Defining Your Photographic Style Through Personal Projects

Ira Block will be speaking about his photo book project – ‘Cuba Loves Baseball : A Photographic Journey’. He will be highlighting the techniques and tips he had applied to make this photo book. Ira will discuss the importance of having a personal project to sharpen your vision and photographic skills. He will walk you through the various stages of photographing a story, capturing moments, deciding on the final images that advance your story and make it complete.

Ira Block is an internationally renowned documentary photographer, lecturer and workshop leader. He started his career as a newspaper photographer after college where he won multiple awards and later proceeded to freelance for many magazines in the USA and Europe. His diligence and work brought him to the doors of National Geographic Magazine where he photographed over 30 stories, ranging from an expedition to the North Pole to uncovering ancient Peruvian Mummies. Ira’s work has taken him to Australia, Cuba, Siberia, Myanmar, China, and Japan. He has also led National Geographic Photo Expeditions to Mongolia, Bhutan, Cuba, Nepal and Tibet. Participants in these workshops learn not only about the culture of the destinations they visit but also how to expand their photographic vision.

He can best be described as a cultural documentary photographer who uses his craft to photograph people and the changes in their traditions and practices.

A frequent keynote speaker for photo conferences and corporate events, as well as a lecturer at various schools worldwide, Ira has spoken about the evolution of the photo industry and the art of storytelling. Major exhibits of his work have opened around the world at various museums and galleries. His latest book, “Cuba Loves Baseball: A Photographic Journey” documents the culture of Cuba through its love for the sport of baseball. The book gives us a glance into the daily lives of the Cuban people and their grassroots involvement with the sport.

Using social media as his new platform for documentary photography, Ira’s images can be seen on Instagram where he has over 335,000 followers. He has also been recognized by Sony as a Sony Artisan in its elite photographers’ program.