TCF Ep. 635 - Lana Z. Caplan
Lana Z Caplan, Dana Stirling, & Upcoming Workshops
Happy New Year. I hope you enjoyed a wonderful holiday season. May 2025 be a blessed year for you and yours. Despite the many challenges we faced in 2024, I choose to remain positive and hopeful as we begin a new year. I hope that the work we do here at The Candid Frame will help you bring positivity, inspiration, and creativity to your life and work.
Lana Z. Caplan & Dana Stirling
We ended 2024 with a couple of great conversations. In Episode 634, photographer Dana Stirling shared how she used photography to contend with a family history of mental illness. It is an inspiring story about using your creativity to overcome things that could hold you back, both artistically and personally.
We then wrapped up the year in Episode 635 with our conversation with Lana Z. Caplan. She discussed her long-term personal project on Oceano, California, exploring how different communities use and relate to one of the most iconic locations in the state.
Both photographers demonstrate the different ways a photographer can use the camera to tell a story, whether it’s personal or a narrative shared by thousands. We hope that the conversations we bring you in 2025 will encourage you in your work and projects.
Upcoming Photo Workshops
I ended 2025 by leading a photo workshop in Tokyo, Japan, through Nobechi Creative. It was a great way to end the year, especially being in the company of a talented group of photographers. Most importantly, it is incredibly gratifying to lead a workshop where photographers achieve valuable breakthroughs.
I look forward to returning to Japan in 2026, but in the meantime, I recommend that you check out Nobechi Creative’s 2025 schedule which features workshops from some of the world’s most talented and influential photographers.
Returning to Simplicity Workshop
Returning to Simplicity is my first workshop for 2025. Conducted through The Creative Photo Academy, the workshop consists of an online session followed by an in-person photo excursion in the South Bay area of Los Angeles.
The course will cover:
Making the camera an extension of your eye and mind
Recognizing & Overcoming distractions/obstacles
Optimizing your camera kit (camera, lens, strobes, etc)
The Zen of the exposure triangle (iso, shutter speed, & aperture)
The power of the thoughtful composition
Moving through anxiety, self-doubt, and insecurity
Flagging and rating images
A consistent approach for evaluating and judging photographs
Even if you cannot attend the in-person session, I think the webinar will still be invaluable and provide a tremendous creative jumpstart to the new year.
Find out more and register for the event by visiting The Creative Photo Academy.
Breaking Out of the Rut Webinar
At the end of the month, I will also lead my webinar, Breaking Out of a Rut: Tips for Creating Breakthroughs in Your Photography. I share the many ways I have learned to navigate the ups and downs of leading a creative life. Struggles and challenges are inevitable, but it is how we navigate those moments that is the most important. The solution doesn’t lay with new gear or software but with repeated practices and approaches. I hope you’ll join me for this event on January 25th. You can find out more and register by visiting the Los Angeles Center of Photography website.
How to Choose & Execute a Photo Project in Essay Form
David Brommer, formerly of B&H Photo, created a video on working on an essay-based photo project. This is a great video to watch to lead off the year, especially if you are thinking of working on a personal project in 2025. David has been a leading educator in the photographic space, and this video demonstrates why.
Video by David Brommer on Photo Projects
Thank you, as always, for your continued kindness and support.
Ibarionex
happy new year!