Courses / Training

[qasim]

Can anyone suggest good courses or training? I'm amateur looking to go to the next level, self taught from use and books, Internet etc.

I've so far looked at Karl Taylor's offerings and keep getting emails from the Photography Institute. Has anyone tried these? How did you find them? Good value? Expanded your techniques?

I'm open to try anything new but really want a structured learning course / books / videos etc and I don't mind going back to basics as long as I end up further ahead than where I am now.

Thanks for your help

[wave01]

why not join a local photography club there will people there who will pass on knowledge. most are pretty cheap for a years membership and most will let you come along for a couple weeks to see if you like it

[wavemachine]

Also keep an eye out locally, I managed to get on a six week course (3 hours once a week) with a local pro for £90 it was a total bargain and I picked up some great techniques.

Another thing worth considering is going to some of the county shows, usually there are 1 or 2 pro's who offer 1 to 1 training or small groups!

[HiLighters]

How about Kelby Training?
Any guys have the experiences to take this online course?
http://kelbytraining.com/

[Diveandfly]

I have had two Kelby DVD/books which were very useful but I have not used his website training. The Karl Taylor DVD's are good and you can learn from them but they are a little 'that's how you do it' and don't quite arm you for doing it yourself.

Early on in my photography I brought the Photography Institue course, thankfully they had a big price reduction on so I did not pay full price. To be honest I wish I'd spent the money on a 'hands on course'. Very little was learnt about improving my photography, a lot was learnt about the history of photography and large/medium format but that's not what I wanted from it. When it came to taking pictures and having them assessed, I feel I could have gained the same feedback from one of many forums on the Internet.

I have never been a member of a camera club so cannot add much to that suggestion. But the advice of wavemachine is worth considering. My only word of warning is to check out the credentials of the Pro, there are a lot of self appoint experts who pedal photography and photoshop courses that don't really know much themselves. I know of one who went on a course hosted by a local photographer and then set up doing the same thing based on the local guys notes. It could be worth asking at your local camera shop as they would be unwise to give you a bum steer. Check out whoever you decide to go with, see if their website is credible and google or ask around. Don't commit too much money before sampling their teaching skills.

I have been on a few courses that are aimed at specific skills, these can teach you a lot besides what you signed up for. Hands on is the best way to learn in my view as long as the numbers attending are not high. Some courses are crammed and very little time is spent with individuals. I think this is unfair unless the course price is cheap and expectations not overly high.

The last course I took was the Lee Filter Workshop. This particular one ran Friday to Sunday and included food & accommodation. Also in the price was the use of all the filter kit required and transportation between sites. Fundamentally everything was taken care of. The Pro (Jeremy Walker) was accompanied by to Lee experts, this result in a 2:1 teaching ratio. This along with mini bus discussion, dinner table and bar time and evening chats resulted in an excellent learning per £ experience.

I found that there came a point where books, DVD's and the Internet could do no more and unless I got out there with someone who knew what they were doing I was only going to tread water in my learning process.

[ianpinion]

I too would recommend booking a course with a Pro photographer, simply because apart from giving you the theory, you also get to practice the techniques you've been taught and it helps to cement it all into place.

I've been on courses with Glen Tillyard of Digital Photography Courses, based in Leicestershire, Gary Fooks of Fotocourses, based in Dorset/Hampshire and Geoff Powell a now retired Fine Art Photographer specializing in monochrome. I can highly recommend Glen's courses in particular and he will do a private 1-2-1 where you can tailor a days tuition to suit your particular needs.

[Dukatum]

Originally Posted by Diveandfly

I have had two Kelby DVD/books which were very useful but I have not used his website training. The Karl Taylor DVD's are good and you can learn from them but they are a little 'that's how you do it' and don't quite arm you for doing it yourself.

Early on in my photography I brought the Photography Institute course, thankfully they had a big price reduction on so I did not pay full price. To be honest I wish I'd spent the money on a 'hands on course'. Very little was learnt about improving my photography, a lot was learnt about the history of photography and large/medium format but that's not what I wanted from it. When it came to taking pictures and having them assessed, I feel I could have gained the same feedback from one of many forums on the Internet.

I have never been a member of a camera club so cannot add much to that suggestion. But the advice of wavemachine is worth considering. My only word of warning is to check out the credentials of the Pro, there are a lot of self appoint experts who pedal photography and photoshop courses that don't really know much themselves. I know of one who went on a course hosted by a local photographer and then set up doing the same thing based on the local guys notes. It could be worth asking at your local camera shop as they would be unwise to give you a bum steer. Check out whoever you decide to go with, see if their website is credible and google or ask around. Don't commit too much money before sampling their teaching skills.

I have been on a few courses that are aimed at specific skills, these can teach you a lot besides what you signed up for. Hands on is the best way to learn in my view as long as the numbers attending are not high. Some courses are crammed and very little time is spent with individuals. I think this is unfair unless the course price is cheap and expectations not overly high.

The last course I took was the Lee Filter Workshop. This particular one ran Friday to Sunday and included food & accommodation. Also in the price was the use of all the filter kit required and transportation between sites. Fundamentally everything was taken care of. The Pro (Jeremy Walker) was accompanied by to Lee experts, this result in a 2:1 teaching ratio. This along with mini bus discussion, dinner table and bar time and evening chats resulted in an excellent learning per £ experience.

I found that there came a point where books, DVD's and the Internet could do no more and unless I got out there with someone who knew what they were doing I was only going to tread water in my learning process.

This was a really good read DiveandFly. I am new to Photography, and have spent majority of my time reading books, watching videos and building up my theory knowledge. This is great to have and it provides a really nice foundation but it's all very generalized, and becomes quite repetitive.

I just worked through IOP training course, and have to say I am really unimpressed with it. Luckily I paid 1/5th of the price thanks to Amazon Local Deals who had them on a voucher deal. I wouldn't pay their full asking price now I know what their interface/lessons are like.

I am currently reading the Nphoto mag for Feb (my first time in purchasing the mag) and was really interested in reading the Apprentice piece, and now reading what you've wrote about the Lee Filters course, I am thinking it's far better to get out there and get hands on experience with a Pro explaining the technical details by your sides.

Clearly photography has become massively popular now that the costs of dSLR's have dropped, and lots of people can claim to be professionals since there is no proof required. But it doesn't take much research to see who truly are the Pro's and who are not.

And of course, hearing word of mouth like you have done for Jeremy Walker is a great way for people like myself to be confident in knowing it's a good course. It would be nice if Nphoto mag could actually do some research on courses.

As you describe the course is all inclusive, it actually sounds good value for money, as you can consider it an action packed holiday where you get to see some beautiful sights, get great photo's and learn new skills.

[Diveandfly]

Hi Dukatum,

Glad you found the info useful and that your experience of the IOP course was the same as mine. I was on a two day course in Dover a couple of years ago which was run by a couple of pro's. They were developing their courses to get them from NVQ's to degrees so I felt comfortable using them due to their association with the Learning Skills Council. I showed them the module print outs from the IOP and they laughed, shame I didn't post on a forum for advice myself. Hey ho.

I did exactly the same as you in buying books, DVD's and magazines. Also, I ended up buying a lot of gear I really didn't need especially as I spent far too much time not getting out with the camera to actually practice. I think this is a very easy trap to fall into as it's easy to get blinded by technology. The only magazines I read these days are NPhoto (on subscription) and Digital Camera (for travelling time) the only DVD I have bought recently (on pre-order) is the Don McCullin documentry as I admire his work tremendously.

I fully agree with your comments about the title of 'Pro', so easy to claim but not so easy to back up. The reason I went with the Jeremy Walker course was simply the fact that it was backed by Lee, I could not see them associating themselves with just anyone. After I booked I found a back issue of NPhoto with him as the Pro for the landscape apprentice. This again gave me a good feeling that I was spending wisely. The large discount offered to course attendees on Lee kit also proved useful.

Going to photographic exhibitions, which are normally free, are a good source of education. I go with my wife (pay back for getting dragged around shoe shops) and listen to her opinion of a picture from a non photographers perspective. It can often fill in the blanks when I simply don't get it. When it comes to analysing my own results she opens up with both barrels and takes no prisoners. I don't always agree but the alternative perspective it useful. I know you can do this on forums, but its handy to have the facility near to home.

As per the replys to your post, the forum is a great place to get first hand experiences and this will hopefully enable you to spend your hard earned wisely.