Photography Courses and Workshops: February 2020

Kate Woodward

The following list describes sample photography courses and workshops from a variety of providers. Note that the providers generally have many additional courses or workshops on their websites. The courses/workshops are organized around three categories: (1) Classes and Workshops in the DC Area, (2) Online Courses, and (3) Multi-day Photography Trips to Places Within and Beyond the United States.

Please suggest additional course/workshop providers for future editions of this list.

You are also invited to provide descriptions of courses/workshops you have taken and recommend, for the Cable Release. Email me at info@ssccphotography.org or cablereleaseeditor@ssccphotography.org

Note: Inclusion in this list is not an endorsement of the provider or the particular course/workshop.

1. Courses/Workshops in the Washington, DC Area

The sample courses listed in this section are available either in February or March 2020.

Don Becker Photography

  • Setting: Classroom
  • Duration of Courses:  Half or full day
  • Sample Courses: Glamour Portraiture of ModelKelly

See http://www.donbeckerphotography.com/upcoming-workshops/

Capital Photography Center

  • Setting: Classroom or in the field
  • Duration of Courses: Generally, multiple hours or full day
  • Sample Courses:
    • Exploring Macro Photography
    • Lightroom in a Day
    • National Cathedral: an Insider’s View
    • Take Your Photography to the Next Level
    • Editing for Portraiture

And other courses at http://capitalphotographycenter.com/classes/   

Note: Capital Photography Center and Washington Photo Safari, listed below, sometimes co-offer workshops. Also, see Michael Koren, below, for courses sometimes offered through Capital Photography Center. Capital Photography Center is offering one tour in Section 3.

Dramatic Product Photography Group Meetup (Michael Pucciarelli)

  • Setting: Classroom
  • Duration of Courses: Multiple hours
  • Sample Courses:
    • Natural Lighting with Non-flash Workshop
    • Natural Lighting with Flash Workshop
    • Flash Lighting Workshop

See https://www.meetup.com/Rockville-Dramatic-Product-Photography-Group/

Note: Michael Pucciarelli is a member of the Silver Spring Camera Club.

Glen Echo Park (Photoworks)

  • Setting: Mostly classroom, but a few in the field
  • Duration of Courses: Generally, multiple hours or multiple sessions
  • Sample Courses
    • Skills: Starting a Documentary Photo Project
    • Skills: Photoshop Adjustment Layers & Masks
    • Vision: Advanced Photo Seminar-Next Steps
    • Vision Selecting and Sequencing Photos
    • Vision: Say What You Mean

And other courses at http://www.ssreg.com/glenechopark/classes/classes.asp?catID=4403&pcatID=4379

Michael Koren Photography

  • Setting: Classroom or in the field
  • Duration of Courses: Multiple hours or multiple sessions
  • Sample Courses:
    • Smartphone Photography: Getting Started at the National Gallery of Art
    • Photographic Composition – Essential Techniques
    • Artistic Expression through Photography: Phones and Tablets
    • Smartphone Photography – Getting Started at the National American Indian Museum

And other courses at https://www.michaelkorenphotography.com/teaching-schedule/

Note: Michael Koren was formerly president of the Silver Spring Camera Club and is currently a director. His courses are offered through Capital Photography Center and Montgomery College Lifelong Learning Institute. These two vendors are listed in this section, but you can access Michael Koren’s courses through his Website.

Montgomery College Community Arts

  • Setting: Classroom
  • Duration of Courses: Multiple sessions
  • Sample Courses:
    • Special Topics in Photography: Exploring Light

And other courses at https://www.montgomerycollege.edu/workforce-development-continuing-education/community-arts/index.html

Montgomery College Lifelong Learning Institute, Workforce Development & Continuing Education

  • Setting: Classroom
  • Duration of Courses: Multiple sessions
  • Sample Courses: Digital Photography for Fine Arts II

And other courses at http://aceitoc.montgomerycollege.edu/course/courselistings.aspx Select Lifelong Learning Institute/Photography

Smithsonian Associates

  • Setting: Mostly classroom, but a few in the field
  • Duration of Courses: Multiple hours, full day, or multiple sessions
  • Sample Courses:
    • Photographic Creativity, Design, and Composition
    • Exhibiting and Selling Your Photographs
    • Creativity is a Keystroke Away (on GNU Image Manipulation Program )
    • Introduction to Lightroom
    • Introduction to iPhone Photography

And other courses at https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/events/photography

Washington Photo Safari

  • Setting: Mostly in the field but a few in the classroom
  • Duration of Courses: Multiple hours or full day (occasionally two days) 
  • Sample Courses:
    • Overview of DC: CEB Tower at the Golden Hour
    • Library of Congress Open House at the Main Reading Room
    • Inside and Outside the Spectacular U.S. Institute of Peace Building
    • Sunset and Twilight from the Kennedy Center Terrace Rooftop
    • Adobe Photoshop I

And other courses at https://washingtonphotosafari.com/   

2. Online Courses

Coursera

Coursera is an online venue for courses taught by various universities and other institutions. Coursera offers MOOC’s—massive open online courses. You can generally audit the courses, particularly the video lectures, for free. Paid tuition allows you to submit work and to receive a certificate for work completed, as well as access to additional areas of the online classroom, To audit or pay for the courses, you will need to enroll. Courses are offered at various times throughout the year, but if you are auditing, you can enroll at other times and have access to course materials. Note also that courses stay on your account beyond the announced time allotted for the course.

  • Seeing through Photographs, Museum of Modern Art (6-week commitment)
  • Coursera offers the following 5-course specialization, Photography Basics and Beyond: From Smartphone to DSLR, University of Michigan. (4-week commitment per course).
    • Cameras, Exposure, and Photography
    • Camera Control
    • Principles of Photo Composition and Digital Image Post-Production
    • Photography Techniques: Light, Content & Sharing
    • Photography Capstone Project

See  https://www.coursera.org/courses?languages=en&query=photography

Note: Coursera also has other courses relevant to photography (such as Film, Images, & Historical Interpretation in the 20th Century: The Camera Never Lies; Copyright for Multimedia; Telling a Branding Story through Images; Making Architecture; Modern Art and Ideas; Introduction to Imagemaking; and a Specialization in Graphic Design).

Kelby One

Kelby One (run by Scott Kelby) is an online monthly (or annual) course subscription service. With its most complete subscription option, you are offered 700+ courses, along with access to its two magazines: Photoshop User and Lightroom Magazine. Photography topics range from technical skills and software training to artistic aspects of photography. While a few of KelbyOne courses are listed below, you might want to simply search for your particular interests. You may try out approximately 15 designated courses for free, prior to subscribing, if you sign up for an account.

  • How to Infuse You into Your Photography
  • Composition: the Strongest Way of Seeing
  • Get Up to Speed Fast on the New Photoshop 2020
  • Creating 3-D Effects with 2D Filters
  • Scott Kelby’s 2019 Simplified Lightroom Image Management System

And other courses at https://kelbyone.com

You may also want to explore Scott Kelby’s free video series on YouTube—The Grid—which contains critiques of photos submitted online. Recently, he has also added some short photo tip videos. https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=The+Grid%3A+Scott+Kelby

Lynda.com (Linked-In)

Lynda.com is an online monthly (or annual) course subscription service with hundreds of photography courses; it is now available free with a Montgomery County Public Library card (https://montgomerycountymd.libguides.com/az.php?q=lynda.com) . The DC Public Library also offers free access, and Lynda.com provides a free month-long trial subscription.

Courses consist of multiple video lectures, and they vary in length from less than an hour to more than 5 hours. Photography topics range from technical skills and software training to artistic aspects of photography. Courses can be searched by skill level (beginner through advanced), topic, software, and professor; searches will also yield parts of courses on a particular topic. While a few courses are listed below, you might want to simply search for your particular interests and skill level.

  • Lynda.com offers weekly photography tips/instruction videos, from six of its instructors:
    • Photo Critique of the Week with Steve Simon
    • Mobile Photography Weekly with Sean Duggan
    • The Practicing Photographer and Creativity for All, both with Ben Long
    • Photo Tools Weekly with Chris Orwig
    • Photo Gear Weekly with Tim Grey
    • Deke’s Techniques with Deke McClelland
  • Learning Natural Light Portrait Photography
  • Lightroom Classic CC: Creative Color
  • Photoshop 2020: New Features
  • Learning Food and Drink Photography

And other courses at https://montgomerycountymd.libguides.com/az.php?q=lynda.com  (or subscription at https://www.lynda.com/ )

Photographic Society of America (PSA)

Online courses are offered free with membership and usually last a few months.

  • Creating Competitive Images
  • Portraits in Available Light
  • Still Life Photography
  • The History of Photography
  • A Portfolio Experience

And other courses at https://psa-photo.org/index.php?education-online-courses

Note: Membership also includes study groups, mentoring, and a digital library.

3. Multi-Day Photography Trips Within and Beyond the United States

Note that some trips sell out quickly, even when they are scheduled for six to ten months in the future.

Art Wolfe

  • Madagascar Photo Journey
  • Olympic Peninsula Workshop (WA)
  • Namibia Photo Journey

And other trips at https://events.artwolfe.com/events/category/workshops/

Nikhil Bahl Photography

  • Chincoteague Island Spring Workshop (VA)
  • Iceland Summer Photography Tour: Birds and Landscapes

See http://www.nikhilbahl.com/photography_workshops.html)

Mark Buckler

  • Wild Horses of the Outer Banks
  • Night Photography on the Outer Banks
  • Polar Bears of Svalband (Artic Circle)

And other trips at http://bucklerphoto.com/all-photo-adventures

Capital Photography Center

  • Snow Geese at Middle Creek

See http://capitalphotographycenter.com/classes/ See also, Capital Photography Center in Section 1.

EMS Photo Adventures (Essdras M. Suarez)

  • India’s Golden Triangle
  • Lens on Panama

And other trips at http://emsphotoadventures.com 

Note: See also Suarez’s Photo Guidance, provided as a menu item at this site

Joseph Rossbach Photography

  • Olympic National Park
  • The Palouse Eastern Washington
  • West Virginia Highlands

And others at https://www.josephrossbach.com/photography-workshops

Note: See also Rossbach’s Photo Blog, provided as a menu item at this site.

Joseph Van Os Photo Safaris

  • Nambia
  • Ultimate Galapagos
  • Bulgaria

And other trips at http://photosafaris.com

Osprey Photo Workshops & Tours

  • Assateague Island National Seashore Photo Workshop
  • Tangier Island Photo Workshop

And other trips at http://www.ospreyphoto.com/

Road Runner Photography Tours

  • Patagonia – Argentina and Chile
  • Zimanga African Safari, South Africa

And other trips at https://roadrunnerphotographytours.com/photography-tours/2020-photography-tours/

Note: Road Runner has free YouTube video tutorials linked on its Website: see http://roadrunnerphotographytours.com/learning/video-tutorials/ See also its Meetup Schedule at https://www.meetup.com/Road-Runner-Photography-Tours/

Tony Sweet

  • Ellis Island
  • Palouse Harvest (WA)
  • Badlands, South Dakota

And other trips at https://tonysweet.com/

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