Explore Your Surroundings — Wherever You Are
ONLINE COURSE

Explore Your Surroundings — Wherever You Are

Interested in this class? Email us and we'll notify you next time it runs.

Every place has a story to tell, but sometimes it’s hard to see what’s right in front of you. Explore your immediate surroundings by discovering your neighborhood and it’s people and the changes happening, or focus on documenting family life right in your own home. Students will develop their own personal storytelling style and means of expression, and will learn to experience their own environment in new ways. For inspiration we’ll discuss a variety of other photographers’ projects, and we’ll analyze their approach and tools used for creative storytelling.

 
Anja's class helped me much more than I was expecting. I was a bit lost in proceeding with my raw idea in the beginning, but the classmates from diverse backgrounds were there with me along the whole journey, sometimes as a critic and sometimes as a supporter, and their thoughtful feedback pushed me forward a lot. I recommend Anja's online classes to anyone who wants diverse feedback and the intimacy of the classroom experience.
—Hee Jung (South Korea)
Thank you for all your guidance and patience with my project. There were some terrific students/talent in the class and you did a great job getting everyone to participate!
—Gerald (Minneapolis)
I am a huge fan of live online photography classes, having participated in a dozen since 2014! Through inspiring and encouraging critique from instructors and discussion with other students, I have seen my own work and that of others grow, focus and refine. Another benefit of these classes is the opportunity to meet and interact with others, near and far, who, like myself, are not able to participate in a New York City classroom. I have enjoyed Anja's classes so very much; her expertise is impressive, her enthusiasm contagious!
—Lisa (New York City)


Anja Hitzenberger
Anja Hitzenberger

Anja Hitzenberger is a photographer, filmmaker, consultant, and educator. She is the founder of StrudelmediaLive, an educational platform that offers live online photography classes and more to people around the world. Anja studied in the Creative Practice full-time program at the International Center of Photography (ICP) in New York City, and has been on the faculty there since 2009. She is dedicated to working with people from different cultures across the globe.

Her work has been exhibited in solo and group shows, film festivals, and on theater stages throughout Europe, the United States, South America, and Asia. Her photography has been published internationally and is a part of both private and institutional collections, including the International Center of Photography. She has received numerous artistic grants and has been awarded residencies in Rome, Paris, Warsaw, Beijing, and Tainan (Taiwan). A focus of her activities has been working with live performance, including producing a multimedia piece that toured in New York City, Austria, and Korea.

Anja has been teaching live online photography classes since 2015, as well as in-person workshops at organizations in New York, Europe, China, and Taiwan, including C/O Berlin, Three Shadows (Beijing), and FJUM (Forum for Journalism and Media – Vienna). Originally from Salzburg, Austria, she divides her time between New York and Vienna.

Anja teaches visual storytelling, environmental portraits, critique groups, and how movies can inspire your photography for StrudelmediaLive.