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February 2020 Header

Hi and welcome to DPC Newsletter for February 2020

New Format

As you can see the newsletter has a different format this month. Hopefully this new shorter, mainly text version will not be rejected by spam filters and will be easier to read.

Second Person for Midweek 221 Wanted

I have a lady wanting a midweek 221 Beginners Course at £199pp.

Private tuition, or 221 days, are very different from group courses, with six students, a we have a lot more time to give indivual attention and look at more picture scenarios. We usually pop of down to Foxton Locks and manage to include some elements from the Composition and seeing the Pictures Course.

If someone likes to see how my brain works, fancies a refresher or would like to treat themselves and join us then drop me an email.

This Month

  • February Newsletter Project – “After Dark”
  • Night Course on Sunday 16th February 2020 - 2 Spaces
  • HDR & RAW Course on Sunday 29th March 2020 - 2 Spaces
  • Next Courses for April May and June 2020.
  • Extra Lightroom Courses - RIP Picasa
  • Posting on the Facebook Group – Or NOT!
  • Advanced Night Photography Course

2020 Photography Courses

Winter 221 Courses

February Newsletter Project – “After Dark”

The daylight hours are getting longer but it still gets dark early enough for this month’s newsletter project which is “After Dark”.

This does not necessarily mean night photography but could be indoor photography without flash so see your beginner course notes or tips card for settings. Other options could be theatres, bands or the proverbial black cat in a coal cellar. Whatever you choose remember to upload your images to the Facebook group.

Night Course on Sunday 16th February 2020 - £135

I still have a couple of spaces for the Night and Low Light Course on Sunday 16th February 2020. You will require a tripod for this but I do have spares you can borrow.

This Low Light & Night Photography Course on will show you how to get great pictures at night or in low light conditions like indoors, in churches or  museums or at a concert. The course starts at 2pm with the low light section and then after dark we go out to photography the moon and stars – if they are out- plus car light trails and some special effect photography.

https://digitalphotographycourses.co.uk/night-photography-course/

HDR & RAW Course on Sunday 29th March 2020 - £135

I have to say this is one of my favourite courses and one I think every landscape photographer should attend. You will require a laptop and tripod but I do have spares.

I’m a great fan landscape photography and of shooting into the light. I just love those long shadows and the fabulous cloud formations with the sunlight streaming through. HDR allows us to create photographs which are more like the image you saw when you took the shot. It’s also a brilliant course for those that shoot church interiors and want to maintain detail in the stained glass windows and the building.

Many people say they dislike HDR as the results can look “false” . This course will demonstrate how to get natural looking HDR along with the more “grungy” look if that’s what you like.

https://digitalphotographycourses.co.uk/hdr-and-raw-photography-course/

Extra Lightroom Courses - Sun 15th March-Spaces - Sun 7th April 2020 - £135

Since the sad demise of the excellent Picasa I’ve been at a lost to find another photo editing program that works on the PC and Mac but is free and easy to use. Picasa has been getting increasingly unstable on Window 10 and I understand that it no longer works on the latest Macs at all.

For this reason I’m recommending photographers invest in the £10 per month Lightroom / Photoshop subscription. This might seem an odd thing to suggest but if you want to move forward with your photography then shooting in RAW and editing in Lightroom is one of the very ways to make your images stand out.

Unfortunately Lightroom is nowhere near as simple to use as Picasa (RIP) so I’m adding extra weekend Lightroom/Photoshop Courses to help with the upgrade. This course covers the complete workflow from importing, sorting, culling, key wording, editing, adding a logo and exporting in various sizes.

The course also includes designing a logo in Photoshop. You can read more and get a 7 day trial just before the course here - https://digitalphotographycourses.co.uk/lightroom-course-2/

Portrait Photography Course - Sunday 19th April 2020- £135

We covered basic portraits outdoors on the Beginners Course but this Portrait Course goes into much greater detail shooting portraits in different scenarios. 

We’ll shoot portraits outdoors in shade and bright sun (hopefully) using reflectors and fill in flash. We will also look at posing techniques and explain how to capture natural and relaxed looking portraits.

The indoor session includes how to shoot low key portraits using window light and use on camera bounce flash. Throughout the day I’ll show you how to create a low cost studio with various backgrounds.

https://digitalphotographycourses.co.uk/portrait-photography-course-2/

Macro Photography Course on Sunday 17th May 2020 - £135

This course is limited to six students and it will specialise in taking sharp, well focused close-ups of insects, flowers and small objects such as coins and jewellery. We will also show you how to light objects like fossils correctly to bring out their detail. A multitude of subjects will be provided but if you have something special you like to photograph then bring that along too.

This One Day Macro & Close-up Photography Courses is suitable for the experienced novice or intermediate photographer. Ideally you will have attended one of our Beginners Photography Courses before taking this course as a good understanding of the menus and various camera settings will be required so you can concentrate on the subject at hand rather than the technicalities of setting your camera.

https://digitalphotographycourses.co.uk/macro-photography-course/

Flash Photography Course - Sunday 14th June 2020 - £135

Following feedback from past students we are now running a dedicated Flash Photography Course. This course with teach you everything you need to know about using a Speedlight flash both on and off the camera with wireless remote releases. It will cover portraits, both indoors and outside, plus how to use slow flash and rear curtain flash techniques.

Using the camera’s built in flash can result in pictures which are flat and uninteresting. The Flash Photography Course aims to change this scenario and will give you a good understanding of how to use a separate flashgun away from the camera to provide more creative and interesting lighting.

You will require a camera and a separate flashgun for the shoot but all other equipment is provided.

https://digitalphotographycourses.co.uk/flash-photography-course/

Posting on the Facebook Group

On the subject of the Facebook Group, and Flickr, I’ve had several newer photographers comment that they do not post because they don’t think their pictures are good enough. This is simply not true as I’ve seen your photos and anyone who has successfully completed the Beginners Course has all the required skills to produce great images. If you feel unsure then read your notes again or ask the group.

I know the amazing standard of images on the FB group can be daunting but everyone was a novice once. The best way to improve is to take lots of photographs, post and get constructive feedback. Everyone on the DPC group is very supportive and helpful.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all the lovely people that my life easier by answering questions and offering support when I’m busy elsewhere. You know who are guys and it’s much appreciated.

I’ve chosen to limit my time on social media as I wasn’t getting any work done. That said if anyone does NOT want to comment on the group then you are welcome to email or message me as always. All I ask is that you don’t send me full size images, unless I ask for them, as it jams up my email system.

New Advanced Night Photography Course

So what’s new in February? Well, I finally got to run the new Advanced Night Photography Course after a couple of postponements due to cloudy weather. It wasn’t perfect conditions, as there was a very bright crescent moon, but we still managed to get a picture of the Milky Way and the Orion constellation.

I’m only running this course as a midweek 221 at £175 (rather than £199) or as a 121 at £250.

As the name suggests this is an advanced course so I ask that you have already attended the standard Night Photography Course and the Lightroom Course as I will not have time to cover all the basics again.

This course starts about 5pm with the theory and camera set-up then some editing using my test files until it gets dark. We are then outside for a couple of hours under the stars. Hopefully, during this time, we will get images of the Milky Way, the Orion Constellation and maybe even the Orion Nebula if you have a fast telephoto lens.

I have set up a small FB messenger group for interested people set let me know if you fit the criteria and want to be added to the list.

Extra Night Photography Course 221 at £175 or Private Tuition at £250.

The last group Night Photography Course sold out and the next one will be in February 2020. I do have a few people wanting a night course this year so I have a couple of options. This course is available as a midweek 221 in January at just £175 per person rather than the normal £199 for 221. This is because the training time is slightly less but we still cover all the same topics quicker as there are only two students. The course is also available as a 221. Contact me if interested.

 

www.DigitalPhotographyCourses.co.uk / www.digitalcameracourses.co.uk
25 Westerby Lane, Smeeton Westerby, Leics, LE8 0RA 0116 2796906

email glen@digitalphotographycourses.co.uk

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