Betterphoto.com

[jcs727]

Has anyone here ever heard of this on line photography workshop? Anyone heard about the courses they offer? I have been taking photos for about a year now, always on all auto settings. I want to learn more about the manual settings and photography in general. This site seems to offer courses that are very reasonable. Any one have any information about them. Thanks.

[another view]

Never heard of it so I checked it out. Jim Zuckerman has a beginning photography class which might be a good one for you. A quick look at it shows that it talks about manual settings first. I know his work is great, but know nothing about him as a person. Some people are great photographers and bad teachers but it looks like he has a lot of good feedback and several classes with them, so I'm sure he's fine. With more advanced classes, who teaches is at least as important as what they teach but don't worry about that too much yet.

At $267 US, you'll probably get your money's worth because they do limit enrollment (not sure to what though). It's always best to meet someone and talk face to face but this is probably a good way to start. Heck, there's us here too and we're a lot cheaper! Just glad to see someone else willing to jump away from auto settings - they have their place but not all the time.

[jcs727]

thanks so much for looking into that for me. i have heard of a few of their teachers and while it is no guarantee that they will be good, at least it is better than an unknown..thanks for your insight. i appreciate it..anyone with any personal knowledge out there??

[jcs727]

by the way, another view, any reason you suggested Zuckerman as opposed to any of the other instructors. Any personal knowledge? Or that class just seemed the best suited to teach the essentials? Just curious.

[another view]

Just recognized the name, that's all. This one looks pretty good too, maybe even better. Then there's the New York Institute of Photography - get on their mailing list and they'll send you a lot of stuff for a long time! If you don't register right away they'll send discount offers (hint, if it looks interesting ;) ).

I have no personal experience with any of these myself though. I think getting the basics down with one of their courses is probably a great way to learn how to control the camera to get the shot you want. NYIP is a longer course and more in depth - and more expensive IIRC.

The Rocky Mountain School of Photography has weekend classes all over the country. I went to one about three years ago and it was great. You pick your own two-hour long classes, about three a day, from varied subjects. Might want to do that after learning the basics because some of the classes they offer are very unique and it would be best to have a little more technical skill to take them. Lots of great workshops out there...!

[Dzerzhinski46]

I think the first thing you should ask yourself is, "what skill level do I consider myself to be?". If you consider yourself a beginner, I would say go for a beginner course. Actually, a better place to start is by you telling us what you understand about the technical aspects of photography. Do you know what aperture and shutter speed mean, do you know how they affect your picture, etc. In other words, do you know (or would you like to know) some of the basic principles associated with photography? If this is the case, then I would go for the beginner option.

And don't be embarrased by this. So much of photography is based on basic principles. It is good to have the basics down, because then, you can actually understand what you are doing, even if you are not on manual. I actually started out at the opposite end of the spectrum from you, all manual. I am now just starting a course in basic photography, after 6 or 8 months of doing it on my own. I must say that it has helped solidify some of the more complex concepts of photography in my mind. Another thing you might want to do while you are taking a course, is to read a book on basic photography. This can give you double coverage, if your class doesn't make sense on a certain point, or vice versa. Hope this helps, and sorry for being long winded.

Dzerzhinski

[jcs727]

Thank you for the comments. I would consider myself a true beginner. I have read some books but have difficulty grasping some of the concepts. I think that I am more of a hands on learner and that one of these courses with the feedback might be just what I need. I am going to look into them further and I will let you know how it goes. Thanks again.