Unknown's avatar

About tgawalt

I am a photographer growing as an artist associated with Dream Imagine Believe Photography and You Can Learn Photography.

What is “You Can Learn Photography” all about?

Introduction_2016-08-12_MG_8385I know there are many photography training web sites out there, but there are also many beginner to intermediate photographers who really just want to get to making better images right away.

By first learning the basics it establishes a solid foundation so you can move up to actually creating better images. The intention behind “You Can Learn Photography” is to help you by sharing what I wish I knew when I first started in Photography.

Some of us get into Photography because it’s a form of relaxation that gives us internal joy to help us recover from some life changing event or a hobby we turn to giving us some form of stress relief. Like getting close and intimate to this chipmunk, along the journey we realize what we have been missing as we discover things we had never really noticed before, as we become more appreciative of mother nature feeling excited about the new discoveries we experience each new day brings.

As we look at our pictures we realize that they do not show what we saw or felt and just hope as we take more and more pictures that magically they will eventually get better. Yes it does take practice but we soon discover we need to learn many things to get there. So we start seeking out information through searching online, watching YouTube, reading magazines, looking at our camera manual, and realize it’s overwhelming all the time asking ourselves why is it so hard to create good looking images.

It’s like learning anything, like how to play baseball, ride a bike, or drive a car we need to know some things that need to become second nature so we can actually get down to the business of not just taking pictures but creating images.

My formula for making a good image requires; a good Exposure, Creative technique, good Composition, interesting Subject(s), a decisive Moment, and Light.

To help you get there, I will take you on a journey starting with the camera settings to help you get to a good exposure, this is creating a solid foundation for your photography by knowing your camera. We will break down aperture, shutter speed, and ISO so that you can understand not only how to get a good exposure but also the creative aspects with the setting choices you make. This is like learning the rules of the road before you actually get to drive a car.

We will go on a journey together through many blog articles to come. I will help get you to a point where you are comfortable with your camera, camera settings, and compositional guidelines, to where you are not just taking pictures but making better images.

If you are new to the Blog please start with the “Articles” page which is basically a Table of Contents for the Blog Posts on learning photography.

Keep an eye out for the “Explore Life” Fall 2019 program for our next time frame to offer the Introduction to Digital Photography course.

If you are looking for detailed information on any of our course offerings please visit our courses page.

April Theme Challenge – “Food”

_IMG_1016_editStudents from the winter 2019 “Introduction To Digital Photography” class have been challenged to create one food image and submit it for comments of which we will provide constructive feedback intended to help the student improve their photography. The monthly theme challenge is offered as an optional challenge to those students who choose to continue their learning experience with us, which is offered via the “closed” You Can Learn Photography Facebook group.

Our “closed” Facebook group is for students that have completed any of our paid courses.

For this month, April 2019, the theme challenge is “food”. This image of a fantastic dessert called “Brownie Bottom”, was taken with an iPhone 6 Plus at a Cafe in Bonavista Newfoundland called Walkham’s Gate Pub. Travel photography encompasses many genre’s of photography, even while relaxing at a cafe there are images to be made.

Students are encouraged to develop their ability to tell a story or invoke an emotion, as well as how to plan and troubleshoot while creating their images. As such it’s important to not only create the image but to also include a “title”, and write a short paragraph about; how they came up with the idea, any interesting back ground that compelled them to make the image, and describe any techniques on how they overcame any obstacles.

B&H Event Space instructional aid:
Food Photography: Lighting and Compositional Basics
Speaker: Andrew Scrivani
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6AeNvLM3nfc (54min 29sec)

Come out and take one of our courses and then join the “closed” You Can Learn Photography Facebook group to stay connected with your class, and participate in the monthly challenges to help grow your photography skills.

To see our current offered courses check out our courses page.