Life in Motion

Filmmaking for Photographers

We will be sharing news on our future filmmaking courses in our newsletter.

There is a new in person course coming in February 2024.

LIFE IN MOTION is an online 7 week course for photographers wanting to move into filmmaking.

It combines technical know-how with creative inspiration, advice and encouragement, helping you create, shoot and edit films from week one; building towards a final one-minute film you can be proud of.

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For photographers who have spent years learning and honing their craft, developing their own style and closing the creative gap, moving into film can feel overwhelming. There is a whole new set of skills to learn, and your initial creations can be underwhelming and not fully reflective of your vision. 

We want to help you move through the overwhelm and uncertainty to explore the creative possibilities of filmmaking. 

Whether you want to make films for brands, families or weddings, or simply to tell your own story, we will teach you how to build a narrative into your film, and lean into your own unique style, alongside the technical skills you need to produce beautiful and emotive short films.

Running for 7 weeks, it will give you a fresh creative challenge, as well as new skills and opportunities, for you personally, or for your business. 

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From week one you’ll be creating clips and short films, and building up to a final film (but we hope not final forever!). We give you the tools to include voice, ambient sound, different frame rates, dreamy slo-mo footage, and colour graded footage. Tor joined us on the last run of the course, and she created this film about her partner Caroline, and how she keeps returning to the sea.

Like all of the final films our participants make, me and Suzi found this very moving.

This is what Tor had to say about the course:

“Sarah and Suzi have curated a wonderful course that brings so many different but like-minded people together in a supportive bubble of learning.

I've signed up to many online courses over the years, but this is the only one I've fully engaged with and completed. And that's down to all the elements that have been weaved into this course – it has the perfect amount of everything (content, knowledge, inspiration, insights, advice, personality, camaraderie, encouragement, support) all neatly packaged into a safe online space that encourages play and creativity”.

Hello, I’m Sarah

Ever since I can remember I’ve seen the world in widescreen - a film playing continuously before my eyes. But it wasn’t until 2013, when I started making my own films, that I was able to finally capture what I was seeing. 

It’s been a long process since then, and one that I am still very much on. I don’t pretend to know everything about filmmaking, but I would like to pass on what I do. I want to teach you how to make films, but more than that I want to share with you the magic of filmmaking, and encourage you to fall in love with it as much as I have. 

I’ve created this course along with my wife and business partner Suzi, for whom the footage of childhood holidays captured on a cine camera, and played on an old projector, is interwoven with her real memories from an early age. 

Together we’ve been in our photography business for more than 13 years, with 9 of those including filmmaking. We’ve made films for Getty, and had some of our clips broadcast on national television. We’ve also created countless films for families and brands, and filmmaking is now over 50% of our business. 

You can see the evolution of our filmmaking on our Vimeo channel.

{link to our Vimeo channel here}

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SIGHT | TOUCH | TASTE | SMELL | SOUND 

Films can be a visceral experience. It’s not just about showing things, but about transporting the viewer somewhere. 

Feel the rough grass against your fingertips. Hear the sea pulling the shingle down the shore. Smell the woodsmoke, and wonder at the dancing dust flecks. 

We don’t just want you to shoot beautiful footage, but to also get emotion, real feeling, into your films, which is why we decided to structure the course around the senses. 

 Each of the first five weeks will be dedicated to a sense, with a creative project set each week to help you explore how to capture it on film. 

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The course is 7 weeks long and includes 3 strands of teaching - filming, editing, and creative. Along with a project set each week, a small and supportive online community, and weekly Zoom calls to ask questions and share your frustrations and joys. 

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"I'm so grateful to have had the opportunity to learn and explore more about filmmaking in this environment. The kindness and generosity of Sarah and Suze seemed to spread amongst the group and so you always felt supported. It's given me real confidence to keep going, keep practising and the importance of making the films WE want to make and see" Katie Cotterell

Along with the course material, also included are:

Weekly Creative Projects

Exercises to put into practice what you are learning technically, and to push yourself creatively.  

Weekly Live Chats

To ask questions, pick our brains, and get to know and support other participants. 

These will take place over Zoom. We will alternate days, and the calls will be recorded so we can share them with you if you can’t make it.

Community 

A small, supportive group of up to 50 participants so you can share your work and get feedback in a non-intimidating space. 

We will also be active in the group, ready to answer questions, and give our own feedback on any projects posted. 

A Final Premiere!

In the final week you will be creating a film based on your feeling of home, and we will watch all the films together at our own mini, virtual premiere! 

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We’ve designed and structured this course very thoughtfully, so you can be motivated by quick results, but also have creative space to breathe and explore.

At its heart, LIFE IN MOTION ONLINE is designed to motivate, support and encourage, helping you build confidence and compound your skills, week-on-week.

Learning filmmaking is not an easy endeavour, and to get the most out of the course you will need to commit time and energy during the 7 weeks. However you will have lifetime access to the material so you can come back to certain lessons or work through it at your own pace, if you wish. 

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'Film, the missing piece to my storytelling tool kit. Learning film with Sarah & Suzi was honestly one of the best decisions I have made. This new skill has not only been incredibly enjoyable to learn and bring into personal projects, it has transformed my business. Sarah has helped me to really hear sound, to see movement, details and light through fresh eyes.’- Kate Hennessey

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LIFE IN MOTION will return as an in person course in February 2024. There are other filmmaking courses coming soon too.

“As a photographer and mother, I spend my life capturing photographs of my children, but it never felt enough. I needed more. I wanted to hear and see movement. I wanted to be transported back to a time. I needed to add something that really resonated with me as a mother. Being able to capture film was really a personal journey before business journey. Within minutes I was totally hooked. There has not been a better business decision that I made than to learn film. We are so busy being parents that we forget to stop and soak this time in.Whilst photographs can provide beautiful art for the walls in your home, film provides that warm hug on a cold day. It somehow takes your hand and leads you back into the past. There's not a day that's gone by that I regret learning how to film.” - Carley Aplin

FAQ

I’m not a professional photographer. Can I still take this course?

Yes, as long as you’re familiar with your camera and confident shooting in manual mode. The course is designed for those who take photographs on a regular basis, but you do not necessarily need to be in business as a photographer. 

What equipment will I need? 

A camera, DSLR or mirrorless, with video capabilities (please note that some older models cannot film slow-mo - see more below),  a camera strap, plus wifi, and a pen and paper if you like taking notes!

You will also need to download Zoom, if you don’t have it already.

We will be demonstrating all editing in Premiere Pro and we suggest that you subscribe for the duration for the course. There are other editing softwares available, including iMovie, but we won’t be able to offer specific support on these. 

What camera will you be demonstrating on? 

We will be demonstrating on a Nikon D750  (which I started filming on) and a SONY A7iii. 

We don’t know all cameras so please have your manuals handy. There will be prep-work before the course to generically set up your camera to begin filming. 

We’re not able to give specific camera advice, but of course we will help where we can.

How do I check my camera can film slo-mo?

Some of the older DSLR models sometimes have restrictions on the speed you can film at. If you like the slo-mo feel to some of our films, and some you may have seen other people posting, we film at a particular frame rate to achieve this look. In your camera’s Movie settings, you will be able to check the frame rates available to you. There may be numbers like 24fps (frames per second), 25fps and 30fps. If your camera has 50fps and/or 60fps this means you will be able to achieve that slow look.

What about editing software?

We will be demonstrating using Premiere Pro

Do I get lifetime access?

Yes you do. Although for obvious reasons, we can’t guarantee it will always be hosted on Mighty Networks, and that you will therefore always have access to the conversations that take place there. But we will make sure you will always have the core course materials.

When will you be running this course again?

We will be running this course in person early 2024.

Will I get specific feedback from you? 

Yes, if you share your films in our community we will comment our feedback, along with others in the group. 

Will I learn to make films like you?

You will learn to make them like you! 

If I change my mind after registration can I get a refund? 

All payments are final, but if your personal circumstances change then please do get in touch.