Gonna have to disagree with "can't learn bonsai from the Internet". Yes, I understand but no, I disagree.
Obviously I have my own trees which I learn from but all my knowledge from what to do is based off internet, talking to people, reading, watching, etc. Internet is a huge part of learning for many people because we simply don't have the opinions. I can't travel to classes or teachers, so this is what I have. I would be very disheartened to think the only learning aid I have, is useless.
I've been doing bonsai for over 40+ years, I started while I was in high school, around 1970, when I as 15 years old. The first 25 years or so I was entirely self taught. Books, magazines, and finally in the 1990's after Al Gore ''invented'' the internet, I was a heavy consumer of ''internet knowledge'', I still am a heavy Internet user, or I wouldn't be here typing. (the part about Al Gore is a joke, don't get bent over the actual history of the internet) So in 2004 I was looking at my oldest in my care bonsai tree, a pomegranate I had been watering for at least 28 years, and a cork bark Japanese black pine I had been working on for 18 years, I looked at both and decided there was something really wrong. They did not look like trees, they didn't look like convincing bonsai. Both had enough years that they SHOULD HAVE looked better than they did. Basically, my trees looked like crap and I could not figure out what was wrong. I realized I obviously had ''missed the point''.
That is when I decided to join the Milwaukee bonsai society to take advantage of their local member's experience, and the fact that they bring in visiting masters. Bonsai is a 3 dimensional art, and no 2 dimensional representation will ever convey all the sensory information needed to truly grasp what needs to be done. Well, some may be ''smarter than me'', and actually get the nuances by trial and error, between the internet and their trees they have at home, but it is a rare mind that can fully grasp all the nuances.
Once I began taking classes, my trees improved dramatically. Because I had ''deep theoretical knowledge'' behind me from all the reading and figuring out how to keep the SAME TREE healthy for over 2 decades my bonsai skills improved greatly, very quickly. But there are many things that until I actually had someone walk me through it on my own tree, I did not get it until will a teacher. Ted Matson and Peter Tea were hands down my favorite teachers. Jim Doyle, Colin Lewis were also great, but not available as frequently as the first two. I love Colin Lewis's writing style, his books are some of the best bonsai how to books out there. But in person provided me the keys I needed to really get a handle on bonsai.
Sure, the internet is important, and very, very valuable, but at least in my case, and by extension of my assumption that more people are like me than not in their ability to learn, a live, in person teacher in a setting that is close to one on one is critical to drive home the understanding of bonsai.
The deeper the knowledge you have before sitting down with a teacher, the more efficiently you can use your time with a teacher, as they are not cheap. And having a tree that you had been growing for several years, and were already familiar with its basic growth habits as the subject for the student - teacher interaction really helps. In my opinion, there is no substitute for this experience.
There is a huge ''body of knowledge'' to learn in bonsai, without the internet, I don't think one could progress very fast at all. But the internet combined with live, in person instruction I believe, in my opinion, is the best way to learn bonsai.
I only take classes in episodes. I did a 3 year, 3 times a year series with Ted Matson. Then grew on my own for 5 years or so. Then I did the same 3 year, 3 times a year with Peter Tea. Right now I am between teachers. At some point I will repeat this process. There is always something new to learn. As you get deeper into the ''art'' the more subtle the skills you try to refine.
I do not claim to be a ''good bonsai artist'', right now most of my trees look like crap, but now when I look at them I KNOW WHY, and have a plan for improving them. I did have a health crisis 9 years ago, during which I lost many of my better trees, so when you look at my collection, it is still a ''intermediate level'' collection. But I know now what I need to do. When I hit the wall again, where I'm not happy with my trees, and don't know what they need to be improved, I will definitely bring in another teacher.
