Photoshop World, and, The Complete Photographer

Lots of great news and lessons from Kelby Media this week! Sept 24-26th is Photoshop World, as always a world class, jam packed couple of days (and more) of instruction in all manner of state of the art visual storytelling tools. Lessons and info on cutting edge skills, as well as old school, tried and true techniques for shooting, lighting, and post-production. The roster of learning topics is amazing, and truly full of things every photog needs to know, now. Check in and register here.

I give an overview type of a lecture–really more of an informal fireside chat. A look at a career, veering from B&W reportage to Nat Geo to Life to advertising, marketing and the generation of social media visuals. Soup to nuts, highs and lows, as they say. It’ll be fun, and hopefully inspiring.

And, a special announcement. The Complete Photographer class is ready and published! Sixteen hours of instruction, a solid week of video. Lessons in the studio, on location, class critiques, portfolio assessments, lighting techniques, project discussions, all done in the moment, with a class, in collaboration with Kelby Media Group. It is an absolutely intensive six days, in the field, a lesson after lesson compendium of photo instruction, all designed to arrive at that very appropriate moniker of The Complete Photographer.

I poured forty years of experience, ups and downs, stories, failures successes, and the lessons learned into this class. The folks at Kelby are referring to the class as a “backstage pass,” and it truly is. A pull-the-curtain-back look at how to survive in this business, and to produce good work, no matter the curves that get thrown at you. It gives you strategies you can adapt in the field, from lighting a portrait, very simply, to lighting a porttrait of a firefighter–as well as lighting the entire firehouse and fire engine behind him.

It shows how you can seamlessly take a model in the studio and go from edgy light to beauty light to character light. It shows who to create sunset light to introduce mood to a barbershop.

And, the class really turns a corner in so many ways. My studio manager Lynn, with over thirty years experience in running our studio, visits the class online and gives an overview on survival, bids, billing, rights and rates. MD Welch, master of workflow and post, is with me on location continuously, coaching along with me, explaining the nuances of Capture One, tethering, and introducing on the spot looks for the incoming images.

It is a complete primer in becoming The Complete Photographer.

We tackle sports lighting in the studio.

Sports on location.

Beauty in the studio.

Character driven, thoughtful light in the studio.

Light the subjects up front, and the establishment behind them. Front to back, use light to create depth and interest.

A performer in difficult stage light.

Same performer, applying lighting and control.

And the entire Kelby organization was in on this to support it From Scott to Erik, to Christina to Juan and the whole video team. All were magnificent in putting together locations, talent and opportunities for the whole class. And then of course, editing the video into a powerfully creative, compelling class, packed with essential tactics, from large to small. Very proud of this effort. Here is the link to the best backstage pass I’ve ever had.

More tk….