We spoke with Matthew Maran, a professional photographer who runs a series of photography workshops throughout the year. He told us about his plans for growth, the key to running successful photography workshops, overcoming challenges and his advice to others looking to run workshops relating to their passion.

How long you been running photography workshops and what do they involve? 

I’ve been running workshops through schools and education centres for 5 years, and through my own company for the last year.

My goal is getting people to engage with nature through photography, at the beautiful setting of Hampstead Heath. So many people have digital cameras and smart phones these days, and are taking and posting photos to social media all the time. My workshops aim to provide people with the skills to foster their individual creativity in their everyday photography, rather than spoon-feeding them hard to understand technical information.

The workshops are held with small groups of 10, with people of varying levels of photography ability. The small group size allows me to provide 1:1 advice and help to attendees. Lots of beginner photographers aren’t very confident with their photo taking, so the workshops take place over a whole day, allowing plenty of time for people to experiment, get feedback and gain confidence.

How many workshops did you run in 2014, and are you planning to grow the numbers in 2015?

I ran four workshops in 2014, and I’ll be running at least six in 2015. I’m already well on the way to being fully booked for the first workshop in March, so it’s looking like a strong start to the year!

What do you think is the key to your success?

People love taking the time to learn, try new things and fully immerse themselves in photography. Lots of people lead very busy lives, so having the opportunity to take time out and connect with nature is special.

Attendees get a real sense of achievement from going through the full photography process over the course of the day – from learning about composition and taking great shots, finding out about basic Photoshop skills and editing, and finally ending up with a high quality A4 print of their favourite photo of the day.

Of course, having the weather on your side also helps!

What were the biggest obstacles you faced in running your photography workshops in 2014 and what did you learn from them?

My biggest challenge has been filling the workshops ahead of time. I’ve learnt that in order to be sure of full sessions, I need to have a plan for how to engage with the local community, build momentum and generate noise around the events. Social media definitely helps to spread the word, and using Eventbrite helps people to find the events as well.

What is your favourite Eventbrite feature and why?

I like the notifications of new event bookings on my mobile phone – it’s exciting to see orders coming through! Generally, I’ve found it to be a really simple way to take bookings and process payments – it just makes my life a lot easier not to have to worry about these things.

What was your favourite moment from your 2014 workshops?

One workshop attendee hired a telephoto zoom lens especially for the session – he was incredibly keen to learn. Whenever the group took a break, he carried on taking photos as he was determined to get his perfect shot. There’s obviously never a guarantee that you’ll find any wildlife to shoot though. Eventually he was rewarded with an opportunity to photograph a nuthatch bird – which turned out to be a great shot. His perseverance paid off in the end, and it was really satisfying for me to see somebody get exactly what they were looking for from a workshop.

Any other advice to organisers running photography events or workshops in general?

Always look at what other people in your space are doing, and how you can do something differently to create a niche, be exciting and give good value for money. In my space, there are loads of digital photography workshops out there so it’s important to find a way to stand out.

In an increasingly digital world where people often look to the internet to learn new skills, why do you think live events like your workshops still resonate?

Nowadays, we all spend too much time in front of a computer, so the idea of being outside and engaging with nature is really appealing. This is something that just can’t be experienced online where you don’t get interaction and feedback – you can only get that personal experience and full immersion in nature and the photography process through live events.

Where can people go to learn more about Matthew Maran photography workshops in 2015?

To find out more about the workshops and book a place, see my Eventbrite page.

For more information visit: http://matthewmaran.com/, follow me on Twitter @mattmaranphoto or Facebook.

*All images credit of Matthew Maran