Mentor for teenager with passion for photography?

[pegdonovan]

Hi,
My daughter is just 14 but has a huge passion for photography. She takes a camera with her everywhere. She has been looking for a mentor to give her guidance and support and we've contacted several people all without luck. She has a Nikon, tons of Poloroids (collects these) and old Minolta 35mm and many more random cameras have given her. Digital is not her favorite format. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to get her some guidance, education, support? Are there classes, groups, meetings, etc that are going on in Southern Maine (Portland area)?

Thanks for any help!
Peg

 

[bdial]

Too bad you're not a little closer to VT, but, try contacting the folks at the Insight photography project in Brattleboro; Dead Link Removed
They might know of a similar program in Portland.

Also New Hampshire Institute of Art in Manchester has some kids programs, but I think it's all geared to high school level. www.nhia.org

 

[Anscojohn]

In addition to any hands-on, face-to=face, suggest she ask questions here. In ye olden dayz, many of us mentored noobies face to face; there is much help and support available here amung the APUGers.

 

[SuzanneR]

You might look up the Bakery Collective...

Dead Link Removed

And of course, a little farther afield, are the Maine Media Workshops who offer programs for teens during the summer in week long workshops.

http://www.mainemedia.edu/

Naturally, any question she needs answering can be found on APUG!! We're always encouraged when young people want to learn to make pictures with film!!

 

[Rick A]

This is a great place for her to go online and ask all the questions that arise. I am an online mentor for someone, and I find it rewarding to help answer questions and review their work, also send examples and literature to help. Maybe someone here could volunteer to be an online mentor for her. Its almost as much fun as being there in person, and every bit as rewarding. I'm always available by PM or if needed by phone.

 

[Elias Roustom]

An artist friend of mine lives in Portland - I've sent her a message, and I hope she'll be able to give you an answer which I will either post here, or send directly to you if I can. If you can afford the Maine Media Workshops - that would be the place to send her - especially if this is eventually going to be a career path for the young lady.

 

[Christopher Walrath]

My mother was my first mentor. Then I surpassed her knowledge and mentored myself through the greats and then found APUG where I picked about 30,000 more at the time. Classes could be good but a photographer can find their own path. At this point she really needs to nail down the fundamentals until they become second nature.

 

[cjheyliger]

I would check to see if the Maine Photo Workshops in Rockport are still running. Short of that, a lot of the colleges in Boston have pre-college programs...kind of a long haul, but traditional photography classes are getting harder to find.

In the interest of full disclosure I should probably tell you I teach in the program at the Art Institute of Boston from time to time.

There is also a school in New Hampshire called Kimball Jenkins that I believe might offer "young photographer" workshops. There is a similar place in Manchester that has gotten good reviews from previous students of mine, but the name escapes me.

Sorry for the jumble of information. I hope this helps!

 

[Elias Roustom]

very cool--yes, she should connect with the folks at Dead Link Removed in Westbrook Maine. Classes, cool teachers, art shows....if nothing else, she could post a "mentor wanted" on their bulletin board. The other hot bed of photo here in Portland is of course the Salt Institute of Documentary studies http://www.salt.edu/ this is a school for folks a bit older than her but i am not sure if they might have some other programming, and they certainly DO have a gallery right in downtown portland with excellent shows. Additionally, Maine College of Art puts out their continuing studies catalog which usually includes "saturday school" for younger folks, and i would be surprised if there weren't photo classes. That said, i dont think there is a minimum age for their other classes (it just might be pricy for a 14 year old).

oh yes, lots going on here in Portland.

 

[fotch]

Hi Peg, welcome to APUG. Thanks to technology, help or exchanging info, ideas, etc. is only a click away at APUG.

 

[Chazzy]

Peg, there are teenagers on APUG. I think it's a pretty safe site for someone of that age, if used with supervision. There are occasionally some tasteful nudes in the gallery and occasionally there is some off-color humor in the joke thread, but 99% of the discussion is about gear and art. We have complete beginners all the way up to experts in the field. If I were a parent I would want to monitor the personal messages she might get from strangers.

 

[Troy]

I live in Portland. If she's really interested in analog photography, contact me through my website at www.mysteryjig.com.