Our London Photography School Testimonials

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A big thanks for yesterday Ion! You are the most fantastic teacher I’ve ever had in any subject. The passion you have for photography definitely comes across strongly and infects those you teach. It was a fabulous lesson, I learnt a lot, enjoyed myself, and can’t wait to rush out to take some more photos! Your enthusiasm is so contagious, and I felt like you wanted to share as much of your knowledge with me as you possibly could in such a short time. I have already recommended you to my cousin, who said she would like to join us one day. And a message to all you amateur photographers out there – if you want to advance your skills, or even learn the basic skills, this is the place! Thanks. Highly Recommended!
Jasna Lukic, (advanced level)
One of the best courses in London!

Much has been said about the course, and I wonder if my comments will add any more value to it ! Despite that, I still wish to add in a few of my personal observations and my own experiences after taking this beginners’ course. I re-read the reviews after joining the class and I can only say that all the reviews are so true! Ion is truly a master, and his passion in photography and teaching are great elements in making his class an effective one to all who wants to learn about photography, regardless how much you know or do not know about photography. It’s a well worth the investment of my weekend with him and I am happy to say that I can use my camera more effectively, coupled with seeing things through the lens and from a different perspective. Photography is clearly a form of art, but Ion combines technicality of equipment (which he explains in simple terms with practical examples) and explains how simple it is to create beautiful, captivating, strong images if you know how to combine the few basic elements of photography.

Canaan See
Hi Ion, I just wanted to say that I went straight on holiday after our lesson, which gave me a great opportunity to practice what I learnt! I thoroughly enjoyed the lesson, and still can’t quite believe the amount I learnt in three hours. The improvement in my photos after just one session has been incredible. That said, it also made me realise how little I know, so I will definitely do another course when I can find some time. Highly recommended.
Russell King
I dont think it would be possible to find a more energetic, knowledgeable and passionate teacher than Ion. His patience and enthusiasm over our 2 day intermediate course has allowed me to evolve into a confident photographer. My only concern is that I won’t find enough time in between work to experiment with all the new tricks and techniques that I learnt. Highly Recommended! Thanks Ion. Harry
Harry Boothman (advanced level)
There are many digital photography courses in London and as a part-time summer vacation student, it is often difficult to select a good course and time. I am very fortunate to have chosen Photoion Photography School for a beginner’s course as not only is it led by a highly experienced and enthusiastic photographer (who has already produced a superb portfolio of work), the course is short (2 days long) and combines strong theory with practical elements. I greatly enjoyed learning the features of my Nikon D90 DSLR and Photoion was happy to take any questions I had and respond promptly and accuratelly. The last day was spent photographing sites around London, putting the knowledge we had into practice. Photoion takes a vested interest in any photograph that students take (or, rather, make) and offers constructive feedback on how to improve and take the next step forward. An affordable course that offers great value for money and would definitely be worth coming back to again. Highly recommended.
Jonathan Lau
I recently completed a 1-day 1:1 session (birthday gift from my wife) with Ion following the 2-day course that I attended last summer (2011). The session took place on Hampstead Heath as this is where I like to take my pics, and have been doing so for some time. Ion was very happy to meet me in Hampstead Village, where we started the day over a coffee whilst re-capping on some of the theory that I had learnt the previous summer. Ion hadn’t lost any of the passion that I remembered, in fact, it had increased and it wasn’t long before I was up-to-speed and we were ready to ramble! We spent approx 3 hrs on the Heath and it was awesome! I had recently purchased a new Canon and was shown many of the features & settings, as we spent time snapping the scenery, ancient trees and wildlife in action – we got some fantastic shots even though the weather was fairly gloomy! More than anything, Ion helped me to see things that I perhaps wouldn’t have noticed on my own, how to compose pictures before starting and many different tips regarding shade, light, shutter speed & composition. I would highly recommend Ion for one-to-one sessions and general photography courses – he is highly motivated, passionate, extremely knowledgeable and above all, great company! A course that offers great value for money. Highly recommended.
Simon Joseph
If you have ever had even the slightest interest in Photography or taking photos, then you MUST attend the Introduction and Intermediate Photography courses taught by Ion Paciu. I attended the Introduction course
about a month ago not knowing anything about Digital SLR cameras or photography in general, having only used my iPhone to take photos. The Introduction course was brilliant in terms of getting you to understand all the basics and fundamentals of SLR photography. The Intermediate course takes you to a completely different level in leaps and bounds. Wow…. My brain is still reeling from the wealth of information, knowledge and experience Ion shared in the course. His creativity and enthusiasm for photography is truly remarkable and it rubs off on you! I am now looking at angles and light and subjects in ways I never would have thought of before. I am also more comfortable standing in front and behind the camera. Ion shows you the difference between taking a shot and taking a magic shot and this is exactly what I wanted to learn. There are hundreds of photographers and photos out there but not all of them capture the magic of the moment. With Ion and his courses, you learn the techniques and start to develop the eye to look for these magic shots. Now I am starting to take photos that I can be proud of and having loads of fun in the process. I cannot begin to express how pleased I am that I booked on these courses and had Ion as my teacher. An inspirational teacher makes all the difference on whether you learn something or not and I have had so much fun learning and experimenting with the camera. I have already recommended this course to all my friends and I would not hesitate recommending it to more people. Thanks Ion! Highly recommended.
Shanthi Siva (advanced level)
I took a beginners course with Photoion Photography School and I can say that Ion is the passionate and enthusiastic teacher you need to shed light and open the world of photography to anyone who wants to listen with willingness to explain his creative process.
I loved the course, for me, by far and away the most important aspect was the opportunity to meet a real photographer.
Ion appears to see the world as a dynamically shifting palette of colours, contrasts and volumes of light & dark. With a particular focus on relational distances of objects, living things, shapes and patterns.
My interpretation is that, nothing is fixed in this multilayered space and it’s the photographers mind that can see not only what’s actually there but what could be. This understanding of possibilities is the creative aspect that interests me the most and through honing the skills of the camera you twist, slide and massage everything to make the best of the 3 dimensional space and its contents.
This is manipulation but of the greatest kind, to tease out the hidden gems of raw visual beauty from the apparent mundane.
I’m looking forward to the advanced course! I highly recomend Photoion Photography courses. Highly recommended.
Martin Gregory
I went on the beginners course as a complete notice only ever shooting in “auto mode”, wanting to be able to use more of the functionality of the Nikon D80. The course is the perfect balance of theory (day 1) and practice (day 2). The teaching style is relaxed but very very enthusiastic and helpful. You do not get overloaded – just the key basic ingredients and then it is out into the real world to put the theory into practice. I can not recommend this course highly enough. If you really want to learn about your camera and how to compose good images this is one for you. Great atmosphere and passion for the subject. I will be aiming for the intermediate course soon!
Peter Gissel
I recently just took part in the two day weekend intermediate photography course with Ion and thought it was fantastic. After quite a bit of searching around on the internet for a photography course, I came across Photoion Photography School and it had some really good reviews and decided to give it a try. I originally contacted Ion via email asking about the course, and he got back to me immediately asking to send a few samples of my work through and then recommended me on the intermediate course. The booking was easy, the payment was simple and the communication was excellent. I really enjoyed the course – one day in the classroom and the day next out and about London doing practical examples and playing with the camera. Plus we received the course notes on a CD to look back on. I’d recommend the course to anyone looking to advance their photography skills, and would also suggest they book the beginners course if they’re looking to start off something. Thanks Ion for a great weekend. Highly recommended!
Mike Salmon
Ion, thank you for the 2 days you dedicated to teaching us photography basics. I knew some of the stuff you taught us, but I like photography so much that I wanted to make sure I knew all I had to know, and that I knew it right! Where I really made progress is in the relationship between the 3 settings by the use of Stops. I can’t believe I didn’t know that! Meaning that you were right, it’s not all in the books 😉 I feel much more confident to using the camera, even to do creative random shots, I start to see the possibilities a camera can offer, I start seeing through a camera lens, and that’s because of your ability to teach, but also to pass-on your passion, and it feels! Thank you so much again. Highly recommended!
Emeric Denis
I attended Ion’s beginners’ course and I found Ion professional and knowledgeable about everything in photography being able to explain question clearly while adapting to the individual needs. I found all aspects of the course very helpful. I definitely progressed to a higher level and I am very satisfied with the course and the trainer style. An excellent course! Highly recommended!
Victoria Vozikova
It was definitely one of the most exciting and challenging course I’ve ever done. Creativity and impromptu photography in such a short course is extremely rare. Ion has so much energy that is instantly affects everyone around and encourage them to push themselves hard. Definitely worth the money if not more!!! Thanks Ion. Highly recommended!
Shraddha Kedia
I attended Ion’s beginners’ course which I found really enjoyable; the lesson really helped me to understand the “photography world” better and gave me all I needed to take the first step into photography and understanding my DSLR camera. The highlight of the course was the passion Ion has for photography and teaching and the way he involved his audience into the subject. The structure of the course was excellent. Thanks Ion. Highly recommended.
Nilson Souza Barreto Junior
A fantastic course! Ion has great enthusiasm and passion and the amount I’ve learned exceeded my expectations. Very much looking forward to putting everything I’ve learned into practice. Highly recommended. Thank you Ion
Craig Brady, intermediate
I found Ion on internet and choose his course because all the testimonials claimed he was passionate and energetic about photography. This is absolute true and the best thing about it is that trough his teaching style he was able to portray this effectively and instil in us the same passion for creativity using photography. I would definitely recommend this course to others. Thank you Ion. Highly recommended!
Sheryl Shah
I attended Ion’s beginner’s course which was very informative and educational. Ion’s passion was evident. I suffer from dyslexia but I found the course to be very clear and easy to follow and very well structured. I learnt a great deal about photography especially about the camera features. An excellent course with great examples and held in a friendly atmosphere; everybody enjoyed. I enjoyed so much the course, overall a five star course. Highly recommended!
Richard Kelly
I attended the beginner course and I can say that, despite I was a Nikon user and Ion is a Canon user I was impressed of Ion’s extensive knowledge of cameras. Ion’s explanations were very helpful while leaving excellent clarity. Wherever I had a question it was answered very promptly and clearly. A very good structure of the course with excellent time management and trainer style. Going out the second day and applying the skills we learnt in the first day was very helpful and loads of fun. A great course, highly recommended!
Frankie Magnuson
A very inspiring, active and interactive course with great detailed information and very easy to understand. Highly recommended! An amazing teacher, knowledgeable, friendly and very funny. Ion really opened my eyes and inspired me and my creativity and my interest in photography. Thanks Ion for the 2 days.
Zairene Gayle Cacayorin
Thank you very much for the 2 days, it was very helpful. A great introduction course, very challenging, fast paced which is exactly what I wanted. I found very helpful understanding the physics and technical aspects of photography which really helped me to learn how photography works. I Now I have a lot to think about and practice – no more green button! Thanks Ion. Highly recommended!
Suzanne Alam
A fantastic course and so enlightening. I feel so much more confident about applying myself to every aspect of photography! Ion was brilliant and his passion for everything in photography shone trough. Thanks Ion. Highly recommended!
Simon Joseph
I attended the beginners’ class with Ion; he was so inspiring, knowledgeable, friendly with a pleasing personality and he is always ready to answer any questions you might have without hesitation. Good work Ion, keep up the passion! Definitely recommended! Thanks Ion
Seena Manoj
You get plugged along by ion’s enthusiasm. He doesn’t over complicate things and makes the information easy to digest. The course will kick start me and I hope to do another course with Ion soon. Yes, definitelly recommended! Thanks Ion
Rob Fisher
An excellent photographer with contagious energy. He made me look at subjects from a different perspective and genuinely excited about getting out there and shooting. I really enjoyed the course especially the use of basic techniques during the slides. Highly recommended! Thanks Ion
Phil McGaw
The course was fantastic. Ion has incredible depth of technical knowledge plus an ability to teach, get the message across and convey information so you can easily understand it. The materials were really well put together. Ion has armed me with the information to make great pictures. Time to practice, practice, practice! Thanks Ion. Highly recommended!
Tim Kerr
Ion was very patient and his passion for photography clearly shows in his teaching style. I would definitely recommend the course to those who want to unlock their cameras potential and find their own creativity. Thanks very much I feel a lot more confident now. Highly recommended!
Aneeka Patel
I’ve always found it so hard to concentrate but Ion helped me switched on the whole course! He shared his passion for photography with all of us and made me want to do more to become better and to focus to capture great images. Ion is a trainer with energetic attitude who runs and very informative course. Both days were brilliant! I definitely recommend the course to anyone who wants to learn and improve in photography. Thanks Ion. Highly recommended!
Marketa Teskova
A very good, practical and useful course, full of useful tips and excellent technical background, it was both enjoyable very informative as well as being educational. Ion is a committed teacher who’s clearly so passionate about photography. He teaches photography in a structured way and I like his philosophy. Thanks. Highly and thoroughly recommended!
Harsh Batra
I am so glad I choose this course. It is definitely worth the money; there are small groups so you get plenty of one to-one learning. I learnt so much in 2 days about the camera and the way the camera works. Definitely recommended, thank you Ion.
Kevin Murphy
Very well put together course, well structured – very good value for money; information given clearly and easy to follow. The info was kept interesting at the right pace for student. I very much enjoyed the 2 days. Highly recommended! Thank you.
Gemma Knights
Ion has great knowledge and enthusiasm about photography and the power point of the course worked really well. Ion was very good at repeating the important points and helping us to apply them in the practical session.Both days were great and made sense, one could not move without the other. Definitely recommended. Thank you Ion
Mikala Djorup
I attended Ion’s beginner’s course which was very enjoyable. I am new in photography and bought the camera a couple of weeks before the course. I was struggling to understand all the settings of the camera and the complicate concepts in photography. Now is much clearer what I have to do and I feel really confident in handling my camera. Thank you very much for the 2 days, the course was amazing and fully meet my needs. Ion’s evident passion for photography gave me confidence and power to go out and putting all the technical aspects learnt in practice. Thank you so much Ion! Highly recommended!
Razvan Serban Vasile
Good logical structure of the course presented in an enjoyable way covering all the key areas; Ion ensured everyone understood the topics presented; covered an enormous amount of detail in a short space of time in a fun and enjoyable way; built a good rapport with all the students; thank you very much for an excellent day, I am really excited about putting my learning into practice. Highly recommended!
Becky George
Ion’s knowledge always felt thorough but was never too lofty that beginners couldn’t understand; excellent ability to convey knowledge with enthusiasm, understanding and good humour when necessary. Explanations step-by-step of all technical aspects; really thorough and well presented slides with warmth, energy and good people skills; all aspects for starting in digital photography covered; opportunity to broaden knowledge trough answering questions. Highly recommended!
Andrew Service
I attended a 1:1 beginner course with Ion and I now feel very comfortable in handling my DSLR camera and have become aware of many different aspects which I have preciously just ignored or did not now of. The practice day was a load of fun, applying all the techniques learnt in the previous day, especially with all opportunities on the South Bank. The course was a priceless experience. Highly recommended!
Fiona Tahta
The lesson was interesting, intriguing and funny as well; everything was extremely helpful but in particular Ion’s responsiveness. It was a very effective presentation and Ion has been patient and answered all my questions. “I really appreciate your efforts particularly the availability at short notice, a perfect workshop!” Highly recommended!
Barbara Marinelli
A very enthusiastic trainer and about teaching but know where to limit the student & control to keep to the level of knowledge. Great ability to convey information. I definitely recommend taking Ion’s courses. Thank you Ion. Highly recommended!
Terry Leach
Thank you very much for accommodating my session yesterday. I was very happy and I am no longer ‘scared to push the shutter’. Highly recommended!
Victoria Gonticas
Very good training, Ion ensured you fully understand each topic before moving on & answered all questions well, I can’t wait to buy my own camera to get started & practice. Thanks Ion. Highly recommended!
Treasure Van Reenen
A very professional course! Ion is a technical expert with great passion for photography. Highly recommended!
Mark Fanelli

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