Course Details
This course continues where we left off in Shoot the Dog! with an emphasis in composition and basic post-production. Post-production work will be with an emphasis on enhancing our images, not as much on "fixing" them.
We will work primarily in Lightroom. You may use other photo editing software, but the instructor will be able to provide detailed technical support for only Lightroom (and equivalent processes in Photoshop).
If you want to get started in Lightroom before the class begins (and I recommend that you do!), there are a TON of online resources to introduce you to the basics, many of them free.
If you need a good quick start for Lightroom, you can get one at "The Lightroom Queen" by signing up for their mailing list.
http://www.lightroomqueen.com/quickstart/
If you don't want to stay on the mailing list, just sign up, get the free ebook, and then unsubscribe right away. I have an email address that is only used for things like this so that it doesn't clutter up my main inbox. You could sign up for a Gmail account that you would then use exclusively for mailing lists and other things related to photography, including this class.
Lightroom will do everything you need for this class. If you are using Photoshop, everything we do in Lightroom for this class will have a Photoshop corollary.
This course will be somewhat less lecture-based and more photo lab/assignment based. Expect 1-2 assignments per week, plus additional submissions with revisions to your images based on instructor feedback.
Please do not sign up for a Gold or Silver level spot if you have not completed the first level of Shoot the Dog! Knowledge and a mastery of the basic skills from that class will be assumed. This includes, but is not limited to, a strong understanding of and ability to use manual exposure mode to take photos, as well as a basic understanding of the "Rule of Thirds."
A lack of prerequisites will not prevent a person from enrolling at the bronze level.
Registration
There are no scheduled sessions for this class at this time. We update our schedule frequently, so please
subscribe to our mailing list for notifications.
Registration begins at 10:30 AM PDT.
Enrollment limits: 12 gold, 10 silver, unlimited bronze. If you are interested in a bronze level spot you can sign up any time during the registration period.
Syllabus
Week 1: Review of elements of exposure and composition Rule of Thirds
Week 2: Introduction to post-production
Week 3 - 5: Other composition models
Week 6: Final Portfolio Project
Prerequisites and Equipment
Please do not sign up for a Gold or Silver level spot if you have not completed the first level of Shoot the Dog! Knowledge and a mastery of the basic skills from that class will be assumed. This includes, but is not limited to, a strong understanding of and ability to use manual exposure mode to take photos, as well as a basic understanding of the "Rule of Thirds."
Digital DSLR camera and lens(es)
POST PROCESSING SOFTWARE - Photoshop and/or Lightroom are strongly preferred
You can sign up for a subscription to Adobe's Creative Cloud software here:
https://creative.adobe.com/plans?store_code=en&promoid=KSDPZ
Select the "Photography" plan for $10/month. This will give you both Photoshop CC and Lightroom.
If you want to get started in Lightroom before the class starts (and I recommend that you do!), there are a TON of online resources to introduce you to the basics, many of them free.
You can find an excellent quick start guide at "The Lightroom Queen" and get it for free by signing up for their mailing list.
http://www.lightroomqueen.com/quickstart/
If you don't want to stay on the mailing list, just sign up, get the free ebook, and then unsubscribe right away. I have an email address that is only used for things like this so that it doesn't clutter up my main inbox. You could sign up for a Gmail account that you would then use exclusively for mailing lists and other things related to photography, including this class.
Lightroom will do everything you need for this class. If you are using Photoshop, everything we do in Lightroom for this class will have a Photoshop corollary.
MONITOR CALIBRATION: This is optional, but I strongly recommend that you calibrate your laptop or desktop computer monitor to get the best and most consisitent color and brightness results from your post-processing.
Here's what I recommend as a basic calibration package:
http://www.amazon.com/X-Rite-CMUNSML-ColorMunki-Smile/dp/B009APMNB0/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1451507779&sr=8-6&keywords=xrite
If you want to spend a little more, this is the one I use:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0055MBQOW/ref=sr_ph?ie=UTF8&qid=1451507779&sr=1&keywords=xrite
Course Testimonials
A Sampling of what prior students have said about this course ......
Shoot the Dog 2 was a great class. I had never used Lightroom and only knew how to do some basic cropping in Photoshop. Amy taught us how to organize and manage our photos, critical when you end up shooting several hundred or even several thousand photos at a dog event or even on vacation. It was quite overwhelming to me before to process those photos. Now I have a great system that is much more efficient and produces better results. We also learned how to enhance our photos to get the very best result from each one. And, we also continued to improve our shooting skills, composing much better photographs. I was a pure novice before I started her series of classes. I had never owned a digital SLR before. I have learned an incredible amount in these Shoot the Dog classes. I cannot recommend them highly enough. Shoot the Dog 1 made me comfortable with my camera and taught me how to shoot on manual settings. Shoot the Dog 2 carried me to an even higher level of shooting and taught me what to do with the photos afterwards. Dana N.
The best way to do this course is at gold level, but even at bronze, there was lots to information and reading the individual feedback for gold students was very informative.
This is my second Shoot the Dog class with Amy. She is wonderful! I have learned so much and she is so supportive.
Amy is the BEST!! Always makes us think. Obviously loves her topic of interest. Very talented.
Thank you Amy for great instruction and feedback!
