What is The ISO Collective?
Welcome to The ISO Collective! Now you are here you are probably wondering what it is all about and what it can do for you.
This is a place for people of all ages who want to gather light and create pictures.
Whatever camera you have to hand, you will learn how to use it in new and interesting ways. Along the way you will start to find out about how cameras work and how to get the most from the one in your hand. All the ISO Collective classes are based around activities, themes and assignments that will get you creating straight away.
Who is the face behind The ISO Collective?
Hi, I am Vicki. I have always loved taking photographs, whether that be as a creative outlet or as a means of recording special events and special people. But when I became a mum more than a decade ago, I wanted to be able to do more than just point and shoot. So I decided to treat myself to a big-girl camera and purchased my first DSLR.
I set my new toy to Auto and just started clicking away. I loved the clarity of the photos that it produced, but I felt like I was missing something. I didn't really know what I wanted the photos to look like, and they didn't feel like they were really telling the stories that I wanted them to. So I decided I needed to learn more about this blossoming hobby of mine.
I started to read and watch videos and take courses, and I tumbled into this whole new world of technical terms and settings and styles and genres. And do you now what? I loved it! I felt totally inspired and at home all at the same time.
I have been hooked ever since, and I would say that I am at my most content when I am observing the world through a viewfinder - behind the lens is definitely my happy place!
What makes you qualified to teach photography?
This is an important question! I am not one of the best or most experienced photographers out there, but I have a passion for photography that I would love to share with you! I have built up a lot of knowledge over the past decade, but more importantly I like to play. I honestly believed that playfulness is the best way to learn anything, and I hope that I can bring this to your own journey with photography. Yes, you will learn some theory, but mostly I will help you to start to see light like a photographer. And it is light that makes a photograph.
Are you a professional photographer?
Yes! And my absolute favourite thing to photograph is families. You can read all about my documentary family photography business here. I started out with studio portraiture, but I realised that I wanted to capture much more about a family's story and that this was only really possible by photographing them having fun together in a place where they're all comfortable.
One of my cameras comes with me pretty much everywhere. I love to just play with taking photos with no expectations of a finished image - sometimes I don't even bother to upload the picture, just taking them is enough. And a lot of the time I just take mental photos, amusing my children when I say 'click' as I press my imaginary shutter!
Are you a qualified teacher?
Yes! I was a teacher for ten years before having children. I mainly taught in KS2 and KS3, leading Creativity and Art across the school. For the past 8 years I have been home educating my own children, which has been a lot of fun and allowed me to get a better understanding of how children learn and how learning does not always have to look like school.
