Intro to Nature Photography Class
Saturday January 16. 2010
Class Overview- The goal of this class is to introduce participants to basic photographic concepts and techniques necessary to produce a good nature image. Although the class material covers a lot of topics, the approach will be to “Keep it Simple “! Participants will learn about camera controls, exposure, lighting, and composition skills required to produce a properly exposed image. Participants will also learn when not to take the picture. Much of the day will be “hands on” so be sure to bring your camera and manual.
Who Should Attend - This class is for anyone interested in photography with minimal photographic experience or those more experienced photographers who are still shooting with the camera controls set to Program mode. The 9:00 A.M. session is mostly geared to the digital SLR user but the rest of the day will benefit anyone interested in taking better landscape and nature images regardless of which type of camera you may own.
Instructor: Maria Struss
Fee: $55 full day, $35 for morning or afternoon session only
Location: Atlantic Recreation Center Aquatics Classroom
***** Space is limited - Sign up at the Atlantic Recreation Center******* or online
Class Schedule
8:30- Introductions
9:00-10:15 Camera Handling and Controls- The day begins with explanations of all key camera controls and how to properly set them. Shutter speeds, metering modes, shooting modes, histograms, ISO selection, aperture selection and focus points will be the main focus of this overview. Participants will be asked to set each control in their camera during this session. BRING YOUR CAMERA MANUALS TO THIS SESSION. For participants not using a Digital SLR, a couple extra cameras will be available to use during this session.
10:15-10:30- Break
10:30-12:00 Exposure and Lighting – Learn more about shutter speeds, aperture settings and ISO ratings and how they relate to each other. Explore the stops of light a camera can recognize versus the human eye, mid tone camera metering, and how to know when to make adjustments for the exposure reading provided by the camera. If you have ever had a photograph come out too light or dark, this class will help you prevent that from happening again. Learn about qualities and direction of light and the resulting influence on the image. Participants will practice photographing specific subjects so remember to bring your cameras. You do not need a digital SLR for this session.
12-1:00 Lunch
1:00-2:00 Composition for Nature Photography This class will focus on the essential elements of composition including the rule of thirds, subject placement, the impact of color on composition and elimination of distracting elements. Illustrations of which images types benefit by blurring portions of the images will be covered such as photographing birds to create those WOW images. Different lens types and focal lengths will be discussed as well as how to select a given lens for a specific scene.
2:00-2:30 Backpack Essentials -Polarizing filters, gradual neutral density filters, flashes, diffusers, and other goodies in the nature photographer’s backpack will be discussed. If you only have a pen sized flash light, an umbrella, or aluminum foil, you will be amazed at what you can do to enhance your image.
2:30-2:45 Break
2:45-3:45 Bringing it all together- This session will be a slide show of images that demonstrate the techniques covered in the above sessions. The class will be asked to discuss how they would approach photographing specific scenes during this session.
3:45-5:00 Practice makes Perfect- The group will move outside and be given specific assignments to photograph. The instructor will be available to work with each participant to guide them through the assignments.
Questions - email
