Portrait Photography: Working With Natural And Studio Light

After beginning his career by building elaborate photography sets and lighting setups in his living room, Clay Cook now shoots fashion and editorial spreads all around the world. Contrary to most photographers, Clay learned to shoot his first images using only artificial light and only later incorporated natural light into his work. This has given him a broad understanding of how to shape the lighting from any scene into a beautiful image.

With the vast array of digital cameras and advanced software available to photographers today, quality images are abundant and easier to create than ever before. The overwhelming amount of images flooding the market has ignited a resurgence in the art of “color gelled photography.” If standing out from the sea of image overload and creating vibrant, colorful images that “wow” your clients is your goal, this tutorial will give you the tools necessary to master the nuances of colored gel photography and propel your photography to the next level.

You need more than just great lighting and equipment to create an exceptional portrait. Sometimes a shoot doesn’t go as planned. The location is drab, the client isn’t in the best mood, or you forget to charge your camera batteries. Great portrait photographers are able to think on their feet and connect with their subjects.

Adobe Photoshop is a premier photo editing program. In this course targeted at photographers, students will learn about the Raw format, white balance, exposure, and color and clarity. Students will learn to work with Adobe Camera Raw, updating, resetting and setting preferences. Then Students will work with the tools within Camera Raw; working with color, cropping images, retouching the image, using filters, rotating images, working with exposure settings, creating grayscale images, managing corrections and effects, and creating image adjustments. Lastly, students will discover plugins and explore workflows.