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Frequently Asked Questions
How many students do you accept for each workshop?
My goal is to keep class size at or below 40. That way I am guaranteed enough time to give everyone the individual attention they desire and deserve.
How come you don't allow professionals to take your workshop?
It is not because I am territorial (in the least); it's just that as professionals we take, edit and overall "do" photos differently. This workshop does not cover the things that are of most importance for professionals to understand (i.e. shooting RAW, batch processing, running actions, etc, etc). Instead, this workshop is designed for those of you who have a camera and a desire to take photos that are of professional quality.
This does not mean that you cannot take this workshop if you have aspirations to one day become a professional! And, quite honestly - this workshop is great for such a thing. Nowadays all it takes for someone to become a "professional" is for them to get a camera and a website. No skill involved. This workshop will teach you all the skills and techniques necessary to take quality photos - so much so that your photos will most likely look more professional than majority of "professionals" out there! And, your photos will be the real deal ... not the "shot on auto and fixed in Photoshop" kind.
What exactly is covered in this workshop?
ALOT. Trust me. I have no intentions of charging $350 and not making it 100% worth your money. Outside of all that is mentioned under the 'what' section here is a more detailed list of what is covered:
*Aperture and f/stops - wide open to narrow, understanding how it effects the light allowed in and the depth of field in your photos.
*Shutter Speed - fast, slow, when to change it depending on how much light is around and techniques on how to keep your photos from being blurry.
*ISO - why ISO is so important to understand and know how and when to use it.
*Equivalent Exposures - how to obtain the same exposure with different settings and when and why to even know such a thing.
*Exposure Modes - understanding what all those settings on your camera mean and when to use them under different circumstances.
*Metering Modes - knowing how to tell your camera the exposure you are after.
*White Balance - how to get your photos to have the correct coloring and ways to manipulate it for creative purposes.
*Focusing - how to nail focus on every photo while obtaining appropriate composition.
*The "guidelines" of composition - fully understanding them all so that you know when and how best to break them [rule of thirds, rule of fifths, leading lines, symmetry, orientation, filling the frame versus telling a story and more!]
*Lighting - understanding different types of lighting and how to use it to create fabulous photos [angled light, soft versus harsh light, shade and shadows, utilizing the edge of light, how and when to use your flash, how to obtain different types of sunflare in your photos and more!]
*Post-processing using Photoshop - understanding all the pertinent steps to take to turn photos from good to great. In this lesson I take a few photos and go through step by step how I edited them. You will be able to see the original and what I did to get them to their "ready for print" stage. Also, we will cover lots of ways to add a creative element to your photos. Lesson 5 is completely dedicated to Photoshop.
*Lesson 6 is dedicated to everything, but the kitchen sink. How to be an artist, thinking outside the box, gear (cameras, lenses, memory cards, etc.), continuing education, preventing a disaster (insurance, backing everything up, etc.), and of course a lifetime membership to my brain. : )
Every lesson is chock full of photos. With every technique taught there are photo examples so that you can *see* what I'm teaching.
The cost of the workshop also includes access to a private online forum where students will post their homework while also sharing information, asking questions, posting comments, etc. with one another.
Can you explain a bit more how the homework works?
Each lesson teaches specific technical skills, with each lesson building on the last one. The only way to truly learn something is to practice what you've read. So, I have designed homework assignments to go along with exactly what we've covered that week. Homework can take as little as 30 minutes or as much as 2 hours a week. It really depends on how much you are willing to invest in practicing and how much you desire for me to critique.
What if I'm going to be out of town one week?
No worries! That is the beauty of taking an on-line class. If you are unable to check your email and thus retrieve the lesson on Wednesday simply let me know and I'll email it to you early.
Who runs this workshop after all?
I do! :) My name is Jessica Cudzilo and I'm a lifestyle photographer based out of Cincinnati, Ohio. When I was first getting into the art of digital photography I searched HIGH and LOW for a class such as this. Anything, anyone ... I was just dying for someone to teach me the details of the basics. Unfortunately, I never did find such a thing so I had to build my own knowledge base by taking a series of different classes, reading books, watching DVDs and attending workshops.
After moving to Cincinnati I decided to start a photography business full-time. More photography and business classes later and I officially launched. After getting on my feet I decided to offer a workshop to other lovers of photography that are where I was just six years ago. And, thus this little workshop was formed. I have been blown away by the response and the fulfillment I've found in hosting it!
Summer of 2011 brought my 16th workshop and hundreds of students later I am still loving the blessing of teaching photography to others.
I'm glad you've found me and I hope you'll join us. Please do not hesitate to send a note if you have any unanswered questions.
xo,
Jessica Cudzilo