Instructors

Natasha Calzatti is a photographer, educator and a consultant based in Los Angeles. She has shot award-winning work for THE NEW YORK TIMES, NEWSWEEK, PEOPLE and VIBE, and has been syndicated internationally. You can view available courses, tutorials, and more here.

Presently, she was a speaker at AdobeMax conference, she is an adjunct professor at Santa Monica College teaching both Photoshop and Lightroom, instructor at Samy’s Photo School and has been a guest lecturer at the International School of Film and TV (EICTV) Cuba and Brooks Institute. Natasha has been featured in DIGITAL PHOTO PRO magazine and invited to The Getty Center to share her behind the camera experiences of Cuba as she presented an in-gallery exploration of A Revolutionary Project: Cuba from Walker Evans to Now. Natasha divides her time between shooting assignments and lecturing on digital imaging both in the U.S and abroad. You can see her current work at www.calzattifoto.com.

Chris Ewen Crosby is a photographer based in Long Beach, CA. Born and raised in Seal Beach, CA, he developed a love for the ocean and outdoors during his childhood. Chris was very active in sports and outdoor activities that took him from the California’s oceans, through the mountains and to the deserts. It was these formative years that sculpted his love of the beauty of the earth. He also inherited a love for teaching from his mother, It is a desire to teach, love for the outdoors, and a love for photography which shaped where Chris currently resides in his life.

Anabel DFlux is a published photographer in Los Angeles, California. Having started her photography business at the age of 15, Anabel has dedicated her life to her photographic passion. From canine sports to exotic animals, to some of the biggest musicians in the world – Anabel’s work doesn’t fall into any specific niche. She believes there are no limits to what you can create, and to photograph everything that gives you that spark of inspiration.

Laura Grier is the Indiana Jones of adventure, travel, and destination wedding photography. A self-proclaimed jet-setter at heart, Laura has been a globe-trotter from an early age having grown up internationally with two parents that worked for the CIA. She graduated from Syracuse University with a dual degree in Photojournalism and Art Photography and in 2003 founded Beautiful Day Photography, based in Los Angeles and specializing in destination weddings and events. Her ability to channel her storytelling into a chic, vibrant perspective, has made her a veteran International photographer, shooting weddings on 6 of the 7 continents. While on these trips, Laura felt an overwhelming need to tell the stories of the people and experiences she gathered along the way through her lens. This desire sparked the creation of her Travel and Fine Art website, www.LauraGrier.com, highlighting the behind-the-scenes of her photography and personal stories while jet-setting around the world.

Laura has been been published in over 25 publications worldwide and is presently a Tastemaker/blogger/lead photographer for Novica/National Geographic, shooting all of their catalog work, training their in house photographers around the world and shooting and filming their “happiness” philanthropic projects. Laura also teaches, mentors, and inspires other photographers through her travel workshops and through speaking engagements about her experiences over the past 16 years of being a Professional Photographer for brands like Canon, WPPI, Zenfolio, and CreativeLive. Follow her on Facebook at Laura Grier Facebook!

Growing up in a house with a color darkroom and a father passionate about photography, Brian Leary was quite literally – exposed to photography from birth. Combining an exceptional memory with over a decade of experience in the retail side of cameras, he knows his way around almost every digital camera made.

Brian has explored more than twenty countries and driven his way through more than two-thirds of the USA. During his travels the natural world around him and the cultures inhabiting it are the focus of his imagery with a strong passion for nighttime landscapes. As a full-fledged travel addict, Brian has had the opportunity to photograph everything from endangered rhinoceroses to the 50th anniversary of the Dalai Lama’s exile from Tibet.

These days whether teaching one on one, in classrooms or through workshops in some of his favorite locations Brian loves sharing his technical and creative knowledge with anyone interested. He has a unique ability to take complex concepts and make them easy to understand. Still priding himself on in camera shooting techniques in this digital age, similar to the methods of slide film shooting, the majority of Brian’s images are created in camera on a single frame.

Scott Robert Lim is a certified master educator and has over 70 international awards to his name, including top Ten Most Influential, Kodak Award, World’s Top Wedding Photographers and has been a judge at many international photography competitions. His work has been published and viewed by millions all over the world and is a popular speaker on Creative Live- “Crazy Stupid Light”, “Think Like a 10K Wedding Photographer” and his latest “Portrait Fundamentals”. For the last decade he has dedicated his career to developing world class photographers on every continent and loves teaching photographers of all levels. He has an energetic and charismatic speaking style and is an industry leader in photography education.

Ming has been shooting professionally for over 30 years. Ming started shooting in high school with a small Minolta camera, in the days long before digital, autofocus, and screen previews, when you had to manually focus, estimate exposure, and develop film at a drive-through called Fotomat. In the mid-1990s, Ming started shooting headshots and portraits professionally.

Not long after, he entered the digital age, shooting both photos and video on the latest digital cameras. As an actor and fan of visual media, he developed his artistic sensibility by watching every film he could, by learning lighting and shot composition on film sets, and by applying his lessons to shooting in the field.

And as an actor, Ming especially likes capturing personalities, always looking for what makes people unique. By the mid-2000s, Ming was shooting photos and directing local videos for major clients such as Walmart, Green Dot, Bain & Co., and LA-18 TV.

Today, Ming shoots a wide variety of subjects, including headshots, portraits, fashion, street, architecture, real estate, landscapes, Milky Way, night/neon, and light painting. Ming is inspired to capture unique personalities, life’s special moments, and nature’s amazing offerings. Ming shoots primarily with Canon and Sony, but has also had experience with Nikon, Fuji, Minolta, and Panasonic video cameras. Ming also teaches for Digital Photo Academy and the California Center for Digital Arts.

Stan is a published photographer with more than 10 years of experience. A Sony ambassador, Stan continues to push his boundaries in the creative arts. With his infectious passion for adventure, Stan has adapted a “nature journalist” approach to his content creating.  At a moment’s notice, Stan will drop everything to chase those awe inspiring images. He seeks to move people and encourages students to get out there and experience what this big beautiful world has to offer and to appreciate the time we have here on planet Earth.  Versed in a variety of photo and video techniques, Stan works with a number of clients in making their artistic visions become a reality. Stan has been inspiring others through educational workshops and heart-felt presentations for years, helping to spark that fire in others for photography and the creative arts.

Art Ramirez has more than 32 years photographic experience in the fast-paced environments of newspaper publishing, wedding photography, pro labs, production labs, one-hour photo labs and retail photo stores. After majoring in photography in college, he began his career as a news photographer. Art worked his way up the ranks, starting as a part-time photographer, to chief photographer and photo editor for 27 Scripps- Howard community newspapers.

He photographed weddings before looking towards Hollywood and the movie industry, where he specialized in custom printing black & white and color images for the industry. Mr. Ramirez quickly moved from sales associate to manager of Wolf /Ritz Camera, where he realized he had particular skills for training both employees and new camera owners on the fundamentals of camera operation and photography.

In addition to his classes for Samy’s Camera Fairfax location, you can find Art in Samy’s Santa Ana classroom teaching Photoshop Elements and Digital Photography.

Art Ramirez resides with his wife Adrienne in Lake Forest, where they have been for over 20 years, and he is pleased to share his photographic knowledge with everyone.

Frank Schlegel has been involved with photography for over 30 years. He has taught countless people the technical as well as the aesthetic principals of photography. His goal as a photographer and teacher is to keep photography fun! Frank’s workshops and photo walks challenge the “norm” and encourage students to explore the visuals around us. As Ruth Bernhard said ” If you are not willing to see more then what is there, then you won’t see anything”   Franks’ greatests influences are Edward Weston, Brett Weston, Ansel Adams, Walker Evans, and William Eggleston.

Former East Coast advertising photographer turned LA dance photography virtuoso. In his 30+ year adventure, George has traveled globally, capturing everything from corporate annual reports to magazine features.  When not freezing dancers in mid-air with his signature lighting techniques (as featured in Digital Photo Pro Magazine), George champions photographers’ rights on the national and LA boards of the American Photographic Artists and leads the LA Digital Imaging Group. This photography guru has taught eager minds at Cornell, Boston College, UCLA Extension, and Samy’s Camera, and guided photo enthusiasts through exotic workshops in Bali and Oaxaca. See his work on IG and at his website: www.georgesimian.com