I have been thinking for some time about developing a photography course I would market locally to supplement my print income. I realize I am not a top level pro, but I have developed a pretty good portfolio that is known locally and have a lot of people ask me about helping them learn more about photography.
I am just not sure where to start. Do I begin by presenting the very basics like exposure, f stops, shutter speed, etc? (this often creates the face glazed over look) Do I present some of the compositional techniques, or even some post processing topics? Some people just want to make better images with their P&S cameras and some have more sophisticated DSLRs.
So, is there some suggested curriculum for basic nature photography? Do I just ask the participants what they want? (problem with this is it is hard to prepare in advance)
If there is anyone who can give this instructional newbie advice I would greatly appreciate it.
Posted by David Taylor on May 14, 2009 at 12:18 AM
Hi Ed-
I'm finalizing my own workshop curriculum for this year as we speak (or type, I guess...). The first thing I did was decide the purpose for the workshop. I approached it a bit differently, I knew that I wanted to offer a series of options - so I broke the workshops into 3 options (for this year). A beginner's digital photography workshop, an advanced techniques digital photographers workshop, and a digital darkroom workshop. They are all 3 day weekend workshops.
So, you first need to decide the "point" of each workshop/class as well as if your market can support your offerings. I'm in Alaska - and I've had great feedback so far, so I am confident the local market + traveling photographers can support my endeavor. Then figure out what you need to accomplish your goal for the class/workshop. Each of my workshops is a mix of field and classroom exercises.
Then break down each of the sections you want to cover, and further break them down into exercises/examples/slideshows/analogies/etc.
There is a LOT to put into each workshop/class - trust me. But for me, the reward of teaching something that I am passionate about to others is my greatest reward. You HAVE to be a people person & really enjoy teaching the basics, or this endeavor will get old real quick. There are also marketing costs to consider. Hope this helps get you started & best of luck!
The starting premise is use for the course I teach here is to tell the students that the camera is the least important part of photography. A bit of a lecture on the physiology and psychology of vision and then steer the lecture to what they wish to gain from the course.
As it is a course run by the city the participants interests and skills can very. You may have some people who wish to take better pictures of the family to those that wish to make it a very developed pastime.
To that end I try to follow their needs rather than simply teach the same course every time. The course is laid out in four two hour blocks. While the basics are always covered earlier in the course, I find different groups of people want more detail on specific things and in the later segments I'll spend more time on things that are of particular interest to the students.
Things that might be unique to your particular geographic location are pertinent. Here for instance, care and use of the camera under cold weather conditions and how to photograph the Aurora are mandatory!
Decide whether you will teach photography or picture taking. If you are teaching photography f/stops and the other technical stuff will inevitably be part of the course if only to help your students understand why they would choose Av or Sv or P. By picture taking I mean a course for those students who only shoot P&S but want better photos. For that you just want to teach 'photographic seeing' & composition. In my past teaching experience (10 week evening courses at a local college) I incorporated both but found that a significant number of students really only wanted the latter.
One of the basic rules I taught both groups was to always carry your camera because more potentially great photos are lost due to lack of a camera than any other reason. Point in case: I was driving several miles from home yesterday on an errand and missed a great sunset shot because I had violated my own rule.
I do not know if this will apply to your endeavor, but in education we first do a PRE test of a topic (ie-composition). From the testing you will discover the strengths and weaknesses on that item. You then would divide the class into groups of similar weaknesses, and/or strengths, and provide insruction and assignments to each group.
In this way, students would not lose interest, They would be working at their level and not waiting for the weaker students to catch up. Similarly, they would not be working over their heads trying to catch up.
And yes, using this method might result in many groups, even as small as a group of one. Yes again, it makes it tougher on the teacher. There would be post testing to follow up to see the improvement. All of that is then again Pre-tested and post-tested for the next topic etc.
It is hard work, but there is much satisfaction when students move forward.
Hi, Ed--
When you say "course," do you really mean a many-weeks-long series of class meetings? Even if you do, I'd suggest starting with a much shorter "workshop" format (several hours over only a few days) because it can be targeted at teaching specific skills and/or meeting specific students' needs, and the condensed time frame is also more likely to appeal to more people. When people ask you about helping them learn more about photography, follow up on their interests / needs by finding out what they mean; then you'll have a much better idea of your "market." Also check your local Adult-Ed, Community-College, and 4-yr-college photography offerings to find out what's already being offered, how many students usually enroll, etc. This will help you avoid planning a workshop or course that's already being offered or that fails to attract students because it doesn't coincide with their interests.
Ed, I am willing to bet you have a ton of photography books (instructional large softback books). Look at their format. You will find a trend!! It seems to work for the books and ought to work for your classes.
You have to decide how complex to make the course. Define objectives. Let the people know that so beginners do not get stuck in a class full of advanced folks, etc.
Good Luck!!
Troup
Posted by Bill Brennan on May 24, 2009 at 10:24 AM
Be different from the rest. Invite 3-7 of the people, who have asked you to help them, to have a cupacawfee with you to discuss their needs for help. Then design the "course" to meet their needs. One recommendation, get the camera in their hands and on the tripod to demonstrate to them what you are teaching. Be different, less lecture; more hands on.
Discussion
8 repliesI am just not sure where to start. Do I begin by presenting the very basics like exposure, f stops, shutter speed, etc? (this often creates the face glazed over look) Do I present some of the compositional techniques, or even some post processing topics? Some people just want to make better images with their P&S cameras and some have more sophisticated DSLRs.
So, is there some suggested curriculum for basic nature photography? Do I just ask the participants what they want? (problem with this is it is hard to prepare in advance)
If there is anyone who can give this instructional newbie advice I would greatly appreciate it.
I'm finalizing my own workshop curriculum for this year as we speak (or type, I guess...). The first thing I did was decide the purpose for the workshop. I approached it a bit differently, I knew that I wanted to offer a series of options - so I broke the workshops into 3 options (for this year). A beginner's digital photography workshop, an advanced techniques digital photographers workshop, and a digital darkroom workshop. They are all 3 day weekend workshops.
So, you first need to decide the "point" of each workshop/class as well as if your market can support your offerings. I'm in Alaska - and I've had great feedback so far, so I am confident the local market + traveling photographers can support my endeavor. Then figure out what you need to accomplish your goal for the class/workshop. Each of my workshops is a mix of field and classroom exercises.
Then break down each of the sections you want to cover, and further break them down into exercises/examples/slideshows/analogies/etc.
There is a LOT to put into each workshop/class - trust me. But for me, the reward of teaching something that I am passionate about to others is my greatest reward. You HAVE to be a people person & really enjoy teaching the basics, or this endeavor will get old real quick. There are also marketing costs to consider. Hope this helps get you started & best of luck!
The starting premise is use for the course I teach here is to tell the students that the camera is the least important part of photography. A bit of a lecture on the physiology and psychology of vision and then steer the lecture to what they wish to gain from the course.
As it is a course run by the city the participants interests and skills can very. You may have some people who wish to take better pictures of the family to those that wish to make it a very developed pastime.
To that end I try to follow their needs rather than simply teach the same course every time. The course is laid out in four two hour blocks. While the basics are always covered earlier in the course, I find different groups of people want more detail on specific things and in the later segments I'll spend more time on things that are of particular interest to the students.
Things that might be unique to your particular geographic location are pertinent. Here for instance, care and use of the camera under cold weather conditions and how to photograph the Aurora are mandatory!
One of the basic rules I taught both groups was to always carry your camera because more potentially great photos are lost due to lack of a camera than any other reason. Point in case: I was driving several miles from home yesterday on an errand and missed a great sunset shot because I had violated my own rule.
In this way, students would not lose interest, They would be working at their level and not waiting for the weaker students to catch up. Similarly, they would not be working over their heads trying to catch up.
And yes, using this method might result in many groups, even as small as a group of one. Yes again, it makes it tougher on the teacher. There would be post testing to follow up to see the improvement. All of that is then again Pre-tested and post-tested for the next topic etc.
It is hard work, but there is much satisfaction when students move forward.
When you say "course," do you really mean a many-weeks-long series of class meetings? Even if you do, I'd suggest starting with a much shorter "workshop" format (several hours over only a few days) because it can be targeted at teaching specific skills and/or meeting specific students' needs, and the condensed time frame is also more likely to appeal to more people. When people ask you about helping them learn more about photography, follow up on their interests / needs by finding out what they mean; then you'll have a much better idea of your "market." Also check your local Adult-Ed, Community-College, and 4-yr-college photography offerings to find out what's already being offered, how many students usually enroll, etc. This will help you avoid planning a workshop or course that's already being offered or that fails to attract students because it doesn't coincide with their interests.
Rosemarie, I was really thinking along the lines of a weekend workshop..
You have to decide how complex to make the course. Define objectives. Let the people know that so beginners do not get stuck in a class full of advanced folks, etc.
Good Luck!!
Troup
Bill Brennan