Study with one of the world’s leading set and stills photographers.

There are no available registration dates at this time.

Join award winning set photographer David James, along with special guests who will be joining us during some sessions, including:

  • JJ Abrams, Producer/Director 
  • Clive Baillie, Art Director and Founding Partner of BLT Communications
  • Xiomara Comrie, Assistant Western Region Director of Local 600
  • ChiaBella James, Still and Set Photographer 

NOTE: This course will be held in a live, online format using the Zoom Platform. 
Class meets Mondays, Wednesday and Fridays, for two weeks from 4–7pm EDT. 
(9/21, 9/23, 9/25, 9/28, 9/30 and 10/2)

Why still photography on a movie set?

This is one of the most frequently asked questions I have encountered throughout my career. The digital workshop, offered over two weeks ,is designed to answer this and the myriad queries as to the building of a career and life as a still photographer on set.

Taking stills on set is an endless adventure, limited only by the imaginations of the filmmakers and your own vision. This course is intended to provide and explore insights and lessons learned over several decades taking stills on movie sets all over the world. It will cover the six main topics that offer you an opportunity to build the knowledge and relationships to create your own  successful career on set.

Topics we will cover in the sessions are:

–  Getting started: building and showing your portfolio, understanding the role of the still photographer on set, basic equipment.

– Marketing yourself: building contacts and clients, landing your first job.

– Collaborating with producers, director, publicist and photo editors*

– Relationships on set with actors, filmmakers and crew.

– Editing and handling your material, approvals, selects, social media

-Poster art and special sessions*

 

Class will meet on  Mondays, Wednesday and Fridays, for two weeks from 4 – 7pm EDT.
20 minute one-on-ones with each student to be scheduled with David during the 2 week course.
Class dates are:  9/21, 9/23, 9/25, 9/28, 9/30 and 10/2

All images ©David James

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Instructor: David James

David James is an internationally renowned film and celebrity stills-photographer, born in the UK, now based in California. His iconic images have been exhibited world-wide in publications, galleries, collections and on billboards globally, also found in the archives of the Motion Picture Academy Library, PPofA and the National Portrait Gallery in London. David’s instantly recognizable film coverage ranges from musicals such as ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’,  ‘Chicago’, ‘Dreamgirls’ and ‘Rock of Ages’ ,to historical dramas ‘Schindlers List’, ‘Saving Private Ryan’,  ‘Lincoln’ as well as blockbuster action series ‘James Bond’, ‘Star Wars’ .and several of the Mission Impossibles - including Tom Cruise atop the Burj Khalifa in Dubai.   His career collaborations with filmmakers encompass such legends as Steven Spielberg, Tom Cruise, Christopher McQuarrie, and J.J. Abrams. David is the recipient of numerous accolades and awards, including an ICG/Publicist Guild Award for Excellence in Unit Stills, Professional Photographers of America Best in Show award, Hollywood Reporter Key Art Awards and the SOC Lifetime Achievement Award for Still Photography. Among numerous publications featuring his photos are more than a dozen photography books including Taschen’s ‘David Bowie in The Man Who Fell to Earth’ as well as his own books on ‘Indiana Jones and the Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull – A Photographic Journal’, and the ‘Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol Shooting Diary’.

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