A Photography Workshop on Creative Constraints w/ Bonny Melendez

This is a hands-on photography workshop for beginners and photographers who’ve lost their spark. We’ll explore how limitations can push you to create better work than having every resource available. No expensive gear, no perfect setup. Just you, your camera, and a new way of approaching a shoot.

Over three hours you’ll learn how to work creatively under constraints, how to collaborate and direct on set, and how to get out of your own way when inspiration isn’t there.
Supplies Used: Camera and props 

Supplies Used: Bring your Camera and 2-3 props that you are curious about in and around your space. Be intentional and intuitive.

Artist Bio: I’m Bonny Melendez, a photographer based in New York and New Mexico. I’m a self taught photographer but give credit to all the experiences I’ve went after and the people that have shown up for me in this industry. My path into this work wasn’t traditional, I didn’t go to photography school. I learned by showing up. I’ve assisted established photographers, worked on large studio productions, and spent years absorbing the craft. Through these experiences I learned something I didn’t expect. I had been overcomplicating my own creativity. Watching the way established photographers worked, I started to see that the best images didn’t come from having the most. They came from knowing how to use what was already there. Before all of that, I spent years in a career that slowly drained my creativity out of me. Pivoting into photography wasn’t just a career change, it was me finding my way back to myself. Over the last three years I’ve done the deeper work of breaking through my own mental blocks and learning how to truly tap into my creativity again 

You’ll walk away with: A new way of seeing your existing work and tools and the confidence to pick up your camera and start, even when conditions aren’t perfect. We will be shooting with selected props you bring and photographing each other. The goal is building creatively with what we have accessible. We will spend the first part of the workshop getting to know each other and speaking on creative blocks and how to pool your creative reference. The second part of the workshop we will get playful. 
This workshop is for you if: You’re just starting out in photography. You’ve been shooting for a while but feel stuck or uninspired. You want a creative reset in a small, supportive group setting.