Long Exposure Photography
Have you ever stared at imagery of the Okinawa coastline wondering how the photographer shot the image? The incredible power of the Ocean that surrounds the tropical playground that is Okinawa is truly alive at times. But how best to convey that with photography? Long exposure is a technique where shutter speeds longer than 1/20th are deemed to be long exposure. This basically translates that of the camera and lens is held steady with the use of a reliable tripod then anything that is static in the composition with remain still and sharp. Conversely anything that is moving within the composition will inherit a characteristic of blurriness depending on how long the shutter speed has been set to.

The Location
There will be little to no classroom theory with this workshop as such. This is down to the fact that this workshop is not being held at any one location, rather a series of locations each with their own specific requirements for composition and shutter speed considerations. Some of the images you see in the slideshow above were taken at some of the locations we will be shooting at during this workshop. These include Cape Zanpa, Toguchi Beach and Sunabe. What you will learn is that even the most seemingly benign location can be turned into a magical spot using a long exposure technique as long as there is an acceptable amount of motion available on the day. That motion can come from the Ocean, the skies in the form of clouds or a mixture of both.

What will be taught?
This is actually a very simple technique to master. Saying that though there are some considerations for the teaching aspects of the workshop, some of these are as follows:

• Calculating long exposure shutter speeds
• Employing the use of Neutral Density filters
• Working with Graduated Filters
• Use of Polarizer filters

Don't be put off by the subject matter. As mentioned these are simply the guideline points of discussion that will go to explain just what make this genre of imaging more challenging than most people give it credit for. If you have had experience with standard landscape photography and are looking to add that specific aesthetic value that long exposure adds to photography then this is the workshop for you.

What You Will Need to Bring

• DSLR Style Camera with access to shutter, aperture and ISO
• Electronic Shutter Release, or you can also use the two second delay timer feature
• Sturdy Tripod
• Wide Angle lens
• Circular Polarising filter
• Felt bottom water boots
• Insect repellant
• Rough clothes for river / jungle walks

Complete ND Filter Kits Provided
A good ND Filter set is not a cheap accessory to have at hand. To this end one of my sponsors KANI Filter are providing three full basic ND Filter sets for my students to use during this workshop. These kits are comprised thus, the main filter holder to fit wide angle lenses with 67mm, 72mm, 77mm or 82mm filter thread. Filters will include an ND64, ND1000 and both Soft and Hard GND 0.9 filters. Don't worry about the terminology, all will be explained. The main thing to note is that these filter sets offer the best solution money can buy given they use some of the best possible glass filters currently available to the serious Landscape Photographer.

Instructor
Mark Thorpe is a 25yr+ veteran mixed media professional. He has worked extensively as an underwater cameraman and has won international awards and placements from film festivals for his self produced short films. He has also become a trusted and recognized provider of content for both production and broadcast concerns on a global scale. Mark is also a recipient of an Emmy Award for excellence in the art of cinematography for work contributions made to National Geographic Television and Film in their production of their 'Great Migrations' mega-series. Mark is currently based in Okinawa and is sponsored as a stills photographer by a number of leading photographic accessory manufacturers.

Attendee Capacity
This workshop is intended for a maximum of three attendees so as to ensure each attendee has sufficient instructor time to absorb the information and technique being conveyed during the course of the workshop. Attendance is reserved on a first come first served basis. In order to retain your spot on the trip we will be requiring a non refundable retainer which reflects 50% of the workshop fee. All balances are due to be settled at least three days prior to departure either in cash in person or via PayPal as per the retainer payment process.

Inclement Weather
Okinawa is a wet archipelago, it is what keeps the place green. I can control where and how you get to a location, I can plan to have you sitting in the right place at the right time if the weather plays along on order for you to accomplish incredible imagery. I will then give you the training and develop your imaging skills so that you are armed with the ability to nail those shots. All of that I can control. However, the one aspect that is totally out of my control is the weather. If clouds roll in one hour before the shoot is about to start, or worse, torrential rain, then I cannot control that. It's a bummer for sure but it is also part and parcel of the landscape photographers obstacles. Finger crossing is a part of the landscape photographers arsenal.

Interested? 
Simply reach out and contact us using the available form on our contact page. We will then enter into email discussion with you to answer any additional questions you may have relating to the requirements and intentions of this workshop.