Today we’d like to introduce you to E. David Luria.
David, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I am the Founder and Director of the Washington Photo Safari in Washington DC which has trained 35,000 amateur photographers since 1999, hundreds of them from the Chicago area.
As an entrepreneur, I guess I am a rather interesting case myself. At the age of two I was lucky enough to escape from Nazi Germany in December of 1938, carried in the arms of my Jewish mother as we boarded one of the last ships to leave Hamburg for New York, the SS Manhattan.
I grew up in New York City, graduated with honors from Amherst College, served 3 years in the US Army in Germany and began a career in the international non-profit sector, working six years for CARE in Colombia and Panama, then for 19 years with an inter-American volunteer services program in DC known as Partners of the Americas, then for Jimmy Carter’s Friendship Force in Atlanta, then for World Learning here in DC. Over the course of this career I learned to become fluent in French, Spanish and German
In 1996, at age 60, my job with World Learning was eliminated, so I took up my hobby of photography and made it my profession, becoming an architectural photographer. By 1999 I felt I had developed enough skill to teach photography so I established the Washington Photo Safari, showing people how to use their cameras while taking them around the monuments of the nation’s capital.
The initial reaction to this from so many people was: “What a great idea!” I was featured in an NBC Today Show that highlighted seniors in second careers. That gave me a big boost and the program grew from 72 clients in 1999 to a total of 35,000 participants we have hosted since that year, 10,000 of them coming back for 2 or more safaris, 600+_ of them as regular customers coming on an average of 9 safaris apiece. Many of these clients have given us 5-Star reviews on Trip Advisor, which has awarded us their coveted Certificate of Excellence now for 5 years in a row and has ranked us among the top 10 of 52 outdoor activities in DC. Our clients come from all 50 states and from 35 countries around the world
Now 81 years old, I am still going strong, teaching several photo safaris every week and directing the work of 11 other professional photography instructors. Together we have averaged teaching 5 clients every day, 365 days a year, for the past 18 1/2 years.
My story; I am doing well at doing what I love, and getting paid for it.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The major struggle was getting to be known and recognized as a resource for amateur photographers needing to learn how to use their cameras. Washington photo Safari was the first community-based photography training service of its kind in the country. Fortunately, an appearance on the NBC Today Show in 2000 helped me overcome that problem, and it was boosted even further by a full-page article in the Sunday Travel Section of the Chicago Tribune in 2015
But our success resulted in another problem: more competition! Other professional photographers in the DC area, seeing our success, said to themselves; “Hey! That’s a great idea! Why don’t I try that too?”
So in 1999 I was the only game in town. Now, in 2017, I have 16 competitors offering similar services.
Washington Photo Safari – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
We teach photography to beginner and intermediate-level photographers, not in a classroom setting but in the field while they are taking pictures. Our motto is “See. Click. Learn” What makes us unique is that we believe the best learning comes from doing, so we provide hands-on instruction by a professional photographer to each client as he/she is taking pictures.
We do NOT believe in the traditional method of teaching photography which consists of 1-2 hours of classroom training, followed by sending people out into the field by themselves, and then critiquing their photos after they return to the class. We feel that the best learning comes from the muscle memory that develops while the camera is in your hands and you are taught to correct your mistakes as you are taking the pictures. How do I fix the blur, the color, the light, the composition? We teach you those techniques at the moment you need them the most. And we do it in dozens of venues, buildings, churches, monasteries, historic structures, monuments and memorials all over the DC area and beyond. We have even done it for 16 clients on a 7-day cruise to the Bahamas! And next year we will do it on a 7-day river cruise from Paris to Normandy, France
Hundreds of our clients have told us they favor this approach and so they come back for more. Voting with their feet, 10,000 of our 35,000 clients have come on two or more of the 140 safari itineraries s that we offer, 600 of them have come on an average of 9 safaris apiece, one client has been on 59 of them! And our methods have been praised by many 5-star reviews on Trip Advisor, which has awarded us their coveted Certificate of Excellence 5 years in a row.
Another aspect that sets us apart is the wide variety of photographic techniques taught by our 11 professional photographer instructors. We offer safaris in travel, landscape, architectural, nighttime, sunrise, street, moonrise, portrait, nature, zoo animal, pet, water drop, festival, smoke, food, and abstract photography, and that is why people keep coming back for new experiences with their cameras.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
What makes me the most proud is this; I can take credit for having improved the lives of 35,000 people from 50 states and 35 countries by turning them into better amateur photographers Taking great pictures makes people proud of themselves, so I feel good about giving the joy of photography to an average of 5 people every day, 365 days a year, for over 18 years.
Pricing:
- Quarter day safaris: $69-$79
- Half-day safaris; $89-$99
- Full day safaris: $185-$220
Contact Info:
- Address: website: , www.washingtonphotosafari.com
Phone/text: 202-669-8468
Email: info@washingtonphotosafari.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/washingtonphotosafari
Twitter: www.twitter.com/washphotosafari
Image Credit:
E. David Luria
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
