Description
Photography Course Details
Duration: 2 Consecutive Days / 10am – 4pm
Location: Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, UK
Date: This is a 1-2-1 course, book a date that suits you.
No. Participants: Up to two people can attend this course at no additional cost.
We Also Run This Course In: London & Bristol
Gift Vouchers For This Course Are Available Here
Take Control Of Your Photography With Professional Photographer Paul David Smith.
If you are really looking to get to grips with your photography then this 2 day course is designed to take you from beginner to intermediate in no time at all. Paul will teach you not only how your camera camera works, but also the key skills you will need as a photographer away from your camera settings like lighting, composition, editing and more.
Day One
We’ll get you shooting in manual mode. We’ll cover the exposure triangle, teaching you how your camera actually works and understanding aperture, shutter speed and ISO. These are key skills anybody looking to progress with their photography should learn.
If you have ever tried to read your camera manual or perhaps you have watched YouTube videos in order to learn, you might be finding yourself somewhat confused still as it is often made out to be far more difficult than it actually is. Paul has been teaching people how to shoot in manual mode on their camera since 2008 and has taught hundreds of people how to do it in just a single day.
You may not feel it, however you are far smarter than your camera and when you start to take full control, putting in your own settings, this is when your images start to improve dramatically because your camera simply doesn’t know what is happening in front of it and in an auto mode, it often gets it wrong.
This course is designed to break down all the technical jargon and just teach you what all the buttons and functions on your camera actually do and how you will use them on a day to day basis.
Day Two
We’ll look at composition and using an external flash. The camera settings are the tools to do the job, but as a photographer you’ll need to add your own artistic touches to your photographs to help convey the story to the viewer. There are lots of composition techniques that professionals use time and again because they work to make your images stand above other peoples and we’ll teach you these tricks of the trade.
We’ll also look at how artificial lighting like flashes, strobes and constant light sources affect your image. Did you know the ancient Greek translation for the word Photography translates as “drawing with light”. When it comes to taking great photographs lighting is everything and knowing how to use light to your advantage will make a huge difference to your photographs.
Lastly we’ll cover editing and everything else you’ll need to know to get from beginner to intermediate. Paul uses both Adobe Lightroom and Adobe Photoshop to edit his images and you’ll spend some time editing the photographs that you have taken during the course. You’ll learn how Paul edits his images from start to finish and his exact workflow for storing and managing his image library.
Other Things You Will Learn On This Workshop:
- Take control & get out of auto mode.
- Benefits of using P, S, TV, A, AV or M modes.
- How to shoot pin sharp images every time.
- Blur backgrounds using aperture.
- Master difficult lighting conditions.
- Understand ISO and the exposure triangle.
- Camera equipment advice.
- Use different White Balance settings.
- Stop motion using shutter speeds.
- How to avoid out of focus images.
- Understand lenses and focal lengths.
- Master composition for strong images.
- Post-production image techniques.
- You tell me what you’re struggling with!
FAQ’s
Do I Need Certain Skills Or Equipment To Attend?
This beginners photography course in Peterborough requires no specific skills to attend. The only equipment you will need to bring with you is your camera and lenses.
Can You Recommend Camera Equipment For Me Prior To Me Attending?
I get a lot of requests for help with camera equipment recommendations, almost daily in fact and offer a Personalised Photography Equipment Recommendation service which you can find by clicking here.
Recommending a camera and the best lenses to buy really has lots of different factors involved in it which need to be investigated first such as what the equipment will be most used for, budgets, your expectations on image quality, your current level and aspirations, etc. Hence the above service so we can really drill down into finding you the best equipment.
Alternatively, some people attend my courses and borrow a camera from me for the day to do so, we can then incorporate this recommendation as part of the course at no extra cost. The benefit of doing it this way is that I have a lot of cameras and lenses you can try and see the difference between prior to purchasing anything. The downside is your not learning on your own equipment of course, so there are pluses and minuses to doing it both ways, it depends on what you think works best for you.
Are You DBS Checked?
Paul is DBS checked and is happy to share a copy of his DBS certificate with any client, no matter whether they are a business, charity, organisation or individual.
You can read more about Paul’s DBS check here.
What Is The Refund / Date Re-arrangement Policy?
Our Course Cancellation & Re-Arrangement Policy Can Be Found Here.
Kevin –
It was the most informative two days of my life. Paul was brilliant at explaining things and provided easy to use routines and triggers to help remember. I am eternally grateful.
Abbas –
Having purchased a mirrorless camera, I tried various auto, aperture and shutter priority modes and genuinely could not get a single sharp photo.
After a quick search, I found Paul’s course and figured there were enough positive reviews to give it a shot.
What a fantastic course! In about a couple of hours, I was taking pictures in manual mode and they were sharp. The flash training was perfect as most of my photos seem to be indoors with limited light, so without the flash, I would not have been able to take them.
The two day course has taken someone with very limited experience, to fully understanding the exposure triangle, using flash, filters, wireless trigger, photo stacking/stitching, Lightroom editing, manual white balancing etc…
Paul is a great tutor and his ability to predict the results before the picture is even taken is uncanny. Genuinely and enjoyable and worthwhile course. You will not be disappointed!
Sarah & Gavin –
Joining Paul for 2 days is hands down the best investment we have ever made in our photography, without question. Yes we could have bought another lens, but there is simply no way it would have improved our work as much as this course did. Paul was able to answer all of our questions clearly and in an easy to understand manner. Things that had stumped us for years felt like they became simple to understand in just minutes and we learnt so much that we just didn’t know we needed to know in the first place! Are our photographs notably improved compared to prior to the course? Yes, absolutely they are. This is testament to Paul’s abilities not only as a photographer but as a teacher as well.
Kerry Anne –
So what happens when you can barely turn on a camera and you spend 2 days with a professional photographer? Well my family didn’t believe I took the shots I showed them from the course, that’s what! I am shocked at not only how much we covered on this workshop, but how much of it has absolutely stuck more than a few weeks on. Paul has a knack for teaching, he’s so relaxed with it all and teaches in a way that when you pick the camera up, you find yourself doing the same routine each and every time which just makes it stick. I’m taking photographs in manual mode, I only bought the camera a few days before the course and hadn’t used one before! I’m balancing the ambient light with flash, I didn’t even own a speedlight at the time of the course, but now I’m confidently using one on my own. I’m editing my photos on my computer and knowing what everything does and how it affects the photographs. Incredible! You might think this course is expensive, you’d be wrong. It’s an investment in my future which has taken years off of my learning and I’m so pleased I booked it. Thank you so much for all your time, effort and hard work Paul.
Jason –
This course was everything that I was looking for in a photography workshop and more. Spending 2 days with Paul has taken me from knowing little more than how to switch the camera on and grab a shot, to shooting in manual mode, using artificial lighting and flash when needed, knowing good composition techniques to use and understanding how to edit my photographs for a professional finish. Paul ensured my questions were answered and that I fully understood what he was teaching. I learn’t so much on this course I would very highly recommend it.
James –
Just an incredible course from start to finish, thank you so much Paul. I learnt far more on this course than I had ever imagined I would. It was the perfect blend of theory and practical, every time something was explained we grabbed our cameras and put it into practice so we could see it happening straight away, right before our eyes. Paul was very friendly and relaxed, it felt like nothing was too much trouble for him and I felt like I could ask questions without fear of feeling silly. I’m now feeling so much more confident with my camera and I cannot wait to put everything that I have learnt into practice when I go on my travels.
Mark Hammond –
I joined Paul’s 2 day beginners photography course in Peterborough and was very impressed with the manner in which he teaches photography and manages to get me understanding something that no amount of books or videos have been able to teach me to date. Paul explained everything in a way I could understand and was open to me asking questions throughout the course, taking the time not only to explain the answers but often grabbing his camera and showing it in a practical way which was great. I came with the aim of trying to understand aperture, shutter speed and ISO and I’ve never had it demonstrated in such a clear and precise way. Paul was great from start to finish and we had lots of laughs and fun along the way which really made it an enjoyable experience.
Janet Moore –
I wasn’t sure about doing a photography course, I knew it depended entirely upon the tutor and their abilities to teach as to whether I’d get what I wanted out of it, but Paul was absolutely superb. I knew from the moment he came in, shook my hand and took the time to listen to what I wanted to get out of the course that he really cares about people progressing their skills on his courses and his passion for photography is infectious.
What I liked especially was that he teaches the theory and then instantly gets you doing the practical which really cements in what he has just taught. The course is 1-2-1 which means he spends the entire time focusing on progressing your skills and abilities.
Paul is a fantastic tutor, he simplifies everything in an easy to understand manner and I’ll certainly be back to continue to photography learning with him.