But seriously, if you want ideas on how to overcome your "fear" of public speaking, I can maybe help with that. As a deaf man with a "funny" voice I had to overcome that in spades, and i succeeded well enough to be able to teach in University and to be invited to be a speaker on many occasions. I no longer have any fear whatsoever of public speaking, which is pretty amazing (to me at least) :-)
I'd love to come hear you! Don't see it as public speaking, though - it's just you sharing your pictures with a bunch of friends, nothing more. You love what you do (and if you don't, you hide it well!) - just share that with your "friends" in the audience. You'll do fine!
What about doing something familiar with your hands, such as having your camera nearby or even using it as a prop? Provides a focal point (for your viewers), while providing a level of comfort for you (since you'd be back 'in your own element')
I'd love to watch you shoot.. even if you randomly choose someone out of the audience and have them pose.. talk to them as you would to anyone you shoot and explain why you do what you do as you shoot.. The stuff in your head.. spoken outloud.
That would be what i'd want to hear/see!!
**love the camera as a prop idea.. then you are in your element and you are in control doing exactly what you do**
i just recently had to overcome my fear of public speaking, some of the things i thought about prior to actually speaking:
1: dont worry about what your voice sounds like, i know your voice sounds different to you when you actually hear it played back to you, no biggie
2: try not to think about it too much, or make yourself nervous.
3: convince yourself that most people arent listening anyway (this one helped me out a lot)
4: when you actually are speaking, concentrate on pronouncing your words correctly and speaking somewhat slow. im a stutterer and it helps if you focus on correct word pronunciation.
If I was attending the get-together, I would hope to meet you & see examples of your work & hear the stories that go with them. Things like how you got the client, how you did the shoot, how you delivered the product. Any funny stories relating to lessons learned. The only way to overcome fear of public speaking is to just do it & likewise the only way to learn photography is to just do it.
I don't have any words of wisdom I'd like to hear (too many to contemplate of). However, if you want help with your public speaking try joing the Toastmasters.
I'd love to watch you shoot.. even if you randomly choose someone out of the audience and have them pose.. talk to them as you would to anyone you shoot and explain why you do what you do as you shoot.. The stuff in your head.. spoken outloud.
That makes so much sense for both the audience (who gets to hear AND see something very hands-on and useful) as well as the speaker who suddenly faces something very familiar - ONE model.
I used to be terrified by public speaking, but then I found myself doing a little teaching, and then reading my own writing to a group of professional comedy writers (you can imagine the stress of that!).
After the first few jitters, though, I found that I was hooked on the experience. Now I look for opportunities to get in front of groups.
The one piece of advice that worked best for me was to take the nervous energy and channel it into enthusiasm. Remember that you're speaking because you know your subject and have something of value to say. If you approach it from that starting point, your audience will sense your authority.
Remember also that the last thing an audience wants is to have to listen to someone who doesn't know what they're talking about. As soon as you show them that you're the expert, they'll be relieved and they'll hang on your every word.
Drink water before you speak, and keep a bottle handy.
Make eye contact with people in the group who look like they're listening and enjoying your talk.
Wear something that you think makes you look really great.
Use lots of visual aids.
Throw your voice to back of the room...but don't yell.
points to consider :
always repeat the question back to the questioner , rephrasing if necessary - this not only reinforces the question but lets the rest of the audience hear it.
start with a joke or an anecdote (bad models, uncooperative equipment )
remember the mantra 'its an equipment failure' its never the fault of the photographer
Talk about life and photography (in that order/no 'shop talk'). People are people, social animals who can't hold an interest unless they feel involved. Show what prompted you to take up photography and reveal a little about what rubs you, wrongly or rightly.
When I sift through your port, I become restless with the many ways a photographer can merge genres. Your erotic images often combine a humanity with a locale. The obsession with locale is a very American trait. The glamorous aspect of some of the shots tends to give way to a vivaciousness which, frankly, is not likely to be found in the work of a photographer from Minnesota or the Pacific North West.
It also appears (to me) that you're not content to simply compose a shot, although you're capable of doing so. Instead, you (appear to) be nearly contorting to get an angle/a dynamic no one will likely become bored with for a spell, at least. You incorporate many obstacles, you use 'em rather than dismissing the shot.
You take photographs of people in lust, love or those caught up in the incidentals of living. Your images, to me, are antidotes to prudeness, hypopcracies and other dubiously motivated concealments. You are, and this is probably the most unique skill, celebrating life in its most intimate aspects without ever falling prey to anything easily cheap, conventional or remotely sordid.
I'd say, at the very least, that it should be fascinating to hear where you 'stand' in the petrochemical jungle of it all. I'd say you should try to tell people how it is when you see it. It should make them cry or laugh, depending on who they are.
Talk about life and photography (in that order/no 'shop talk'). People are people, social animals who can't hold an interest unless they feel involved. Show what prompted you to take up photography and reveal a little about what rubs you, wrongly or rightly.
When I sift through your port, I become restless with the many ways a photographer can merge genres. Your erotic images often combine a humanity with a locale. The obsession with locale is a very American trait. The glamorous aspect of some of the shots tends to give way to a vivaciousness which, frankly, is not likely to be found in the work of a photographer from Minnesota or the Pacific North West.
It also appears (to me) that you're not content to simply compose a shot, although you're capable of doing so. Instead, you (appear to) be nearly contorting to get an angle/a dynamic no one will likely become bored with for a spell, at least. You incorporate many obstacles, you use 'em rather than dismissing the shot.
You take photographs of people in lust, love or those caught up in the incidentals of living. Your images, to me, are antidotes to prudeness, hypopcracies and other dubiously motivated concealments. You are, and this is probably the most unique skill, celebrating life in its most intimate aspects without ever falling prey to anything easily cheap, conventional or remotely sordid.
I'd say, at the very least, that it should be fascinating to hear where you 'stand' in the petrochemical jungle of it all. I'd say you should try to tell people how it is when you see it. It should make them cry or laugh, depending on who they are.
Ok, now we are getting somewhere, this is actually the direction i was going for. I am not a public speaker but I can talk. I guess i just wanted to know, why bother? Is it worth it? Would anyone even care to hear...would they even hear it? I think the best I can do is offer up my heart on a silver platter and walk away feeling like the biggest fool in the universe.
as for hands on workshops with shooting and all the goods from start to finish, i think that is something being planned next year.
