“City of Bridges” Pittsburgh Photo Workshop
Join Instructors Beth Haubach, a native Pittsburgher, and Marie Joabar for an exciting workshop exploring the most photogenic areas of Pittsburgh. We’ll find plenty of diverse photo ops to hone our skills, learn new techniques and enjoy the camaraderie of the group.
Our workshop begins with a customized walking tour that mixes the Best of the Burgh' and an Art & Artists tour. We’ll discover interesting nooks in the city, learn a bit of history, and find a lot of colorful, quirky subjects to capture as well as unique art and architecture!
We’ll spend time photographing two of the most unique neighborhoods: the Strip District and the Mexican Wars Streets – two areas that could not be more different from each other.
-The Strip District combines the hustle and bustle of a Turkish bazaar, the nightlife of Las Vegas, the fun of a street carnival, and the atmosphere of days gone by. It is truly a place like no other; the area is a quirky, fun, and vibrant place.
We've also planned an exciting food tour in the Strip District that will take us on a “food tasting adventure and historic walking tour.” As we walk and munch our way through the “Strip” we’ll not only have fun with food photography, we’ll also capture vibrant street scenes.
- We’ll explore the Mexican War Streets, on the North Side of Pittsburgh, which is a historic neighborhood known for its beautiful architecture, primarily Italianate and Queen Anne. There are plenty of opportunities to capture various architectural elements and find several hidden gems. However, there is no bigger gem than Randyland, which is “regarded as one of America’s most colorful public art landmarks.” Created by artist Randy Gilson, who actually lives here, Randyland provides us with a veritable treasure trove of fun, creative and abstract photography possibilities. We’ll be leaving this area with a big smile on our face!
Known as the “City of Bridges” or the “Steel City,” Pittsburgh is a smorgasbord of photographic opportunities!
- We’ll capture the city lit with early morning sunrises, including visiting Mr. Fred Rogers for an early morning shoot!
- Each evening we'll be making the most of the blue hour and into the night for some exciting nighttime captures.
- Part of the fun of getting around will be taking the Monongahela (Mon) Incline, a Pittsburgh icon, to Mt. Washington to photograph the city.
- From the vantage points of Mt. Washington and the North Shore, Pittsburgh’s skyline rivals that of much larger cities. The Andy Warhol, Rachel Carson and Roberto Clemente bridges are just some examples of popular photography subjects offering us unique perspectives and beautiful reflections.
- We’ll also visit Station Square, originally a busy railroad station, which is now a riverfront complex that combines history with shopping, entertainment and restaurants.
- We’ll pop our heads into the iconic Grand Concourse restaurant, housed in the former Pittsburgh & Lake Erie Railroad Station, that showcases stunning stained glass and marble interiors.
- We’ll also capture images of the riverboats of the Gateway Clipper Fleet.
Lest you think it will be all go, go, go, there will be some downtime mid-day to relax and recharge!
So, grab your cameras and walking shoes and join us as we trek around the ‘burgh taking in the city through our lens all the while enjoying the company of other photography friends! We know “yinz” will come away with lots of great images and memories.
Dates: The Workshop begins on Thursday, June 11, 2026, at 1pm and concludes on Sunday, June 14, at 11am after our morning shoot.
Skill level: Participants should be familiar with their cameras and have some basic knowledge of the exposure controls; ISO, aperture and shutter speeds
Gear: DSLR or Mirrorless cameras with interchangeable lenses from 16 to 200mm (wider and longer is fine if you have that), polarizing filter, tripod and remote release.
Fitness: We will be walking several miles per day on city streets. There will be some stairs.
What’s included: Pre-workshop preparation meeting via Zoom on a weekday evening (it will be recorded in case you can't make it), two tours: Walking Tour of Pittsburgh and Food Tour in the Strip District, in-the-field instruction and a post workshop image review session via Zoom.
What’s not included: Accommodations are not included but we have reserved a block of rooms at a hotel. More info will be in the confirmation email. Transportation is not included in the workshop fee and participants are responsible to get there on their own. If driving, it’s about a 4 ½ hour drive from the DC area. We’ll try to carpool to shooting locations when necessary. Meals are not included in the workshop fee; however, breakfast is included in the hotel cost.
Workshop Cancellation Policy:
- A refund or a credit towards another workshop or class (less a $100 cancellation fee) can be given if cancellation notice is given more than 60 days from the scheduled workshop.
- If cancellation notice is given less than 60 days, no refund or credit will be given unless another person fills your spot. If so, we will give a refund or credit less $100.
- If there is no cancellation notice, or it is given 60 days or less and no one fills the spot, no refund or credit will be given.
- If Capital Photography Center cancels or postpones a workshop due to weather or low enrollment, you can choose a refund (less the 5.5% payment processing fee) or a credit towards a future workshop or class.
Limit: 10. The group size is purposely being kept at just 10 students with 2 instructors so that everyone will be able to get questions answered and have time for individual instruction.
Questions can be directed to Marie Joabar at info@capitalphotographycenter.com
Instructors: Beth Haubach and Marie Joabar.
Read their Bios here!
