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New York City Mentorship Day/Night Workshop Personalized For You - Date: Anytime : You Pick--with Steve Simon


Join Steve Simon for an Intensive & 10-Hour Transformational Shooting Experience in The Street Photography Capital of The World: New York City.

  • Date: Chosen By You
  • Genre: Street & Urban Photography Mentorship
  • Group Size 1 or up to 4 people when you get a group together:
  • Skill Levels: All
  • Includes: Critiques & Lectures live and online, welcome dinner, MTA pass for transport to the five boroughs, museum/gallery entrances, teaching materials, snacks

There is a pre-workshop group meeting & lecture as well as a post workshop Zoom class. Steve will be teaching new and powerful street photography techniques guaranteed to push you from your comfort zone to new heights in your work and share his street-shooting philosophies gleaned from a lifetime of wandering urban places with his camera.

See All Steve Simon Passionate Photographer Workshops Here

NYC Mentorship Workshop Details

What difference can a day make? The difference can be profound when it comes to your photographic proficiency and portfolio. Join Steve Simon for the most amazing day/night in New York City.  We have created an ambitious schedule designed to maximize both the learning experience and your ability to create a unique and powerful portfolio of imagery from the most visual New York City locations. 

This is a mentorship collaboration so to maximize our time, Steve meets with you pre-workshop day for a one-on-one Zoom meeting assessment of your portfolio (submit up to 100 images) and a tech check to discuss gear and best ways to use it regardless of your system brand. We make tweaks to enhance your speed of response which might include back button autofocus, Auto ISO, Easy Exposure Compensation, frame rate and playback options along with other best practices all designed to simplify your process and build your muscle memory so the technical fades to the background and you increase you success rate. We then discuss  what to expect to get the most out of our New York City shoot when you arrive on location.

An Intensive & Transformational Shooting Experience

This will be an intimate masterclass where we explore some of the best photo opportunities, personalized for you and the time you visit New York City.

We will curate this day together sometimes altering between spectacular and iconic New York photo opportunities like The Oculus or Grand Central Station with the usual vibrant, visually rich places and neighborhoods New York is famous for. New Yorker Steve Simon will take you to these and other hidden gems.

Once in New York, we have our meet, greet and brief lecture at Our Venue: TBD; then we hit the streets with an ice-breaking photo-walk. Locations may include:  High Line Park, Harlem, Fifth Avenue & 57 Street, Grand Central Station, Brooklyn Bridge, Chinatown, Little Italy and the Lower East Side, Union Square, Washington Square Park, Ground Zero, The Oculus and Times Square,.

We shoot in and around the Hudson Yards, as well as taking in the unique and new view of the city at The Edge. Eventually we head to our special dinner location The Electric Lemon, a true New York City culinary event. The atmosphere is stunning; food is absolutely delicious and it’s quiet enough for great conversation.

"Electric Lemon, a seasonal American restaurant, celebrates the passionate farmers, growers and artisans of the Mid-Atlantic, transforming their pristine products into clean, conscious cuisine that puts flavor at the forefront. Offering stunning views from the 24th floor of the Equinox Hotel, located within New York City's Hudson Yards, Electric Lemon's sleek, expansive dining room and serene al fresco terrace make up the ideal multi-use, day-to-night setting. 

Street Philosophies

Steve will help and encourage you to find your own unique vision through assignments created to get you past photographic fears and cliches to capturing lyrical, poetic and decisive moments that communicate the energy of the city. 

All levels of photographic experience can benefit from this workshop. You’ll learn about the “rhythm of place” and you will discuss the laws and ethics of street photography as well as dealing with difficult situations that might pop up.

You will define a strategy for capturing the rich daily life of people, overcoming fears and shyness, approaching strangers, framing, juxtaposition, layering your compositions, letting the image come to you and whether color or black and white best suits your vision. And you will have fun!

Post Workshop Mentorship

After our workshop we schedule  a post-workshop Zoom Class where we have another lecture and critique of the images we made while together. Steve will ask you to send him your best 60 images from the day and create a 20 picture narrative from the work. Steve also puts together a narrative of your best work from the workshop and we discuss the results.

Street Tech

We will talk urban-tech with Steve giving you his minimalist view on gear along with simplified shooting processes to maximizing your response time to capture decisive moments.

Steve’s street tools include Nikon mirrorless cameras along with a carefully curated selection of lenses. He is also familiar with a wide range of equipment to help you maximize your mirrorless, compact, rangefinder, DSLR or even your camera phone for compelling urban images.

Though our focus is on vision more than gear, we will talk lenses, auto focus, zone focusing, shooting form the hip, using live view, flash, camera support and tripods and a host of other tips, tricks, distractions and ideas that will improve your work dramatically. Steve will also go over his post-process workflow in Lightroom.

It’s a street and urban photography mentorship but the lessons learned will benefit you in all genres of image-making and help you to create a compelling New York City portfolio.

Testimonials

Gary Niederpruem, Chicago

“What a fabulous experience. I learned more about photography in one week than I had in 5 years. Steve is very knowledgable about the technical side as well as composition. He is very patient, gives excellent feedback and will work one on one with you on any photography subject you want. I asked him for help on night photography and at 10 PM he was out on the streets of Havana with me with step by step instructions on how to take the shot. 5 star plus rating!!”

Anna Blanco, New York City

“Best workshop I’ve ever taken! Steve is not only a great photographer, he is also a terrific teacher. He is patient and very hands- on. In some workshops the instructor sends students out to shoot after a short lecture–Steve goes out with his students, coaching them throughout the process. His course is well organized and covers diverse topics. He is funny and engaging and generous with his time and knowledge. I had SO MUCH fun and am ready to sign up for the next one. Highly recommended!”

Anne Dunford, Ithaca, New York

"My week in Steve’s Street Shooting workshop challenged me tremendously. There’s nothing like taking your work apart and putting it back together with new vision to make you a better photographer. If you take this workshop, I guarantee you will see the world differently at the end."

Paul Lavergne, San Juan, PR

"Steve’s passion for photography is contagious and his teaching abilities and knowledge extraordinary! I highly recommend this workshop to anyone interested in photography."

Chapman Solomon, Mountain View, CA

“Participating in the NYC Street Photography Workshop was an enriching and exhilarating experience. It challenged me to step out of my comfort zone to improve my skills. Steve’s curriculum and hands on approach offered me an opportunity to learn new techniques, add some creativity and visualize subject matter from another perspective. Each day presented abundant photo opportunities, resulting with the capture of some amazing images, exceeding my greatest expectations.”

Stephen Sholl, New York City

"Not only is Steve a great photographer, he is also a caring, compassionate person as well. He is constantly trying to help participants achieve their photographic goals in a gentle, caring, and sincere manner. Sadly, the critiques of my work were very helpful. Steve was right-on in terms of his suggestions to better my work. The totality of the workshop was terrific, primarily because the parts were all excellent as well. Choice of shooting locations, image reviews, suggestions, videos shown, and galleries visited were all great. Steve also promoted wonderful interactions among the participants. The venue was perfect for the workshop. We could spread out, leave our things there, use the facilities, and eat the goodies provided. You know you’re in good hands with Steve! An outstanding workshop!"

Steve Lavelle, London

"This is an outstanding workshop, led by a world-class photographer. It is impossible to spend time in a room with Steve Simon and not be inspired to get out there and make great images …I had high expectations and you exceeded them…Steve is very personable, articulate and passionate about photography, very welcoming with a warm, engaging personality. Steve’s style is outstanding. I knew of Steve from the TWiP podcast and would have attended if he was talking about how to watch paint dry…”

Oscar Piñeyro, Dallas

"I just spent the last three days with Steve Simon, What a wonderful experience, the best time spent in a workshop ever. Steve is a perfectionist, every presentation not only had spectacular photography but also the perfect music to enhance the mood, a roller coaster of emotions. He cannot hide his journalistic background every single image tells a story. His technique is flawless; his teaching patience unparalleled. I am eager to start a new chapter of my photography applying what Steve taught me in the last few days."