Charr Crail lives and breathes creativity. From her pinky-reddish-orange hair, colorfully patterned eyewear, and her bright ensembles, Charr embodies the creative spirit she draws out in others.
A spontaneous decision to join the Sac City Express newspaper in college gave Charr her start as a photojournalist. She worked for various newspapers as a staff photographer and picture editor for 15 years before striking out to build her own business as a full-time freelance photographer. Charr’s newfound business was an instant success with on-location gigs as well as portrait work in her shared studio upstairs at Sierra 2 Center.
In recent years, Charr’s focus has shifted to teaching. Like her photojournalism career, teaching came into Charr’s life by happy accident, when a professional colleague asked her to teach a class on photojournalism at Cosumnes River College. She now teaches at Sacramento City College, as well as her own classes online and through the Learnery.
Charr teaches classes that inspire students to create, regardless of experience or talent, like in her exploratory class “The Art of Doodling on Metal,” taught through the Learnery last fall.
“Teaching art is my favorite but hardest subject because people don’t see themselves as creative,” Charr says.
As an instructor, Charr applies a few simple truths to teaching: Art is everywhere, everyone is creative and just do it anyway.
You can get creative with Charr in a number of classes coming up at the Learnery in the Sierra 2 Center. The first is “Mobile Photography Made Easy,” from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. March 24. The cost is $42.
This three-hour workshop will explore photographic capabilities with a smart phone. It is perfect for anyone wanting to take better photos, edit on the go, or simply step up their Instagram game. The top photo editing apps will also be discussed. This class is for both iPhone and Android users.
https://sierra2.org/event/mobile-photography-made-easy/
Learn more about the class at sierra2.org/ thelearnery and follow Charr Crail’s creations at instagram.com/charrcrail.