JP’s captivating presentations have enthralled over 250 camera clubs, societies, and camera gear brands. With a distinctive blend of storytelling, behind-the-scenes insights, philosophical musings, and actionable advice, his talks always start conversations.
“Our members were on the edge of their seats for the entire time!`` Hillsborough Photo Society
I’m taking bookings for my latest photography talk: The Charro, and the Unexpected Rewards of a Long Term Photography Project.
The Charro has a fascinating mythology that inspired me throughout this 5 year project. I spent months, deep in Charro Country, getting to know the people, their traditions… and being taught some cool rope tricks.
Great storytelling will help an audience connect emotionally to your images.
Long term photography projects help you learn the art at a deeper level.
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See what people who attended my photography talks had to say:
Informative and inspirational!
I want to give my extreme thanks for your talk you gave thursday night. It was very informative and inspirational. I am extremely grateful for the time you put into it!
So much more we could hear you share with us about this topic!
It seems like there is still so much more we could hear you share with us about this topic! Your presentation on Storytelling for Photographers was very informative and very enjoyable.
Cool presentation and great insights. I really enjoyed the talk.
Cool presentation and great insights. I really enjoyed the talk.
Our members were inspired to get out and try your intentional approach!
Excellent presentation! The club really loved it. Many of our members were inspired to get out and try your intentional approach to visual storytelling!
I found your talk both engaging and inspirational.
I would also like to personally add my thanks for last night. I found your talk both engaging and inspirational, and the photography was excellent. Thanks once again.
You have reset our perspectives!
Your presentation this evening to Sale Photographic Society showed a refreshing approach to our art. In fact you have reset our perspectives on what we should seek. The images which you used to illustrate your approach were superb. We will think more about telling a story with our images in the future.
Thank you for your inspiring and beautiful talk tonight.
Thank you for your inspiring and beautiful talk tonight. So refreshing to hear about your work being about emotion, intention and narrative.
Every screen remained live until the end – not one dropout!
Thank you for your excellent talk. It was very well received. Every screen remained live until the end - not one dropout! Our members commented on the impact created by your storytelling approach to photography.....clearly the message is getting through!
A very interesting and thought provoking talk last night.
Thank you for a very interesting and thought provoking talk last night. Your presentation went down well with members who were very enthusiastic about it. We all have to think now how we can tell a story with an image and scour Amazon for smoke machines!
We are all enriched by this experience.
JP's method asks the photographer to build cohesion by being true to the intention and letting slip those rules we have all been taught about how portraits "should" be shot. The beauty of this method is how it helps produce narrative work of power. Any scenario, properly planned, will likely produce powerfully narrative results. JP's work is exceptional and inspiring. His delivery was well paced, comprehensive and motivational . He brought the exotic into our homes - and a new method into our thought processes. We are all enriched by this experience.
It was a real inspiration and learning experience.
Thank you for sharing your process and amazing work. It was a real inspiration and learning experience. The feedback from our members on your presentation has been excellent. Our club has an amazing number of great photographers, but everyone I have spoken with took away something they could use from your talk.
A very interesting and enjoyable evening.
It was great to hear how JP made a connection with his models and was able to portray them as a character(s) in his story. JP's images were stunning and very atmospheric – these, together with the explanation of his intentions for making each image, and how he placed his models for the best effect - made for a very interesting and enjoyable evening.
Blown away by your photos!
Thank you JP. That was an exceptional presentation. Very informative. Blown away by your photos! Really Fabulous. Thank you so much.
Best talk I’ve seen since I’ve been at the club!
I've been a member for about 5 years and this event was by far the most interesting and engaging. A view shared by many of the members and attendees. It was informative, practical and educational. The message of intent was striking and the progression of JPs photographs through the use of intent was remarkable. JP presented mistakes and provided solutions based on what the intention should be. It was a different mindset, which I could see the audience taking notes on. Even our more seasoned members. We enjoyed the story telling and the journey you have been on to bring to light the cultures of Mexico. Your passion and enthusiasm are an inspiration!
JP presented us with some fantastic images
JP presented us with some fantastic images each telling a story in their own way. JP explained how he creates images that tell a whole story from beginning to end. In his 90 minute talk he explained how he works with narrartives & how they work with creating lighting, composition & the mood for his images. This will help us think about the story when creating our own images.
Unlike anything we have had before!
Such a great presentation! It is unlike anything we have had before. Many of the points are applicable to the various genres of photography in which the members engage. Thank you!
Your work is mesmerizing!
You just finished giving a presentation on zoom to a few photography clubs, I was part of that zoom meeting and I just wanted to say thank you! Your work is mesmerizing! I've been feeling very stuck with my photography lately and your presentation was full of some great information and inspiration for me personally.
Thank you for your presentation. It was fascinating.
Thank you for your presentation. It was fascinating to see the work that goes into your image. Thanks for taking the time to explain the methodology used behind creating your work, as well as your reasons for capturing these unique images of an ancient culture that is preserved in this modern time.
Bravo pour vos photos, pour leur esthétique et leur visée narrative
Je tiens sincèrement à vous remercier pour votre présentation de mercredi dernier. J'ai trouvé votre approche extrêmement intéressante, et donnant matière à réflexion. Je suis sûre qu'à l'avenir je vais pouvoir m'inspirer de cette perspective, ainsi que de votre message de cohérence globale. Bravo pour vos photos, pour leur esthétique et leur visée narrative.
An invaluable session!
An excellent presentation! JP covered intentional narrative photography very clearly, and in such a way that everyone will be able to put the concepts into practice. We are often reminded (mainly by competition judges!) of the value of a narrative image, and I think this will be the first time that most of our club members will have been taken through the subject in such a detailed and informative way. An invaluable session.
I thought your presentation was fabulous!
I thought your presentation was fabulous! It really makes one think about the reason behind taking a photo. They always say you have to tell a story and your photos really hit it out of the ball park in that respect. The culture of the Mexica people really came through as well. Great work!
So many positive comments from our club!
It was great - so many positive comments from our club. Its talks like yours that make us bless the invention and use of zoom.
Our members enjoyed it and were inspired!
Thanks so much for the knowledge and insight you shared with our club. I know our members enjoyed it and were inspired.
It was a truly unique learning experience!
JP did a fantastic job describing the path he has been on to develop his photographic style and how it has evolved over time to the present. The images he shares exhibit the care and thought he puts into his photography and telling a story in one photo. It was a truly unique learning experience for me and for most of our photography club. JP was able to explain his unique vision and how other photographers can adopt or adapt it to fit into their future work. I have notes from the presentation that I am sure will help me on my photographic journey.
It was fascinating to explore your mindset!
Thank you so much for your inspirational talk this evening. It was fascinating to explore your mindset and process in creating narrative images. The talk provided a lot of discussion and food for thought. It was universally well received by the Society.
The talk was professional, very enjoyable and invaluable!
It was a pleasure for our club to host JP Stones and his presentation on Storytelling for Photographers. It was great hearing JP’s perspective on storytelling and his intent behind his work. JP’s willingness to explain his thought process, showing examples of both his brilliant images as well as mistakes he has made was a real eye opener. The talk was presented in a professional way, was very enjoyable and our members found it invaluable.
Our members are still talking about this talk!
Haslemere Camera Club members thoroughly enjoyed an inspiring evening via Zoom with JP Stones in which he took us through his recent professional development – how he recognised the need to develop a new photographic philosophy, the steps he took to perfect his new approach and how he applied this to theatrical, sporting and cultural portraiture, creating a clear and compelling narrative in each case. Our members are still talking about this talk - a great success!
An Incredible Presentation!
Thank you for your incredible presentation.Your talk was like a gift that kept on giving, or maybe like a good story that keeps unfolding. You were so effective in creating a mindset of not just striving to capture a nice image but to establish the framework for conveying a narrative. Your images had so much depth, not just conveyed by creative exposure but through luring the viewers’ imagination into the image. You successfully created captures that prompted questions about the character, more that just viewing a model. Reading between the lines, it was evident though out your presentation that you think and plan your images.
JP’s work transcends photography alone.
JP's images have such beauty, that just on a superficial level they demand attention. But more than that, they transport the willing viewer into an unfamiliar time and place, and invite them to write the narrative. Our club learned a great deal about how to develop an intention for a photography shoot and work through that cohesive process to produce a narrative image which has a power and vibrance of its own. I would whole-heartedly recommend JP to clubs and societies - photographic and other. His work transcends photography alone.
Thanks so much for the inspiration!
On behalf of our Camera Club, I just want to forward a big thank you for your inspiring presentation last night. Your thoughts and approach on how you have evolved and improved to reach current level was an amazing story in itself, and personally I walked away with a lot of ideas on how to change my approach to photography and hopefully improve the final result, and I am confident that will be the case for most of the audience as well. I have always thought that a story-telling element always separates the great images from the good images. Thanks so much for the inspiration!
Have some more questions? Let’s chat!
ABOUT JP STONES
“I started my Cultural Photography Workshops because I was frustrated at not being able to create the travel photos I wanted to. Candid photos are fine, but I wanted my portraits to show the personality and history of the people I was photographing.”
“A great portrait is a blend of multiple factors: the model, the environment, the lighting, and the composition. But as a tourist you can’t control many of these factors. I wanted to change that, bringing tourists and local communities together, in a harmonious way. The more we learn about someone else’s culture, the more we’re likely to embrace and respect it. As a foreigner in Mexico, that idea means a lot to me.”
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