- Location
- Fife, Scotland
All signed up to the bronze course and pending approval to join the FB group. Thanks Fiona! @snowbunny 
Shoot The Dog!
- Thread starter snowbunny
- Start date
- Location
- Andorra and Spain
Yay! I've been drumming up some chattiness with a welcome thread so hopefully we'll be able to get it going so you guys get the support you need to keep you on track 
- Location
- Andorra and Spain
It's official, I have been appointed Teaching Assistant, so I'm there to help out with all your questions and to give any feedback you want on assignments.
This is the worst part now, the wait between registration and the first day of class
Beanwood
Administrator
I have been offered a Nikon D7100 in good condition at a very reasonable price by the London Camera Exchange, to replace mine. I have had a Nikon D7000 (until I broke it...) before and loved it! Need to save pennies for a decent lens.. but all in good time. Lets just get to grips with the camera first! 
Prepared to be spammed by thousands of photos! 
Prepared to be spammed by thousands of photos! 
Emily_Babbelhund
Mama Red HOT Pepper
- Location
- Regensburg, Germany
That's done it for me - I'm in!
- Location
- Andorra and Spain
YAAAAY! It's a perfectly good camera for this course, and beyond to be honest. I bought my first pro lens (70-200mm f/2.8) to use on that body before I upgraded to a full frame body.I have been offered a Nikon D7100 in good condition at a very reasonable price by the London Camera Exchange, to replace mine. I have had a Nikon D7000 (until I broke it...) before and loved it! Need to save pennies for a decent lens.. but all in good time. Lets just get to grips with the camera first!
Fab! Come in and introduce yourself when you get two minutes. We need more wordy people, Michelle and I need to be kept on our toes!That's done it for me - I'm in!
Emily_Babbelhund
Mama Red HOT Pepper
- Location
- Regensburg, Germany
Just waiting for the approval. I've bookmarked the page, so hopefully that's the way I can participate without having to deal with the rest of FB.Fab! Come in and introduce yourself when you get two minutes. We need more wordy people, Michelle and I need to be kept on our toes!
- Location
- Andorra and Spain
Brill! I'm not an admin for the group, so I can't help approve you unfortunately, but they tend to be pretty quick at it.Just waiting for the approval. I've bookmarked the page, so hopefully that's the way I can participate without having to deal with the rest of FB.
You guys get to hear this here first, but Amy's approved that I do a Zoom call or two for bronze level peeps during the course to talk over anything you want or need. I'll announce it in the group closer to start date but this is super exciting because it's not normally something that's offered at bronze level.
Beanwood
Administrator
So my new ( second hand..) camera has arrived. A D7100... gawd it looks a bit complicated!!! I have part -ex'd my old one so this has literally cost just around £130. Bit baffled by it so far! Took a blurry photo to check the shutter count, and only 7,750!! Yesssss!! (pumps the air...)
Took a blurry photo to check the shutter count, and only 7,750!! Yesssss!! (pumps the air...)
- Location
- Andorra and Spain
You will! What lens do you have for it?Sorry... 6,750!!! Even better.... of course completely meaningless as I have no idea how to use it!
Beanwood
Administrator
Err.. will check. Just a basic Tamron 55-200mm. I have another longer lens somewhere, not sure how good it is now
- Location
- Andorra and Spain
Cool, that'll be perfect for "Shoot!"
I rarely go above 200mm anyway.
Are any of you guys going to be able to join the Zoom meet & greet? Looks like it may be next Saturday evening (5pm your time).
I rarely go above 200mm anyway.
Are any of you guys going to be able to join the Zoom meet & greet? Looks like it may be next Saturday evening (5pm your time).
Emily_Babbelhund
Mama Red HOT Pepper
- Location
- Regensburg, Germany
Definitely! I've added my vote to your poll. I'm a bigger fan of the weekday options, but will go with the will of the people as it looks like Saturday is winning...
- Location
- Fife, Scotland
First Skills Lab:
A photo in a mirror of how we hold our camera...
Mine is with a dog nose art decorated mirror as I was actually sitting in Oreo's bed when taking this photo
A photo in a mirror of how we hold our camera...
Mine is with a dog nose art decorated mirror as I was actually sitting in Oreo's bed when taking this photo
- Location
- Fife, Scotland
An outtake of the first proper skills lab 
Emily_Babbelhund
Mama Red HOT Pepper
- Location
- Regensburg, Germany
Love the outtake, @Sophiedoodle !
Emily_Babbelhund
Mama Red HOT Pepper
- Location
- Regensburg, Germany
Thanks for organising the zoom call today, @snowbunny !
I must sheepishly admit that I think I am way, way, WAY out of my depth here. Anything with numbers is not my thing, and I fear that I am not going to even begin to grasp what all you are talking about. There's a reason my camera has been stuck on Auto for the past five years. My head also just about exploded when you were talking about setting up a shoot where you waited for the grass and the flowers to be just right. This is NOT my level: I just want Carbon to quit it already with the "Blue Steel" and that I can take a photo of him where I don't have to crank down the "shadows" level to 11.
I must sheepishly admit that I think I am way, way, WAY out of my depth here. Anything with numbers is not my thing, and I fear that I am not going to even begin to grasp what all you are talking about. There's a reason my camera has been stuck on Auto for the past five years. My head also just about exploded when you were talking about setting up a shoot where you waited for the grass and the flowers to be just right. This is NOT my level: I just want Carbon to quit it already with the "Blue Steel" and that I can take a photo of him where I don't have to crank down the "shadows" level to 11.
- Location
- Andorra and Spain
Woah, woah, woah, hold on just one fluffy second. Yes, what we were talking about is beyond your level, that’s the whole point! It’s about where you may BE one day, not where you ARE. How one day you’ll be able to change your settings without having to think about the relationship between them all. Remember, too, there were a few people in the group who already have experience and are just there to refresh their understanding. And there are those who, like me when I first started, know nothing. NOTHING. The latter is who the course content is aimed at. As you work through it, it will teach you all this stuff in a very systematic way.
You don’t need to do anything with maths, anything that is included which gets mathematical is just to support those students who benefit from understanding the more technical aspects. But it’s not necessary for learning how to control your camera. The aperture numbers can take a little while to get your head around because they’re fractions, but all you need to do is know that the smaller the fraction, the smaller the “pupil” on the lens, and therefore the less light coming in. As I mentioned, I had to talk to myself out loud for ages when I was changing settings to internalise the relationships, but you can keep a “cheat sheet” in your pocket which says something like “f/2.8 = O, f/22 = •” (big hole, little hole, if that’s not clear from my text representation
) to help out.
It will come, be kind to yourself.
When I started out, I’d see the strings of numbers for the settings of a photo (eg 200mm f/2.8 1/1800 ISO100) and would have NO IDEA what it all meant. You’re not expected to! This is why you’re in class. To break it down into manageable chunks and to teach you. If you already knew it all, you wouldn’t need the class.
That’s why it’s important to actually do the labs, not just read about them or look at the other students’ results. Because it’s in the practice of doing them that you start to internalise the different elements.
And when I was talking about how I sketch a shoot, I was talking about how MY style of shooting has evolved over the last TWO YEARS and how it is different to others, which is why the 365 project isn’t something that suits ME. It’s nothing to do with you, or any of the others. For example, that’s not how Michelle shoots at all: she’s all about candids on a hike. I just prefer to plan my shots and work on perfecting an idea I have. But that’s not how I started! I would never have dreamed it would be what I enjoyed the most, and if you had suggested it to me at the start of my “journey”, I would have thought you quite insane. I started just where you are, wanting to get a nice picture of my dog in its environment. One of my points was that, as you learn more, you will start to see the world in a different way, you will be able to “see” the photographs as you walk around in your own individual world, especially for a creative sort like yourself. For you with all your travel, that means you will be walking through a historic town, or be on a boat, or on a coastal path, and you’ll see the light and the angles and know where to set up the shot where all the pieces fit together rather than just what I refer to as “here’s a dog” photos. But it’s a PROCESS. You can’t expect to be there yet. You can’t expect to know anything much at this stage. That’s why you’re here, to learn! Be kind to yourself, take a breath, ask questions where you need it and take it at your own pace. But first, breeeeeaaaaathe
You don’t need to do anything with maths, anything that is included which gets mathematical is just to support those students who benefit from understanding the more technical aspects. But it’s not necessary for learning how to control your camera. The aperture numbers can take a little while to get your head around because they’re fractions, but all you need to do is know that the smaller the fraction, the smaller the “pupil” on the lens, and therefore the less light coming in. As I mentioned, I had to talk to myself out loud for ages when I was changing settings to internalise the relationships, but you can keep a “cheat sheet” in your pocket which says something like “f/2.8 = O, f/22 = •” (big hole, little hole, if that’s not clear from my text representation
) to help out.It will come, be kind to yourself.
When I started out, I’d see the strings of numbers for the settings of a photo (eg 200mm f/2.8 1/1800 ISO100) and would have NO IDEA what it all meant. You’re not expected to! This is why you’re in class. To break it down into manageable chunks and to teach you. If you already knew it all, you wouldn’t need the class.
That’s why it’s important to actually do the labs, not just read about them or look at the other students’ results. Because it’s in the practice of doing them that you start to internalise the different elements.
And when I was talking about how I sketch a shoot, I was talking about how MY style of shooting has evolved over the last TWO YEARS and how it is different to others, which is why the 365 project isn’t something that suits ME. It’s nothing to do with you, or any of the others. For example, that’s not how Michelle shoots at all: she’s all about candids on a hike. I just prefer to plan my shots and work on perfecting an idea I have. But that’s not how I started! I would never have dreamed it would be what I enjoyed the most, and if you had suggested it to me at the start of my “journey”, I would have thought you quite insane. I started just where you are, wanting to get a nice picture of my dog in its environment. One of my points was that, as you learn more, you will start to see the world in a different way, you will be able to “see” the photographs as you walk around in your own individual world, especially for a creative sort like yourself. For you with all your travel, that means you will be walking through a historic town, or be on a boat, or on a coastal path, and you’ll see the light and the angles and know where to set up the shot where all the pieces fit together rather than just what I refer to as “here’s a dog” photos. But it’s a PROCESS. You can’t expect to be there yet. You can’t expect to know anything much at this stage. That’s why you’re here, to learn! Be kind to yourself, take a breath, ask questions where you need it and take it at your own pace. But first, breeeeeaaaaathe
Emily_Babbelhund
Mama Red HOT Pepper
- Location
- Regensburg, Germany
I like the way you can give me a kick up the backside and make me laugh at the same time.
Thank you for the very well-thought out pep talk. After the Zoom meeting and reading the first lessons yesterday evening, my brain (which sometimes is indeed a separate entity from myself), said, "Oh hellz no! There are numbers and a wall of text and this sounds way too much like German - math disguised as words - and you already have too much German in your life to add another kind of wicked math words into me, your brain, because I am already FULL! Can't you just sit down and watch otter videos on YouTube for an afternoon?!"
So... I will tell my brain to shut up and read the lessons again today and attempt a lab. Not a Lab, but a lab.
Once more into the breach...