Photos are often some of a persons most treasured  possessions.  It is a record of that persons life, and documents many of their happiest days.   Most people have a camera of some sort.  Most people can appreciate a fine photograph.  Few can produce one with the exception of the happy accident.  Advanced automatic everything tends to make one think the camera can do it all for them.  Not true.  It takes knowledge, experience and patience to become a master of the image.  A master of the image is in control, not being controlled.

The World of Digital Photography

The digital camera and digital imaging has been one of the greatest advances in the history of photography.  It opens the door to many creative possiblities that although most could have been done with film, the cost and complexity to do so would have been prohibitive.  Now these are availble to anyone with simply a click of a button.

To really fully appreciate the possiblities it takes knowledge.  The instruction provided in workshops, classes and in private lessons is geared to build that foundation of knowledge to open the doors for your own vision and style.

The topics included will involve some basics on the charcteristics of light, what all those numbers mean when you are not on automatic, file formats, and how they all work together.  Other topics will include some basics on image editiing with Photoshop (though others will do many things just as well) being the primary focus.  Once you understand the relationship of how all these affect the final product, you are on your way to becoming the Master of the Image.

 Traditional Photography

Film is still  and important means of capturing an image, and will be for some time to come.  Having a negative or a slide to archive is a big advantage.  Who knows whether the hard drives we use now will even work with the computers that will be in use in 20 years.  Even if our image storage devices will work, will the computers then be able to read and use the files we save now?  Time will tell, but we know we can make a print from an image made from a negative or slide.

Learning about traditional analogy photography is not the waste of time many digital photographers believe it to be for one reason.  Most of the skills transfer in some way.  Often a few rolls of film can help a digital photographer understand why things developed as they are now.

Black and white film photography is an art form in and of itself.  It might surprise some to know that a well done black and white print will last longer than any color method of photography.  It offers creative ways to make a statement that can be done with no other methods.  Though digital black and whites have come a long way, in my opinion there still is nothing like and old school, done in a darkroom, black and white print.

Many topics that are covered apply to both film and digital.  Much of it is surprisely very similar.  Picking up a Canon digital SLR and a film SLR is a very comfortable transition, but there are some things that are different.  We will be exploring how different films react differently, how to get used to not having the display on the back to see if it all is working as expected, and how to have confidence that what you are doing is indeed working.

Some people use a combination of film and digital to create tImages.  That opens addition possibilities and unique problems.  These problems can be managed.  Yet to manage you must learn.

The instruction page goes into more detail about how things are taught.  Thanks for visiting and hope you are out there taking pictures at every opportunity, and that experience can make you a master of the image.