About Me

Hi there, 

Welcome to my website.

I’m Caroline Maryan from Caroline Maryan Photography. 

I’m a travel photographer and blogger and the founder of Camera Mechanics Workshops. 

I help busy camera owners understand the buttons, dials, and modes on their cameras so they can enjoy photography and take photos they love.

You can read more about my classes on the Workshops page on the website. 

Have I always been a photographer?

Not exactly! 

While I’ve had a camera since I was 9 years old, I didn’t study photography growing up. In fact, when my parents realized how much it cost to print film, they discouraged me from taking photos with film in the camera! True story! 

My first career was as an elementary school teacher. I followed that up by becoming a software engineer. 

What did these have in common? I was able to combine my teaching background with my technical knowledge when I worked with clients. I found that I could explain complex software and design problems in plain English that they could understand. 

During this time, I also had a side-gig. I was a Cub Scout and Boy Scout leader for 11 years! Talk about the perfect preparation for a photography teacher. If I bored those seven squirrelly boys in my house, I was in trouble. So, I figured out to make learning fun. 

When did photography really enter my life? Like many of my students, I wanted to take better photos of my children. So, I bought my first film SLR camera.

I quickly realized that using it on any setting but Auto felt like rocket science!

This was before YouTube and online workshops, and there were no in-person classes available where I lived. I bought books, but the authors used jargon that meant nothing to me. I was so frustrated! On top of that, I had to pay to print my photos so I could see all the mistakes I was making.

A few years later, my husband’s company moved us to Jakarta, Indonesia for four glorious years.

This was our first time living in Asia and one of the best parts was how many incredible countries were suddenly “in the neighborhood.”  My travel photography really took off. 

Also, by now, we had three children, and I got lots of practice stalking them and recording their days with my camera.

The real turning point for me came in 2008 after I’d bought my first DSLR. On a trip to Shanghai, I decided to get serious about learning my new camera, after I missed an iconic shot that I really wanted to capture. I’ve written a blog post about that experience and I’ll link to it below. Spoiler alert… There is a happy ending!

At this time, we were living in Seoul, South Korea. I threw myself into learning all I could about using my camera.

As I studied and learned, I also noticed that I couldn’t resist offering help to my friends who were struggling with their cameras. My teaching and technology background seemed to be a real advantage.

So, in 2011, I taught my first workshop in Seoul, and I’ve been teaching ever since. I’ve taught people from every continent but Antarctica.

What you need to know is that all camera makes and models are different. And the manuals that go with them leave a lot to be desired.

What I love about teaching is simplifying the process and helping each person learn to use their unique camera to capture images they love.

Today, we’re back in the USA in Williamsburg, VA. 

I’m now offering my Camera Mechanics Workshop online, and it’s been a terrific success. My students love watching the short videos and having time to practice each skill. There’s no need to travel to Williamsburg to take the course, either. All you need is access to the internet. You can read about it on the Workshops page!