As we celebrate our 10-year anniversary here at Leica Store San Francisco, we thought it only fitting to invite Mark de Paola, long-time friend, collaborating photographer, director, and gallery artist, to develop and lead a workshop, in a new format, at Leica Store SF.

We kicked things off with a special reception and discussion about Mark De Paola’s latest film, A Stab at Heaven, the evening before the workshop.

Attendees were able to watch a special sneak preview of De Paola’s upcoming feature film A Stab of Heaven, and get more insight about the creative process with star and co-writer Ema McKie during an in-depth Q&A. The discussion between Ema, Mark, and attendees during this private event explored the film’s coming-of-age true story and non-traditional narrative style.

The following morning, workshop participants met bright and early at Leica Store SF where Mark shared his artistic process of capturing moving pictures in conjunction with stills, and how the two mediums intersect, to enhance his visual storytelling skills. Using Leica’s latest SL3 mirrorless system as well as the Leica SL2-S, participants fully explored the SL3 and SL2-S’s technical specifications and practical applications to strengthen their individual narratives. The workshop participants were tasked to craft their own unique short motion piece in San Francisco’s Chinatown.

Workshop Goals:

  • Learn the anatomy of a story.
  • Gain insight into crafting their own story using motion pictures.
  • Accomplish simple and easy edits using Leica photographic tools, including the Leica SL3, SL2-S, & Leica Foto’s app.
  • Learn how to bridge the gap between still photography and motion pictures.
  • Borrow, test, and try the Leica SL3 and SL2-S with a wide array of Leica SL and M optics.
  • complete a 30-60 second video spot and view it on the Leitz Cine 1 Projector.

After the lecture, participants broke for lunch and were off to Chinatown to film their shorts!

After adventuring around Chinatown with the group, everyone spent time editing a short video spot, which were screened in the classroom on a Leitz Cine 1 Projector.

Congratulations and thank you again to our long time friends, Mark de Paola and Sage Backstrom as well as Ema Mckie, for the success on their feature film A Stab at Heaven. We would also like to sincerely thank our workshop attendees for all their hard work and openness to learn how to bridge the gap between stills and motion.

Mark de Paola is a New York City-based fine art and fashion photographer and director with over 30 years of experience shooting campaign and fine art commissions for the likes of Vogue Spain, Vogue Mexico, Gucci, Oscar de la Renta, Prabal Gurung, David Koma, Roksanda, and Saint Laurent.

De Paola has directed several hundred television spots in the fashion/beauty sector including those for Giorgio RED Perfume (Bergdorf Goodman windows and MoMA NY), Ducati, Leica Camera, Sony, Neutrogena, and Ford Motorsports. De Paola’s fine art work is included in public collections such as the Museum of Modern Art, New York, The Getty in Los Angeles, the San Diego Center of Photographic Arts, and the TOP Museum in Tokyo. His photography monographs Recent Work I (2018), Recent Work II (2019), and Five Years and Sixty Seconds (2020) can be found with Leica Camera retailers in major cities worldwide. De Paola’s solo exhibitions have traveled around the world, including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Dali (China), Tokyo, Milan (Triennale Museum), and New York City. De Paola’s pictorialist work as a still and motion artist has been driven by his studies of the neurobiology and cognitive psychology of human vision. His upcoming feature film ‘A Stab At Heaven’ is currently set to premiere in 2024.

Discover “A Stab at Heaven” here: https://www.astabatheavenfilm.com/
Mark De Paola’s work: https://www.depaolapictures.com/