WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION

Do you know how to listen to your photographs—including how they talk to one another—in order to select and sequence your work? Learn the challenging ART OF EDITING and sequencing your photographs in this three-day intensive workshop at the Manuel Alvarez Bravo Photography Center in Oaxaca (CFMAB) This workshop is open to photography students, to serious amateurs, as well as to more advanced photographers, who may be working on a long-term project or book.

Your workshop teachers are photographer Alex Webb and poet and photographer Rebecca Norris Webb, a creative couple who often edit and sequence their work together for magazines, exhibitions, as well as for the 20 books they’ve published together and apart, including their recent collaborative books, Waves (Radius, 2022), Brooklyn: The City Within (Aperture, 2019), Slant Rhymes (La Fabrica, 2017) and Violet Isle: Photographs from Cuba (Radius, 2nd ed., May 2018), and their monographs La Calle (Alex) and Night Calls (Radius, 2021) and My Dakota (Rebecca).

The Webbs will begin this intensive workshop by looking at a series of unedited photographs from each workshop participant, which could be from a trip you’ve taken or an event (such as a wedding, parade, or festival)—or, for more advanced photographers, perhaps from an assignment or commission, or photographs from a long-term project, that you hope will be an exhibition and a book one day. Over this intensive weekend workshop, the Webbs will tailor two individual editing assignments for each participant.

Besides editing each day, there will also be a series of presentations and a group editing exercise. We will also touch on a variety of topics, including the process of selecting and sequencing your photographs intuitively; the practical realities of the magazine and art worlds; the difference between images in a book and images on the wall; the relationship between text and images in a series; how to select a title for your series or project; how to sequence a portfolio or website for a variety of audiences (for instance, for a magazine editor or a museum curator or a book publisher); an introduction to being on press with a book; how to work with a designer on a book; and how long-term projects can evolve into books and exhibitions. There will also be a chance for each participant to have an individual meeting with Alex and Rebecca.

For those who’ll be editing a long-term project that they hope will one day be a book, please email a short statement about the project, no longer than 250 words, in a Word document if possible to Alex and Rebecca: webbnorriswebb@gmail.com.

COVID PROTOCOL

As in most places in the world, there is a risk of contracting Covid-19 during the workshop in Oaxaca. We strongly recommend participants to keep up to date with current Covid-19 information and boosters.

At La Luz Workshops, we strive to make the best possible decisions to minimize the spread of COVID among participants, instructors, staff, and the local organizations and communities we collaborate with.

We will honor the local customs and regulations in the location that workshop takes place, and we ask workshop participants to do the same. This means that our protocols differ from the CDC guidelines or other countries’ regulations and social norms. 

— While masking or proof of vaccination will not be required at this time, this policy is subject to change. 

— If a participant test positive right before or during the workshop, they will not be able to participate in any group activities.

— We know that attending a workshop abroad is an investment in time and resources, and we want everyone to be able to accomplish this safely. We recommend participants to be Covid aware during their trip and their stay in Oaxaca. 

— We strongly recommend that all participants purchase Trip-Cancellation/Interruption Insurance that covers workshop expenses and non-refundable travel costs.

— We also recommend the purchase of international medical insurance for the duration of the workshop.

TO APPLY FOR THE WORKSHOP

This workshop will be open to anyone 18 or older, including university photography students, passionate amateur photographers, and seasoned professional photojournalists or fine art photographers, anyone who would like to learn more about how to select and sequence their photographs for a variety of purposes, including for a website, for a portfolio to present to a magazine or to a museum, for an exhibition layout, or for a book dummy to present to a potential publisher.

Everyone has to apply to this workshop, but former Webb Workshop and Mary Ellen Mark Workshop students are welcome to apply early.

To apply, please send a link to a project that you’d like to edit and sequence over this three-day workshop, as well as a link to a short description about the project.

If there’s not an online link to the project, please email 10 small jpgs—2000 pixels on longest side, 72 dpi—and a short description, no longer than 250 words, as a word document.

Additionally include a short bio (100-word limit).

Be sure to also include the following information:
Date of birth
Country of origin / country of residence
Profession
Previous photography studies
How you heard about the workshop

Please email the application to education@laluzworkshops.com. Since we receive applications for a variety of workshops at the same time, please be sure to specify the name of the workshop you are applying for.

Upon acceptance, participants are required to make a full payment. We prefer payments via wire transfer or check. PayPal would be accepted only as a last resort. If you choose to use PayPal, please note that any commission will not be returned to you in case of a refund.

To see our terms and conditions and cancellations policies please click here.

SUGGESTED ACCOMMODATION:

There are plenty of hotels and Airbnb options in Oaxaca. Some of our favorites include:

Parador de Alcala Hotel (Alex and Rebecca stay at this hotel)
Hotel Marques del Valle
Hostal de la Noria
Hotel Boutique de la Parra

We recommend you to stay at a hotel located in downtown Oaxaca within walking distance of the Manuel Alvarez Bravo Photographic Center (Manuel Bravo 104, Ruta Independencia, Centro) where the workshop will be held.

We suggest participants to reach out to them directly and make reservations as soon as their participation in the workshop is confirmed. It is the responsibility of participants to secure their own accommodations.

You should plan to arrive in Oaxaca on Friday February 16 during the day, as the first activity is on Saturday February 17 at 10 am. Plan on leaving any time on Tuesday February 20 or later, as the last activity is a farewell dinner the evening of Monday, February 19.

Workshop will be held at the Centro Fotográfico Manuel Álvarez Bravo.