Craftsy Class Review: Creative Photography with George Lange

Welcome to Creative Photography: Capture Life Differently, with George Lange.

This one was a quick finish for me--I allowed myself to simply watch all the lessons to absorb what tips and tricks I could before heading out to my summer work events this weekend--events at which I tend to end up being the de facto "official photographer."

I had to think through how I was going to review this class. For me, I didn't actually get a whole lot of new information out of it. Most of it turned out to be things I already knew--which I suppose makes me feel better about what I apparently already do pretty well. I've been working on my composition and ability to tell a story through photos for a long time, and taking this class really just confirmed for me that I've learned a lot over the years!

But for someone who is just getting into photography or who would like to step it up in terms of composition and telling stories with photos, this would be an excellent class.

One of my all-time fave pics I took of DD when she was about 8. This photo exemplifies things Lange talks about in the class.

First off: This is a composition class, not a settings class. In other words, the techniques you learn are related to how to set up a shot, how to use ambient (natural) lighting, how to create a scene, how to capture a moment/mood/feeling, and so forth. It's not about which f-stop or shutter speed to use. In fact, he really only loosely references settings in a backhand way once in awhile. (For that kind of information, check out my review of Basics of Digital Photography with Rick Allred.) The point of this class is all about capturing the subject matter most effectively, and conveying a mood.

The good news is, that means you can get a lot out of this class even if you're taking pictures on your cell phone. The principles are the same regardless of how you're capturing your shot. (He even starts right out in the first lesson saying that!)

The second thing I appreciated about this class is that he discusses in one lesson issues around sharing photos on social media. He makes some very good points that I think it would behoove all of us to pay attention to. I've not seen that covered in other photography classes yet, and I liked the fact that he addressed it.

He does also have good examples of lighting and action shots, and talks about "between moments" (in other words, take lots of pictures without worrying yet about which one is the "hero shot," as he calls it). I'll probably be using my "sports" setting a lot more at my events next week, which makes my camera take several quick photos in succession when I click the shutter. What you think might be the best shot when you're taking them may change when you see all your pictures later.

DS when he was 3.  Another photo that exemplifies things Lange discusses in the Craftsy class. (Can you see the Easter egg?)

I think what I found lacking in terms of my needs and what I was hoping to get out of this class was that most of his examples seemed to be based on things he could control: He set up shots, he put people in positions where the lighting would be best, he asked them to get into certain poses or do certain kinds of actions, and so forth. For me, I'm shooting completely candid shots in the middle of events where lighting is often quite iffy (I hate hotel conference centers!), I have no control over where people are sitting or standing, and I'm trying to be as unobtrusive (invisible) as possible. I was hoping he might address how to work in those situations a little more. Still, I have some new ideas about angles I might use or situations I might take better advantage of, and certainly many of his set-up shots are meant to mimic candids so I had some take-aways from that as well.

Again, I clearly walked into this class with a pretty solid foundation on composition, so there were only moments of newness for me. But for someone who hasn't spent as much time working on her photography as I have, there may well be a lot of new and useful information here.

Lange clearly loves his work and finds creative ways to make his points--certain phrases will definitely stick in my head. And I did love seeing his photos--great stuff. If you would like to see your photos more creatively composed, I do recommend this class.

The Basics:

• 7 lessons, ranging from six minutes (intro lesson) to 25 minutes. Most are in the 10-15 minute range.
• Lessons include "Do the Unexpected," "Create a Stage," "Be in the Moment," "Beyond Good Enough," "Capture All of Life," and "Social Sensitivity."
• You do not need any particularly kind of camera to take this class. Again, it's all about composition, not settings or lenses or anything technical.
• He spends a fair amount of time on photos of children, so those of you with kids, take heed!

Again, that's Creative Photography: Capture Life Differently with George Lange. (As of this posting, it's still 50% off!)

(Usual transparency statement: clicking on Craftsy links in this post helps support this blog and podcast. Thanks!)

Craftsy Class Review--Shoot It! A Product Photography Primer

Yet another Craftsy class finish! This time, we're talking about Shoot It! A Product Photography Primer with Caro Sheridan. I watched this class in its entirety while I was on vacation in Savannah last week (and, in fact, blew out my data plan allotment for the month by doing so on my iPad but it was well worth it!).

If you've got a blog or an Etsy shop, you really ought to get this class. I took photography in high school and have done a fair amount of self-study in it, but have gotten--admittedly--lazy in recent years. I used to be a much better photographer than I am now. I still have a decent eye for composition, but when it comes to taking the time to make sure I've got really well composed, nice looking photos on my blog, I only manage that about a quarter of the time. The rest of the time, I have a "Lookie! I'm finished! Let me quick snap something on my cell phone, upload it, and call it a day!" attitude.

Frankly, I really want to get over myself on that one. I would like to have much better photos on my blog, so I need to make a bit of a mental commitment to that. I can't guarantee that'll happen consistently, but it's something I'm going to...(wait for it)...shoot for more often in 2014.

Back to the class. I enjoyed Caro Sheridan as a teacher. She clearly knows her stuff, and in the class she illustrates her points with a lot of examples so you get the visual of how the background can really add or detract to the subject of your photo, and so forth. And she goes more in-depth than just "get rid of the clutter around it," which I do generally remember to do, even if it's just a quick sweep of my arm across the top of my cutting table to clear it off. She talks about the use of color in the background to highlight your product/subject, lighting and shadows, tools to use that make lighting issues a little easier, composition, and how to tell a story with your shot. She addresses using a point-and-shoot or your phone camera as well as more sophisticated cameras--so you don't have to have a whizz-bang camera to take this class! Probably better than 85% of the information in the class is applicable regardless of what you're using.

If I ever do have an Etsy shop for my hand-dyes, I'm definitely going back and reviewing this class again. For now, though, I've been inspired to drag out the manual on my good digital camera to refresh my memory on some of the settings (said laziness has led me to rely on auto settings far more than is good for me)--which also means, seeing if I can learn to love this camera. I still miss my old one and just haven't bonded with this one even after owning it a couple of years, so I'm giving it another few months before I decide if it's really just a learning curve thing, or if I really need to go back to my original line of camera. I've also been inspired to see if I can set up some sort of studio space in my basement to get better photos of my hand-dyes and small projects. I only need a table (hmmm...a retired cutting table, perhaps?), a few different colored back-drops (solid colored sheets to hang on the wall and drape over the table), and probably a couple of lights and light reflectors on stands--all things I can jury-rig together using hints from this class and stuff I find at Goodwill.

One of the other things I've been inspired to do based on this class is a Self-Portrait Project--the topic of her last lesson. She offers several very helpful tips in how to get a good self-portrait and suggests taking one a day for several days, playing with poses, lighting, camera settings, and so forth. Not only will you get a really good self-portrait out of it eventually but, as she says, you'll also likely deal with some of your own self-image issues. And that's something worth working on!

So I highly recommend this class. I really enjoyed it and, even with a pretty solid foundation of photography experience under my belt, got a lot of very helpful tips and ideas--and plenty of inspiration!

The basics:

• 10 lessons, ranging from 6 minutes to nearly 30 minutes. The average is around 15 minutes.
• Lessons begin with an introduction, in which Caro Sheridan talks about her own background and experience.
• The next lesson is "motivations and style," which talks about why you'd want decent photos in the first place, as well as tips for developing your own style of photography. She offers some very helpful suggestions about how to discover what your style might be that believe I'm going to be trying out.
• She then goes through color theory and composition in the next couple of lessons, spends a lesson on prepping for a shoot, another lesson on the shoot itself, then she talks about camera settings, editing, post processing, and the self-portrait project in the remaining lessons.
• The lessons also have sprinkled through good information on working with a model (i.e., if you want someone wearing the sweater you just knit, or wrapped in a quilt, or whatever), including permissions and helpful tips about getting them more comfortable in front of a camera; they also include information about getting permissions for location shots and other considerations.

Again, I highly recommend this class. Here's the link again: Shoot It! A Product Photography Primer with Caro Sheridan. (Usual transparency statement applies: Using that link to purchase the class helps support this blog and podcast.)

I haven't had anything quilty to practice photography on since I got home, really, and it's still too dang cold to go outside for nice nature shots. Therefore, my dogs are getting plenty of attention. Here's a photo gallery from me playing with some nifty flash settings I didn't know I had on my camera the other night.

Sam the Ham was game. He posed, he smiled, he brought me a toy just in case I wanted a prop.

Spencer wouldn't look at me, kept creeping away, and finally started diving under the couch every time I got the camera out. Princess Doggie and I need to come to some sort of arrangement.

(If you're getting this blog by email, you might not see the gallery. Sorry--you'll just need to go to the blog for it.)

Snowstorm January 2014

We got a lot, but a manageable amount, of snow--the plows have been able to keep up with it well, although it's still pretty slick driving. This is one of those days that I'm extra glad to be a tele-commuter (to use an old-school term).

We're also fortunate enough not to be getting quite the horribly frigid temps of other areas, although it's single-digits. I ventured outdoors just long enough to take a few pictures in the yard, because there's nothing I like more than seeing pine trees covered in snow.

Spencer (Princess Doggie)--who normally gives up on the outdoors two minutes into her walk on cold days--took off into the woods and was rollicking about in snowdrifts like nobody's business. I think she figured if she just kept moving fast enough she was good to go--and there were those dang, nasty squirrels to protect me from, after all. Sam (Doofus), on the other hand, who normally loves burying his face in snowdrifts...

I took them both back inside as quickly as I could and spent a couple of minutes getting ice chunks out from between his toes. Poor guy--the downside of all that pretty Golden fur is it's an ice-magnet.

They both immediately flaked out in front of the fireplace. I don't think they'll be asking to go outside again any time soon. And, since it's supposed to just keep getting colder as the day wears on, I think we're all just going to hunker down.

Good day for sewing, and perhaps some baking.