Here is a list of some of my favorite photography resources in Toronto, and on-line.




RETAILERS

FILM + – 327 Symington Ave. Small, but best staff in town. Great rentals, including Profoto, Canon and Nikon.

HENRYS – 69 Queen St. E. Love amateurs. Great used section. Web site has links for camera manuals.

VISTEK – 496 Queen St. E. Biggest Canadian "pro" camera store. Carries all the professional tools (but not overly fond of window shoppers). Huge rental department.

HARRY'S PRO SHOP - My favorite place for quality used gear. Based in High Park. Run by a good guy, who isn't named Harry.




LABS

ELEVATOR DIGITAL – East-end custom archival black and white, color and digital printing, and even framing. (Quality work, but not cheap.) Good people.

PIKTO – processing, prints and an amazing set-up for DIY scanning and output, great people, phenominal building and a cool gallery. In the Distillery district.

WEST CAMERA - 514 Queen Street West (near Bathurst) 416-504-9432. Quality prints, rental color and b/w darkrooms.




RESOURCES ONLINE

DPREVIEW.COM – Great camera reviews. But stay away from the forums, unless you like debating more than shooting.

LUMINOUS LANDSCAPE.COM – Toronto photographer and educator Michael Reichmann's phenomenal site. Best thing on web for serious digital photographers.

PHOTONOTES – Online dictionary of all things photographic.

PHOTOSHOP TECH VAULT – Every link to info about Adobe's great image-processing software.

U.S. NAVAL OBSERVATORY – Tells you when and where the sun and moon will be, anywhere in the world. All you need is a compass.

WESTSIDE STUDIO – The best advertising studio in Canada. Check out the portfolios of some of incredible photographers. They taught me all I know about light, and about pulling together a first rate job.




TORONTO GALLERIES

STEPHEN BULGER – 1026 Queen St. W. Always inspirational work from amazing photographers.

CORKINSHOPLAND GALLERY – In the Distillery district. Beautiful space, usually some great work – photography and painting. 55 Mill St., bldg. 61

YDESSA HENDELES ART FOUNDATION Sat noon-5 p.m. or by appt. 778 King W. 416-413-9400. Great space and incredible variety of art.




FUN

Ever wonder how photographers keep their reflexes sharp? Check out this BBC site. I'm (usually) a Rocketing Rabbit (which is more impressive than it sounds).

KNOWLEDGE

I taught an introductory photography night class at Leaside High School. In case your are interested, here's the class notes. It covers everything from composition and exposure, to buying gear.



To see a sample of my work just click on one of the following links:

Editorial and Corporate Photography by DW Dorken: Portraits of real people, on location.

Executive Portrait Photography portfolio: I bring my studio to boardrooms across the GTA, and creates relaxed, flattering business portraits.

Executive Portrait Photography Rates

Biography: Almost everything you wanted to know about photographer DW Dorken, including what the initials stand for.

Editorial tear sheets: A small sample of work that has been published in magazines, including Owl, Slam, MoneySense and Fashion, plus some ads (for a PSA) and corporate work.