Photography Courses for 2014

We have our new schedule for the coming year, we are currently writing a couple of new courses, one on art photography, but these will not be ready for the new term. We have all the usual favourites from Understanding Your Digital SLR Camera, Composition In Photography, Portraiture, Flash, Lightroom, Photoshop,

you can see the full list here

Understanding Your DSLR Camera Evening Class £85 Start Dates: 21.01.2014; 05.03.2014

Understanding Your DSLR Camera Saturday Morning Class £85 Start Date: 9.11.2013; 08.03.2014

1 Day Understanding Your DSLR Camera £95 Dates, 27.10.2013; 26.01.2014; 23.02.2014; 30.03.2014; 27.04.2014

Understanding Your Digital Compact Camera £85 Start Date: 5.03.2014

Intermediate Photography £97 Start Date: 24.02.2014

Flash Photography £85 Start date 29.01.2014

Understanding Lightroom £85 Start Date: 27.02.2014

Introduction to Photoshop and PS Elements £97 Start Date: 18.02.2014

Composition In Photography – Seeing Pictures £85 Start Date: 4.03.2014

Portrait Photography £85 Start Date: 27.01.2014

 

Lightroom 5 Unmasked new ebook

From those wonderful people at Craft & Vision there is a new Lightroom ebook aimed at LR5 The previous edition for LR4 was invaluable and although LR hasn’t undergone the major changes it did from 3 to 4 if you have 5 buy this now

 

 

A Complete Guidebook to Adobe Photoshop Lightroom

Lightroom 5 Unmasked is a resource like no other. This PDF is full of high-resolution screenshots, step-by-step instructions, and the tips, tricks and ideas that make digital darkroom work productive and more enjoyable.

At 356-pages Lightroom 5 Unmasked is 13 chapters deep, covering everything from an introduction to Lightroom and non-destructive editing to full discussions and detailed instructions of the Library and catalogs, to every tool in the Develop, Map, Book, Slideshow, Print, and Web Modules. Download the Table of Contents.

This massive eBook also includes an amazing collection of 69 Cases which provide context and insights on the smaller topics that often get overlooked (nine more cases than the previous edition). These additional insights put the tools and features into context, helping you learn and apply what you read along the way. Every module is covered in-depth, even third-party applications and plugins are tackled head-on. Lightroom-to-Photoshop integration is also included.

At about £12.50 for more than 350 pages it is a snip

Get your copy here

Subscription only Photoshop

It has been a while now since professional users of Adobe products, which include Photoshop, have had the opportunity to pay a subscription and have all of the products available on line. This means that  applications are downloaded onto your computer but need to be authorised regularly (my words) as such and that the new versions and updates have been instantly available. Sounds good? Well yes if having the most up to date version of software is important to you but for those who like to buy software, own it, install it and decide if they want to upgrade it then perhaps no. Until this point it has been possible to use much older versions of Photoshop as long as they were compatible with your operating system (OS). I found that when I upgraded my OS so that I could install Lightroom 4 I could no longer use Photoshop CS2 which I was happy with.

This extended article on Photo.net explains more about this process and I am sure you have worked out that Adobe are doing this for their benefit not yours. Not having software you can buy means you pay, and you pay and you pay, every month or year as you prefer but pay you will. Maybe this is the way of things to come and all software will be this way in the future, somehow hosted in the cloud and ready for you when ever and where ever you want it……hmmm. I only want it on my desk computer in my office and I don’t need the latest versions all the time.

How does it work?

You need to download and install the apps on your computer and that’s where the software lives. Your current version of Photoshop, or other CS applications, do not have to be uninstalled; they’ll continue to work even with CC software on the same computer (there have been some issues with CS6 reverting to a trial version after the CC install but Adobe should have fixed that issue by now). And, you do not have to be online for CC to work…….

Pricing

The best Creative Cloud pricing is based on an annual subscription. You’ll pay more for month-to-month leasing of the software. Prices also depend on how many applications you want to access, whether you choose an individual or teammembership or are a student or teacher.

Adobe is currently offering special promotional prices for current Creative Suite users. If you have a serial number or have registered your CS3, CS4, CS5 or CS6 product (Photoshop or the entire suite, for example), your first year will cost $10 a month with an annual contract. Access to a complete subscription for CS6 users is $20/month for the first year; $30 for CS3 and later….…MORE

What do you think about this, we have been bludgeoned into thinking the cloud is everything and will free us but unlike clouds in the sky this cloud is going to be finding new ways to grab our money.

The shape of things to com….

Lightroom Tutorials and Tips

We have recently started our first Lightroom course and it is going really well. What we have learned from our students is that many, prior to the course, hadn’t realised the vast array of processing options available through this wonderful program. Lots of people assume it is good for sorting out a bit of exposure problems or to correct colour vagaries but have not comprehended how much improvement both technical and creative Lightroom offers. I have gathered here some tutorials available on line that you will find interesting. Often, because of the space available, the tips and tutorials are more a bit, ‘do this and you will improve your pictures’ whereas when we teach we explain how and why there will be an improvement. Understanding the process is important because it gives you much better creative control and that is what we all seek.

3 Easy Lightroom Adjustments to Add Drama to a Landscape from Lightstalking

An old adage of photography is that you should try to create the image you want with the camera rather than relying on post-production. And that’s good advice. The less post you need to do on a photograph, the easier your life will be (as post-production throws up an extra set of challenges). But sometimes, for one reason or another, you might want to make your landscapes shots pop a little more by applying a little well-considered post production to them. Here are a few ways you add the drama you are looking for.

Play With the Blacks Slider – Lightroom has a convenient little slider called “Blacks” in develop mode that allows you to have more control over the contrast in your images. Dragging the slider to the right to increase your blacks will usually result in a slightly more dramatic image in landscapes owing to an increase in contrast. Be sure not to clip too much (you can see exactly how much clipping you’re doing by holding down the “option” key on a Mac or “alt” key on a PC as you use the slider with your mouse). For a great little video on using the black slider, check out this tutorial.

“Sacrifice” (Explored #23) by Luke Peterson Photography, on Flickr

Click Here: 3 Easy Lightroom Adjustments to Add Drama to a Landscape

Using Lightroom 4 to Recover Almost Unusable Photos from Lightstalking

Adobe Lightroom 4 has some significant changes within its develop module that gives us photographers several new impressive tools when post-processing images. Adobe came out with a new image process version (2012) which is basically the image processing engine behind Lightroom and Photoshop’s Adobe Camera Raw plug-in. This new process version provides many significant updates, including more options when making local adjustments and the new highlights and shadows sliders (which essentially replaces the recovery slider in Lightroom 3). Because of these new powerful features in Lightroom 4 we can now, with much greater ease, recover those photos which we may have thought were unusable.

Tumihay the Hunter (before Lightroom 4 post-processing and then after) by Jacob Maentz

Click Here: Using Lightroom 4 to Recover Almost Unusable Photos

How to Import Photographs into Lightroom By Chase Guttman on Lightstalking

Before you can truly harness the power of Adobe Photoshop Lightroom, the most essential thing you must know is how to import your digital photography files into a catalog. As mentioned in the previous tutorial, Lightroom is a modular based program where you can organize, develop, print, share and display your photography, among many other things. In order for Lightroom’s vast number of features to be useful to you, you must first import your images into a catalog so you can work on them. The importing process is done via the “import dialogue box.” There are two ways to quickly access the import dialogue box:

Click Here: How to Import Photographs into Lightroom

There are endless numbers of site offering advice as well as the excellent Lightstalking here are some of my favourites  you might like to check out:

Adobe Tutorials

Lightroom Queen

Presets Heaven

A Killer Collection of Adobe LightRoom Tutorials

Lynda.com

 

Lightroom 4 ebooks

We are about to start our new course on Lightroom 4 (we have places, if you are interested please email). This is a fantastic program and one we use every day, it is invaluable if you shoot RAW for conversion purposes and a really great piece of library software to organise your images, I would be lost without it. There are a couple of ebooks we recommend from the Craft & Vision stable, we also like Craft & Vision very much, if you want to see all of their publications click on the box on the right of this page.

Essential Development

20 Great Techniques for Lightroom 4

Lightroom keeps changing, and most of us don’t have time to dig around under the hood to learn it all. Essential Development is no-holds-barred guidebook that can help you explore, modify, and dig deep into the Lightroom 4 tools you need to make your post-processing efforts more productive and produce the final images your portfolio deserves! The eBook is divided into 20 chapters, focused entirely on the Develop module, covering topics such as: Understanding The Histogram, Making White White, Beauty Retouching, Dodge & Burn for Beauty, Cross Processing, Achieving a Filmic Look, Image Toning, Tilt Shift, Effective Sharpening, and Correcting Lens Issues. Click on the pages above to buy at $5 (£3.

Lightroom 4 Unmasked

A Complete Guidebook to Adobe Photoshop Lightroom

 This one is a big ebook and costs a bit more $20 (£12.70) but this is a complete guide to Adobe Lightroom 4 and we know you’ll love diving into this beefy book. At 312 spreads this PDF is full of high-resolution screenshots, step-by-step instructions, and the tips, tricks and ideas that make digital darkroom work productive and more enjoyable. If you’re looking to learn Lightroom 4 and need a resource to help you do that quickly, or you’ve just upgraded and need to get up to speed, this is a great value. Click here to buy this and download it immediately

Learn Lightroom 4 ebook

I am regularly asked if we run a course on Lightroom and it is something we plan but if you can’t wait for our return from Australia to OSP towers you might want to buy this very cheap ebook and get started yourself. I have always been super impressed with Craft & Vision books and have bought just about everyone they put out. They are full of excellent technical detail, inspiring ideas and are beautifully illustrated.

LIGHTROOM 4 UNMASKED
This is a complete guide to Adobe Lightroom 4 and we know you’ll love diving into this beefy book. At 312 spreads this PDF is full of high-resolution screenshots, step-by-step instructions, and the tips, tricks and ideas that make digital darkroom work productive and more enjoyable. If you’re looking to learn Lightroom 4 and need a resource to help you do that quickly, or you’ve just upgraded and need to get up to speed, this is a great value.

This rather expansive ebook with 312 pages costs just £12 or $20, get further details and purchase here

Photography links, tutorials and great images

From those diligent chaps at Lightstalking we get this

Toad Hollow Photography has been working very hard all week searching the internet for the links to tutorials, great photography and interesting blogs to share with everyone.  This week’s comprehensive list features some great photography and blogs dedicated to the craft.  We hope you enjoy perusing this list as much as the Toad did in bringing it to you.

The player by Kerekes János Csongor, on Flickr

Check out the Toad’s latest feature blog post “Resurrecting Our Heritage” that discusses a wonderful old heritage church on Vancouver Island that was almost lost to developers.  A local art enthusiast has just purchased this beautiful church with plans to convert it to a community art center.  A happy ending, indeed!

TUTORIALS

A Brush of Warmth – Behind My Eyes – Jim Denham delivers an in-depth look at new features delivered in the latest versions of Lightroom and Aperture.  The newly included white balance filters now give the artist complete control over the white balance in a scene, helping to create images that appear more natural looking in nature or giving the artist extra tools to create the vision they were going for.  This is a very well written piece by Jim that features example images and screenshots to walk the reader through the concept.

Life Before Photoshop: Microsoft – this article contains some great insights into how to compose and technically work on that perfect shot without the aid of post-processing.  Joe Baraban delivers an article here that adds so much value, even if you do a lot of work in the digital realm post-processing as most of us do these days, as it will enhance your technical abilities and tools.  This will, I believe, result in better imagery.

How to Use Bracketing in Your Photography – this is a great article that discusses the technicalities behind bracketing in photography.  The post illustrates the points presented with some great example photography, allowing the reader to instantly understand the concept.  This is a well written and easy to understand piece.

GREAT PHOTOGRAPHY

Chasing The Ghosts of Gettysburg – this extensive collection of photographs by A.D. Wheeler features the site of Gettysburg and the items on display there.  A.D.’s spot-on compositions bring all the inherent drama and mystique of a place that must surely be haunted.  Each image is easily seen as a masterpiece and the collection as a whole is enchanting beyond proper description, you just have to see it yourself.

Click Here: So Many Cool Photography Links That Your Eyes May Bleed

Lightroom 4 and Black and White

A week isn’t worth having unless I have time to visit some of my favourite sites on the web. One of these is  by David du Chemin. David duChemin is a world & humanitarian assignment photographer, best-selling author, international workshop leader, and accidental founder of Craft & Vision. When not chasing adventure and looking for beauty, David is based in Vancouver, Canada.

This week I found an article he had written about Lightroom 4 and black an white conversions, here is a bit of what he says:

One of my favourite improvements in Lightroom 4 is the ability, in the graduated filter and the adjustment brush, to dial in colour temperature and tint……It’s worth remembering that in Lightroom you aren’t really working on a monochrome image. You’re working on a colour image with a monochrome filter on top. So moving the colour values around underneath that filter – either with temperature or with the channel mixer (Black and White Mix) – will change the tonal values you see in the resulting image. Different tonal values, different contrasts, and different visual mass – in other words, a different feel for the image, and new ways for us to hone our expression. Want more read on here

©David duChemin

How to Choose Your Next Photo Laptop

What to look for when choosing a laptop computer for serious digital photo processing. by Andrew Darlow.……on Photo.net If you are in the market for a new laptop (a.k.a. notebook) computer, you are not alone. More photographers than ever are choosing laptops in addition to a desktop computer, or making a laptop computer their primary computer. A few reasons for making a laptop a primary computer are as follows: major processor performance boosts in recent years; decreased weight; increased storage capability; higher RAM limits; better screens and enough specs and features to make most photographers’ head spin. Plus, due to the nearly constant updates to applications, security patches, and applications like iTunes, it’s often just easier to use the same computer at home, in the studio and when traveling. Another option, thanks to recent advances, is to keep a high-powered laptop or desktop at home, while a lightweight, yet still powerful machine is taken on the road for card downloads, backups, image viewing, etc……READ more of this extensive article here

You might also like to check out the less specific for photographers, Laptop Review site

Black and White City Photographs

In some ways photographing in black and white has never been easier. In the past the usual places that would develop your films such as chemists and other high street stores made a real hash of black and white. Now with digital technology you can shoot black and white or monochrome in your camera although my preference is always to shoot RAW, and hence colour and make the conversion in the computer, I use Lightroom as my preferred RAW processing program. If you want to see the image in black and white on the camera monitor but still record in RAW many cameras do allow this. On Canon cameras you can go into Picture Style and select monochrome but in the menu under Quality select RAW. I am sure it must be possible with Nikon’s I just don’t know how to do it being a Canon user.

The subject matter for black and white can be as varied as you want but often urban environments give a bit  extra when shot in monochrome. This article on the Lightstalking website expresses that and has lots of examples.

Heading out with a camera in the city can be a heap of fun. Street scenes and architecture can produce some great scenes for photographers and when you shoot with black and white in mind, the results can be very powerful. We think these shots show what we mean. Share your own in the comments!

Here is a taste of what is on offer

|||||||| [Explored] by 85mm.ch, on Flickr
Liège / Luik / Lüttich (Explore Frontpage) by Bert Kaufmann, on Flickr
89 [urban pyramid] by eblaser, on Flickr

Hancock Honeycomb by rseidel3, on Flickr

Three… by 85mm.ch, on Flickr

Click Here: 27 Powerful Street and City Scenes in Black and White