We live in a digital world in which humans of all ages feel increasingly more compelled to document their lives in photographs. As the phone becomes less an object for taking a call and more an omnipresent camera in the hand, the gap between a moment and its capture has become minuscule. Whether it’s a perfect plate of sushi or a mid-flight jump shot, it’s saved in milliseconds, without much of a thought.
But David Mazur, founder of Seacoast Photography School (SPS) in Portsmouth, wants his participants to take a closer look.
Having spent 25 years living in York, Maine, Mazur knows a photogenic environment when he sees one. Add the energetic community of Portsmouth, and he sees an opportunity for people to truly appreciate the beauty in their world. By profession, Mazur is an educator with many years of teaching at the college level in professional development, business, and economics. This foundation speaks well to his second calling—the teaching of photography—which he has turned into a thriving business here on the Seacoast.
For Mazur, the key to photography is experiential learning. “I’ve taught communication, conflict resolution, and problem solving. That’s awesome for photography,” he explains. “Photography is a relationship, not a transaction.” He accompanies students into the field, guiding them toward a mindfulness-based awareness of their subjects, with the goal of making the practice of photography accessible. “I use my own language so that people remember things, like DOF = Depth of Focus and ISO = Increase Shutter Option. We teach the technical without being technical. Budding enthusiasts come to SPS on auto mode, and by the end of their first session, they switch to manual mode, mastering the buttons and dials on their camera.”
For the adventurous, SPS offers destination workshops northward in Acadia and Vermont, and as far away as Yellowstone and Iceland. But adventures also await right here in town, as the monthly Street Series invites beginner and intermediate photographers to explore the local story of the busy, ever-evolving lived environment. Participants can get to know different genres of photography, capture the unique bustle of Market Square Day in black-and-white, or immerse themselves in a myriad of Seacoast spots, where they can catch memorable moments.
One of the many accomplished photography instructors at SPS is Susan Weigold, whose professional experience is anchored in lifestyle, social media, and product photography. Weigold has a passion for teaching aspiring young creators, including homeschool students and children with learning differences. One group of her students creates stop-motion animation, where objects like superballs, Rubik’s Cubes, and Transformers come to life in a final movie project.
Meanwhile, homeschool students study modern photographers, take themed walks with their cameras, and “eat their props” after food photography sessions. Says Weigold, “Giving kids a camera helps them build confidence and discover their own voices. The work they create is amazing.”
Adults with no prior photography experience can find their way into the craft through SPS. Mazur and Weigold teach one-on-one and 6-week beginner classes, in which students learn the subtle but invaluable skills that inspire the eye to see an object in a whole new way. SPS is also developing a program called the Encore Circle, which aims to support people in retirement in developing new skills through photography. When individuals have made the decision to step away from work, many find that they can finally turn their attention to art for the first time.
“We’re finding people come to us to find purpose and mindfulness as much as learn photography,” says Mazur.
Though each student carries an individual camera, there can be no doubt about the community-building that takes place, and that’s all part of Mazur’s pedagogy. Classes are small so that each student gets attention, and so students can get to know one another. “The secret sauce is having fun,” says Mazur. “We have a blast.” In one particular weekend workshop in Boothbay, Mazur saw that several of his former students had signed up to take the trip all over again.
In reflecting on the mission of SPS, Mazur recalls the work of Victor Frankl, who explored the space between stimulus and response. It is there in that space where SPS instructors teach students to take a breath before taking the picture. Certainly, students learn to edit and build portfolios, and some even enter their work into contests. But there is something intangible that is gained in their ability to be in the present moment. "There," says Mazur, “they carve new mental footpaths. New feelings. They learn to photograph the light, not the subject.”
What better place on Earth to nurture a sense of presence than here, on the Seacoast, where the seasons open and close slowly and swiftly, where the weather bites and soothes, and where residents and visitors find solace in the magnificence of the sea? The history, the color, the landscape, the people. At SPS, students learn to see their world, and themselves, in new ways. Says Mazur, with a sparkle, “The art of photography reveals what’s possible.”
“I’ve taught communication, conflict resolution, and problem solving. That’s awesome for photography...Photography is a relationship, not a transaction.”
“…there is something intangible that is gained in their ability to be in the present moment. ‘There,’ says Mazur, ‘they carve new mental footpaths. New feelings. They learn to photograph the light, not the subject.’”