Great course, recommended. Love her style, and the knowhow Victoria passes on. Very watchable. One thing, when you tether, use a Tether booster pro between your long tether cable and laptop, stops that buffering. Second time on Creative live I've seen a presenter have tethering problems that are cured simply with a 60 dollar piece of kit. Creative live should be proving it!

Great course by Victoria Will. As Victoria says, "Luck Favors the Prepared". We get a behind the curtains look to hear how Victoria worked hard and relentless to become a star photographer. Pose it but it shouldn't look posed. Make the photos look like you captured the moment. Another star instructor from CreativeLIve.

One of the best classes I’ve watched on CL. I love the fact that this is so little about lighting or gear or rules on posing. Instead it’s about capturing the unexpected moment and making the talent feel at ease. Mrs Will is not a traditional teacher, instead we’re allowed to follow her in close to real situations, which I value enormously. Also to listen to her reasoning about the culling process is invaluable. Now I just have to get the other class by her.

I wish there was a split option. Positives about the class are good industry insight. Working with photo editors, portfolio expectations, social media pros and cons etc made the class worthwhile and I'd still purchase. I love a lot of Victorias work out of this tutorial and I guess she held off as she had to explain to the audience as well. Pretty much every image shot in this is unusable though, rushed perhaps although it is entitled portraits under pressure. The shoot sections I didn't find there was much to learn beyond basic ideas. 50/50 all in.

I love the way Victoria engages with her subject, chatting, loosening them up and then switches to business in seconds. This class is worth it just to see the way she interacts.

I very much enjoyed this class. It is fun and informative - I learned a lot about how to capture and look for the non-obvious portrait. Because of this class, I have changed the way I view portraiture and my images will be better as a result.

Loved it - it was very useful to see how she handles all the chaos of these quick shoots and comes out the other end with really great moments captured. What was also super useful was all the content about the portfolios - both in reviewing her own, and the other students'.

A class filled with knowledge and useful pops of information from somebody that has worked hard for years on end as well as listened to other professionals. I found her easy to follow and was great to see a shooting style different to mine. Her portfolio segments I found to be the most useful. If you're buying this class as a foundation for portraits it won't be as much use to you as having basic knowledge of it. The class doesn't slow down to explain things you should know about lighting. It's mostly about working with people, building rapport, capturing and presenting moments.

As a lifestyle portrait photographer, you have to be able to juggle many things at once: clients name(s), camera settings, light, timeline, requests, sessions goals, etc. Multitasking is essential, and Victoria handles every aspect as she should- she manages the chaos while creating great images. My portraits will improve after this class.

I really enjoyed this class. Victoria seems distracted, a bit haphazard and seems unorganized--but then, she's a photographer, not a teacher. I took copious notes and got a lot out of watching her work, seeing her interact with clients and seeing the results--good and bad. I have seen my own portraits improve immensely since taking this, so I would recommend it to anyone who wants to observe and learn from another photographer and isn't expecting a clear-cut, linear classroom-style course.

I was surprised that other reviewers are criticizing Victoria's shooting style. I love it... She's fast and captures rawness... she's down to Earth and the connection with her clients shows in her portraits. I feel this is a very valuable class and I'm grateful I found it before my Senior Session this weekend. I'll be applying some of her techniques.

awesome presentation! I got 9 pages of notes before I had to log off. vary informative.

Victoria is a very accomplished photographer and this class is practical and at the same time gives many insights into how to approach portrait photography artistically. It is not about technical details, but more about connection and what to do to influence the mood and energy of the shot. For me this is pure gold. Some parts may be a bit drawn out, but that can perhaps be improved for future classes (which I hope will follow!) Thank you so much Victoria for your openness and for sharing your wisdom.

Thank you Mrs. Will and CreativeLive! This class was awesome. Problem solving in real time, acceptance of mistakes, making the best of a situation, and ultimately capturing a good image. Thank you!

Amazing class! I would recommend this for any portrait photographer. The negative reviews for this class are interesting, and to be honest, they almost made me shy away from buying the class. Well, I'm glad I did buy it. I don't think the negative reviewers are seeing all the true gems in this course. I watched this class quicker than most classes I've bought on Creative Live. It is that good! Thank you Victoria for all your expertise.

This was a great class and I learned a ton! It was amazing to watch Victoria Will in action -- shooting portraits under pressure. I learned a lot watching her walk into an unknown situation -- not knowing the location, what the natural lighting situation would be, and only knowing she had 15 minutes for the shoot. I loved watching her problem solve on the spot with lightning and tight, dark spaces. She also taught a lot about how she interacts with her subjects -- always putting them at ease (like you're the host at a dinner party -- gem!) It's much easier for a photographer to take pictures in their studio, but this course was not about that. This was watching a photographer handle real world situations under time pressure and think on her feet. Loved it! I also loved the parts where she culled her photos afterwards and picked out the ones that caught her eye. In most instances, I found myself agreeing with her!! When she gets subjects to stand up and sit back down, it is the in-between moments she is looking for, or the moment right afterwards -- genius!! Oh, lastly, I loved how she went through stunning images she shot of celebrities like Brad Pitt and Janelle Monae and gave us the backstory of how she creatively problem-solved to get the shot! Hello, showing up two hours before a shoot and knocking on random hotel room doors for furniture?!! Of course she could do that because she has a lovely, warm personality! Oh, and by the way, the bits she shares about her early career path is very inspiring!

I loved watching Victoria hustle through several shoots and the honesty of her edits - raw and authentic, she isn't pretending to be anything that she isn't. I also appreciated her point of view on the responsibility of portraits, that they can be a permanent statement, and could possibly define someone, or be a haunting image - we just don't know what is going to happen to people, or how an image is going to be interpreted years from now. Really powerful issues to consider. I think some may confuse Victoria's hustle with not having it put together, but I don't think is fair to Victoria. Hustling for the shot is heavy labor in a deep pit of uncertainty. Hustling isn't glamorous, not even for a pro - the difference is in the results, and she gets them.

This was my first class following my decision to leap into portrait work and from it, I felt confident in creating a genuine connection with the people I was photographing. Victoria takes the technical aspect out of the process and gives real world advice to help ease what can sometimes be an uncomfortable situation. Including honing in on some of the moments in between and that us, as the photographers, need to get in front of the camera every now and again in order to create a more meaningful portrait! I highly recommend to anyone looking to improve their people skills for portrait work. Thank you Victoria & Creative Live!

this isn't a lighting technique course nor is it high on technical specificity---- and it doesn't pretend to be. Victoria's portfolio shows that she has been and done it , in complex situations, under ridiculous time limits and in impossible spaces with entourages breathing down her neck as she captures A-listers in camera hence the title "Portraits under pressure". The extra time it would take to establish 'proper' lighting ratios in extremely fluid situations would have most photogs pooping in their softboxers and would result in farless images for editors to choose from depending on what their story/article/ use might be- which she probably doesn't know of in advance. The commercial shoots/situations CL set up that Victoria freewheels into with a new lighting assistant would have days and weeks of precollaboration, mood boards and prep time- not two minutes on 'LiveTV'- she shows how to keep a level head, handle the pressure and get shots that work for the course and gives an idea of what it takes to do it IRL.

Even though this is not the field of photography I am in, or necessarily interested in expanding into, I enjoyed this course. I think at the heart of it, it speaks to how personal vision is invaluable in photography. While it can be both motivational and disheartening to see others' work, in the end, no one else can contribute your personal view of the world. I especially liked Victoria's portfolio reviews since that's something every photographer should be looking at intermittently and is valuable to all of us.

This instructor knows what she's talking about.

A great insight on Victoria's workflow. She shows how preparation and creativity can bring great results in a 5-minute session. Awesome class, totally recommend it for anyone interested in portraits.

A great insight on Victoria's workflow. She shows how preparation and creativity can bring great results in a 5-minute session. Awesome class, totally recommend it for anyone interested in portraits.

I am in my first years of photography and thought this class was extremely helpful in expanding my portrait knowledge. It's wonderful for giving you the know-how to go into a very limited space, find the best lighting situation and make it work to come up with wonderful portraits. Her posing techniques were also very helpful and I felt much more confident and achieved a greater selection of good shots on my following photo/portrait shoots. A very useful class for anyone photographing people, no matter the setting. Thanks Victoria!

Just started this course. It was purchased as a bundle with 2 other great courses. I am learning so much. So glad I purchased!!