This course will last six weeks, during which time my goal is simple - to provide some tips and tricks on how to improve your photography. We will focus on techniques that can be used with any camera, by photographers of any skill level.
This is also a very free-flowing, unstructured course. You will have the opportunity to ask questions and get help with the type of photos you enjoy taking!
To get the course kicked off, let's start with what kind of photography do YOU enjoy doing? Yes, NPN is a nature photography site, but this course is not limited to just nature photos. For example, I also enjoy informal portraiture and automotive photography. If truth be told, nature subjects are only a very small minority of what I aim my camera at!
So, let's start with the following;
1. Introduce yourself! What kind of photos do you enjoy taking?
2. Tell me about the gear you have to work with - are you using a simple Point-and-Shoot camera or do you have a DSLR with multiple lenses? Do you have a dedicated external flash? Do you have a tripod, or remote shutter release?
3. What photo editing software are you using? I am using Photoshop C5, though the Photoshop Elements software is excellent and all you need for this course.
Respond to these questions below and we'll go from there! If you have any questions, post them below or send them to me at editor@naturephotographers.net.
We'll have some fun with this course - I hope you're looking forward to it as much as I am!
Jim
Posted by Sharon Young on June 17, 2012 at 9:34 AM
Hi Jim,
I'm really looking forward to the course!
1. I enjoy taking pictures that provide a record of my family's adventures and special moments. My goals are to take better family photos and to expand to taking photos that tell stories about the places I've been - the peacefulness of a scene, the emotion of a human portrait, the beauty of nature. About a month ago, through a seminar at work, we were introduced to the power of photography to tell a story and it sparked an interest to develop this creative side of me. I found it fascinating that in an assignment to choose 2 photos from an assortment of many hundreds, people who picked the same photo told very different stories about what that picture meant to them.
2. I have a Nikon D3100 DLSR camera with a standard Nikkor lens (AF-S DX Nikkor 18-55 mm f/3.5-5.6G VR). I don't have any other equipment at this point but am interested in a lens that provides more zoom capability. I bought this camera about a month ago following the seminar I mentioned above.
3. No editing software yet as I wanted to see what was recommended in the course. For the little I've done, I've used iPhotos on my Mac.
Sharon, I think you'll find this course a good place to start!
The first task is to make sure you can resize and post photos in this forum. It's actually an easy process, but the first time may seem difficult - I will help you with this!
Here's your first assignment;
1. Pick a photo you have taken with the new Nikon DSLR
2. Using iPhotos, resize the photo to 720 pixels in width (or 720 pixels in height if is is a vertical "portrait" photo)
3. Save the photo on your computer as a sRGB jpeg
4. In a response below, use the Browse button to find the resized photo on your computer and then hit the Reply to this Topic button to upload it.
Sharon, success! You can upload all other photos the same way for this course.
Out first task will be to get you familiarized with some basic camera settings and operation. Nothing too technical, but just enough to help you get the most out of your Nikon D3100. I will post that lesson as a new tooic in this forum tomorrow. In the mean time, get your camera manual out and look up "aperture priority" and "shutter priority" settings - those will be the ones we will use the most!
Then, find a subject that you can practice on - it can be a vase, for example, and an uncluttered place to set it - preferably near a north-facing window where this is plenty of light. Otherwise, a chair or stool to place the vase on outside will work too.
Let me know when you're ready to go with this!
Posted by Sharon Young on June 20, 2012 at 10:05 PM
All set with the subject and some options for the lighting. I'll watch for the next lesson tomorrow.
Discussion
5 repliesThis course will last six weeks, during which time my goal is simple - to provide some tips and tricks on how to improve your photography. We will focus on techniques that can be used with any camera, by photographers of any skill level.
This is also a very free-flowing, unstructured course. You will have the opportunity to ask questions and get help with the type of photos you enjoy taking!
To get the course kicked off, let's start with what kind of photography do YOU enjoy doing? Yes, NPN is a nature photography site, but this course is not limited to just nature photos. For example, I also enjoy informal portraiture and automotive photography. If truth be told, nature subjects are only a very small minority of what I aim my camera at!
So, let's start with the following;
1. Introduce yourself! What kind of photos do you enjoy taking?
2. Tell me about the gear you have to work with - are you using a simple Point-and-Shoot camera or do you have a DSLR with multiple lenses? Do you have a dedicated external flash? Do you have a tripod, or remote shutter release?
3. What photo editing software are you using? I am using Photoshop C5, though the Photoshop Elements software is excellent and all you need for this course.
Respond to these questions below and we'll go from there! If you have any questions, post them below or send them to me at editor@naturephotographers.net.
We'll have some fun with this course - I hope you're looking forward to it as much as I am!
Jim
I'm really looking forward to the course!
1. I enjoy taking pictures that provide a record of my family's adventures and special moments. My goals are to take better family photos and to expand to taking photos that tell stories about the places I've been - the peacefulness of a scene, the emotion of a human portrait, the beauty of nature. About a month ago, through a seminar at work, we were introduced to the power of photography to tell a story and it sparked an interest to develop this creative side of me. I found it fascinating that in an assignment to choose 2 photos from an assortment of many hundreds, people who picked the same photo told very different stories about what that picture meant to them.
2. I have a Nikon D3100 DLSR camera with a standard Nikkor lens (AF-S DX Nikkor 18-55 mm f/3.5-5.6G VR). I don't have any other equipment at this point but am interested in a lens that provides more zoom capability. I bought this camera about a month ago following the seminar I mentioned above.
3. No editing software yet as I wanted to see what was recommended in the course. For the little I've done, I've used iPhotos on my Mac.
Sharon
The first task is to make sure you can resize and post photos in this forum. It's actually an easy process, but the first time may seem difficult - I will help you with this!
Here's your first assignment;
1. Pick a photo you have taken with the new Nikon DSLR
2. Using iPhotos, resize the photo to 720 pixels in width (or 720 pixels in height if is is a vertical "portrait" photo)
3. Save the photo on your computer as a sRGB jpeg
4. In a response below, use the Browse button to find the resized photo on your computer and then hit the Reply to this Topic button to upload it.
Here is a link you may find helpful - http://www.naturephotographers.net/articles0509/dw0509-1.html
Let me know if you have any questions or need any help!
Here is my first attempt. This is a photo that I took in Lake Placid last week.
Sharon
Out first task will be to get you familiarized with some basic camera settings and operation. Nothing too technical, but just enough to help you get the most out of your Nikon D3100. I will post that lesson as a new tooic in this forum tomorrow. In the mean time, get your camera manual out and look up "aperture priority" and "shutter priority" settings - those will be the ones we will use the most!
Then, find a subject that you can practice on - it can be a vase, for example, and an uncluttered place to set it - preferably near a north-facing window where this is plenty of light. Otherwise, a chair or stool to place the vase on outside will work too.
Let me know when you're ready to go with this!