our little one grows. Thank you Liz!

My husband and I had such a wonderful experience with Liz for our maternity photos! We aren't the…read morebest at posing, but she made everything feel easy and natural by guiding us the whole time! She made sure every pose showed the love between us and the excitement for our baby. Liz was so kind, patient, and made sure we felt comfortable throughout the session. Her studio was beautiful and inviting, and her pricing was very reasonable for the AMAZING quality of work she provides. We're so glad we chose her and highly recommend LVP to anyone looking for a professional and relaxed photo experience!

I signed up for Washington Photo Safari to learn basic photography for my social media job at…read moreHonest Tea. I wanted to have fun doing it so i signed up and I made a great decision. David, the tour guide, started this business as our Nation's first ever photo safari and has been running it ever since. He knows photography and knows how to teach it and practices what he teaches. On top of that, he's lived in DC for 45 years and knows the city and will share all of its secrets with you. If you do the half day, you'll start by the White House and visit the Einstein Statue, Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam Memorial Korean Memorial and will send at Union Station. Highly recommend!

I signed up for a course at the Marine Corps Silent Drills. David was friendly, but there was no…read morestructure to the course at all. He basically explained what the Silent Drill Platoon would do, and then left us to our devices. He spent most of the time chatting with one of the students who it seemed like he knew. I didn't learn anything. I'm not exactly sure what I got for the course fee, I could have just showed up myself and would have had the same experience.

8/16/20 & 8/22/19…read more Once again Yelp fails to understand what a review is and delete another one of my reviews...fuck you very much:) and now on to my review. Back in February or March I saw and met with a representative at the Dulles Expo Center. This business is one of the attractions that caught my eye. Getting some photos taken with my wife could be a lot of fun. Doing nudes or something risky or out of our comfort zone would be fun. Talking to one of the representative gave good feeling and something I would like to try with my wife. I wish I could remember the name of the representative, but her name escapes me. I do remember some of the promotional photos I saw on this website and knew I had found the right business. Talking with this representative gave me the information and feeling that this business is worth doing. Doing business with them looks good because of the way the representative handled my questions.

I had a boudoir session with David and had an amazing experience. He was extremely professional and…read morehighly respected my privacy. My photos turn out beautiful. I swear he made my body and skin look 10 x times prettier than real life. David was extremely fast at responding to all my emails. Pictures and edits came back faster than expected. I highly recommend. 5 stars in every category!

Justin is such an awesome photographer to work with! He made me feel so comfortable I could make…read morefaces, be goofy and relaxed! It wasn't awkward one bit! He is very reliable, delivered all the images quicker than promised (quick turnaround)!! (Also the photos are super high quality!) I first met Justin last year (2016) and loved how the pictures turned out! I have some amazing portraits (advertising styled) and action shots for my website. I really LOVE the pictures he stitched of me bouncing the golf ball! It shows my fun side, yet very professional and I look good! SUPER satisfied on how I look! Justin captured a lot of good moments where one can see how I love doing what I want! Also took some amazing intense action shots where one can see a lot of details! So I am back this year to get more pictures taken by Justin. I want to make a portfolio and update my website! I highly recommend Novak Photos for any types of photo shoot whether it's athletic portraits, professional headshots, family portraits, business websites, I mean pretty much anything for professional photography!!!!

Justin does an amazing job and is extremely talented! I have worked with him for professional head…read moreshots and an on-site shoot at the beach. He has a great eye and is very detail oriented especially when it comes to lighting which is hugely important. I definitely recommend him! You won't be disappointed in his work.

Do not pay in advance. I'm still waiting for a refund for services not completed. Deadline for the…read moreproject was December 2024. Apparently he spent the money and now can't issue me a full refund. He has chosen to ghost me and does not want to set up a financial payback agreement. He says, he will pay back when he can. . I don't know why business that can get away with that. I hate resorting to Yelp to get his attention.

Working with Havar was such an easygoing experience. He is a professional, fun, and confident…read morephotographer who has a wonderful personality. We had an outdoor portrait session this fall in Washington D.C. I met with both Sharon Macorol (Bobbi Brown makeup artist) who did my makeup for that day, and Havar and was filled with both excitement and nerves. The duo were able to ease my nerves and were very welcoming and friendly. Sharon did a great job with my makeup and choose very flattering colors. I even ended up purchasing the lipstick she chose on me. Havar was able to direct me on how to pose, but also gave me the freedom to pose however I wanted to as well. He made the shoot very fun and comfortable even despite my initial awkwardness and lack of modeling ability. He was also very patient and did not rush the shoot, which I very much appreciated. This really showed me that he aims for, and values client satisfaction. What I was amazed by most was how quick Havar was in sending me the thumbnails of the shots. I believe he was able to send me all two hundred something of the thumbnails by the end of that night so that I could choose my top 10. After I chose my top 10, he had them edited and sent to my email the next day. I would definitely recommend Princeps Studio Photography to all of my friends for any type of photography that needs to be done. I couldn't have been more happy and impressed with how the photos turned out!

Irene is the best Photographer I have ever encountered. She brought my vision of myself to life…read moreflawlessly. Irene is talented, reassuring and creative with a keen eye for detail; selecting the best lighting, poses and outfits to complement me. The mini marathon even included an excellent Hair and Makeup Artist who transformed me. I am overwhelmed with Joy about all the compliments I received on my pictures. I would give Irene 10 stars if possible and highly recommend her. She has truly mastered the Art of Photography.

Irene is phenomenal. I had never hired a professional photographer before, so I was not sure what…read moreto expect. Thankfully, she was exceptionally approachable, flexible and accommodating. We were able to schedule a professional headshot session within the week despite her busy schedule. The photos look superb, and I will be using her for any future professional or personal photography needs. Strongly recommend you do the same.

September 2017 I'm…read moreupdating my previous review only to say Shira will be our family photographer for as long as she will have us. She was just as kind and thoughtful with our now almost two year old and new six week old baby. I had to reschedule this time and she completely understood. I was also very impressed with how she dealt with our toddler. She's a handful and quite independent. I don't know how she did it but the pictures she captured of her were amazing! December 2015 We decided to take family pictures of our six week old with Shira and we were not disappointed! She was so pleasant and professional. We definitely enjoyed working with her. The baby responded very positively to her. I definitely would recommend her to others looking for someone to work with their family. Her edits to the picture were great because they were minimal but enhanced the natural beauty of the pictures. We were able to make great Christmas cards and provide prints for our family across the country. As an aside, she had to reschedule and was very apologetic. We understood but she still compensated us with additional pictures because she knew we were slightly stressed about the timing. She also stayed a little longer to make sure we had options. I'm just sharing as an example of the kind of customer service she offers. Not many are good at that part of the business these days.

Yesterday I had a 2 hour private lesson with owner Shira. She was completely open to anything I…read morewanted to do. My priority was to learn how to use my DSLR without relying on the automatic setting. I had a little experience with some things so first Shira gave me an excellent review then pointed out aspects of the camera completely new to me. AND she wrote out notes on what we discussed! I now have a valuable tailor made cheat sheet. After the camera review we walked around Columbia's Lake Kittamaqundi to apply the lessons learned. Shira is friendly, patient, calming. She is a born teacher. With her help I have become a more confident photographer.

So I was married. 3 times. To the same man…read more Rachel shot our DC elopement (50th anniversary of Loving v. Virginia so of course we did it on the steps of the Supreme Court) and she was AMAZING YA'LL. Everyone who sees my photos is completely blown away; I asked Rachel to take us around DC like tourists and do more a photo shoot than a traditional wedding, and she selected the *perfect* places to go for to-die-for backgrounds. Her photography editing is impeccable, and I had multiple people tell me that our photos look like they belong in a magazine. Rachel herself is wonderfully fun and easy to work with, and helped us have FUN with our photos. I am so thankful that Rachel was recommended to us - she ended up being one of the best decisions we made!

Rachel was so great and I recommend her highly! I had very specific requirements for a corporate…read moreheadshot and she executed perfectly. She was very flexible on timing and helpful with planning. She was also friendly and positive throughout setting up the lights and taking the photographs. Her cost estimate was extremely reasonable and she had the finalized photo to me within mere days. I'd definitely contact her again for other types of photos.

Whimsical, thoughtful, elegant, and delightful. Fresh cut flowers, hot tea, tasty scones and…read morecream...every detail of today's Mother's Day tea was just ah-mazing!!!! Thank you Mrs. B and your lovely team!! Can't wait to be back!

5 stars! The highest of praises for Mrs. B's fresh, in-house savories and delicious treats. Perfect…read morefor all ages.