BRATTLEBORO — Vermont Center for Photography, in collaboration with Turning Point of Windham County, is introducing “Focus Forward” - a beginner course in digital photography offered free-of-charge to people working on recovery from addiction.
The program begins on Sept. 22 and runs for eight consecutive weeks through Nov. 22. Classes will be held every Sunday, from 2 to 5 p.m., at VCP. The class size is limited to six, allowing for individual attention to learning needs. No experience in photography is necessary.
VCP is located on Flat Street, down the alley from the Transportation Center, where it has been in operation since 1998. VCP has recently taken over the space next door, formerly occupied by In-Sight (Brattleboro's youth photo program.)
This expansion has doubled VCP's floor space, making it possible to designate a classroom specifically for Focus Forward.
New Macintosh computers, Nikon digital cameras, photo software and supplies have been purchased for the program, which is entirely funded by grants from the Thomas Thompson Trust, the Vermont Community Foundation, and contributions from many local donors.
The Focus Forward instructor is Liz LaVorgna, a Brattleboro-based photographer whose personal work focuses on diverse populations of people, usually those outside society's mainstream.
In this class, LaVorgna will teach the use of a Nikon digital camera, the basics of composition in picture taking, and how to edit images with Lightroom software. At the end of the eight-week session, VCP will print and mount an exhibit of photographs made by class participants.
Turning Point recovery center, just up the street from VCP, provides the perfect partnership for this endeavor. VCP's hope is that participants in Focus Forward will find photography to be a powerful means of personal expression and an ongoing tool in their recovery process.
Focus Forward will be offered every year in fall and spring, and all who successfully complete the eight-week program will receive a free membership to VCP.