Spring in Door County
Digital Photography Workshop
Sister Bay, Wisconsin
May 21-23, 2010
Overview:
This intensive three-day workshop combines classroom
instruction with photo shoots and image critiques. The
workshop is designed for the beginning/intermediate
photographer who is looking to develop/enhance his
photographic skills while enjoying three days of beautiful Door
County wildflowers and landscapes. The workshop is
exclusively devoted to digital nature and landscape
photography; images will be critiqued during classroom
sessions and image manipulation in Photoshop will be briefly
explored. Workshop size is limited to 8 photographers.
Door County:
Often referred to as the Cape Cod of the midwest, Door County
is a peninsula on the eastern side of Wisconsin, northeast of
the city of Green Bay. The narrow peninsula, located between
the rugged shores of Lake Michigan and the quieter shores of
Green Bay, offers a unique combination of quaint shoreline
villages, rural hideaways, lighthouses and beautiful state parks.
Door County combines this unique landscape with shops,
galleries, and restaurants, making the peninsula one of the top
vacation destinations in the midwest.
While busy in the summer months, the peninsula is quiet during
the month of May and the workshop timing is set to match the
peak wildflower and cherry blossom time. The workshop will
target images of wildflowers, lighthouses, and other visual
delights of spring in Door County.
Door County is located about 2.5 hours north of Milwaukee or
4.5 hours north of Chicago by car. The nearest commercial
airport is in the city of Green Bay, easily accessed from hubs in
Chicago, Milwaukee and Minneapolis.
Workshop Location:
The workshop will be headquartered at the beautiful 27 acre
Country House Resort in the village of Sister Bay, located about
two-thirds of the way up the peninsula on the Green Bay side.
The Country House provides a comfortable home for our
classroom activities and offers a wide variety of amenities for
those desiring to stay in close proximity to the workshop site.
See more details on the Country House in the "Lodging" section
below:
Class-room Content:
1) Basic digicam operation
2) Elements of exposure
- aperture with discussion of depth of focus
- shutter speed with discussion of image sharpness and
stopping action
- effective "film" speed and issue of digital noise
- histogram interpretation
3) Composition
- Focal point and simplicity
- layout, framing, and rule of thirds
- landscape dynamics
4) Special close-up or "macro" photography considerations
- hardware alternatives
- depth of field and subject movement considerations
5) Fill-flash simplified
6) Computer processing your images
7) Output - printing, framing, and other output "projects"
Photo shoots and Critiques:
Morning and late afternoon photo shoots will be scheduled for
locations across the peninsula, with participants carpooling to
the shoot locations. A very small amount of fairly level hiking
may be required. Activities on Friday and Saturday will run into
the evening, targeting best light at the end of the day.
Mid-day classroom time will also be devoted to
reviewing/critiquing images shot by workshop participants.
Best of workshop images will be assembled on Sunday
afternoon.
Equipment required:
1) digital camera with zoom lens that allows manual operation
(aperture and shutter speed selection and possibly manual
focus)
2) sturdy tripod
3) spare memory card and USB thumb drive
Adjustable, point and shoot digicams will work fine, but more
advanced fixed-lens and interchangeable lens SLR's will offer
more creative flexibility. Many previous workshop attendees
have been new owners of digital SLR's, folks looking to better
understand their camera's capabilities. This said, the focus of
this course is not on equipment or computers but on
photographic technique. The techniques are no different from
film photography, but the use of digital equipment offers the
ability for instant feedback and image manipulation.
For wildflower macro photography: Most point and shoot
digicams offer a macro or super-macro mode that provides for
close-up focusing. For you SLR owners, close-up focusing can
be accomplished in three ways (at increasing cost): 1) close-up
filters that screw into your current "normal" lens, 2) extension
tubes that fit between your normal lens and the camera body,
and 3) a dedicated close-focusing macro lens.
While there will be a PC in the classroom area for viewing
images, you are encouraged to bring your own laptop computer
for image viewing and manipulation. AC power will be
available in the classroom. Adobe Photoshop Elements will be
the software used in class.
If you have questions about hardware requirements contact Bob
Denny Photography for help and advice.
Schedule:
The workshop will begin at 8:30 a.m. on Friday morning, May
21 and conclude at 3:00 P.M. on Sunday the 23th. Participants
will have free time during the middle of the day for lunch and
personal exploration. Click below for a tentative, detailed
agenda:
Lodging:
Workshop participants are encouraged to stay at the Country
House Resort for convenience and proximity to the workshop
site. A variety of lodging alternatives are also available across
the peninsula.
The Country House is located just south of Sister Bay, 1/4 mile
off Highway 42 at the north end of Sunnyside Road, nestled on
27 secluded, wooded acres on a rolling bluff with 1,100 feet of
Green Bay shoreline.
Guests can avail themselves of an oversized whirlpool, the
heated swimming pool, tennis, rowboats, bikes and lawn
games. At the shoreline is a dock for gazing, fishing or
swimming and a nature trail with benches along the way.
The Country House is offering the third night for 1/2 price when
you book for three nights, or a 10% discount for shorter stays,
for workshop participants. Contact the Country House Resort
directly by phone to book rooms at the special workshop rates.
The Country House phone number is 1-800-424-0041 .
Workshop Cost, Questions, and Registration
Workshop cost is $325 per participant. Lodging and meals are
not included and are the responsibility of the workshop
participant.
To register for this workshop or to ask additional questions,
please e-mail Bob Denny Photography by clicking on the
following link (please indicate in the comment field the workshop
that you wish to sign-up for and/or ask any additional questions):
or call: 708-305-0958
Following confirmation of available space, an electronic invoice
will be sent out by Paypal (a secure website for credit card use -
a subsidiary of EBAY) which can then be paid by credit card. If
you are unfamiliar with Paypal, here is the link to their website
| Images and Site Copyright Bob Denny Photography 2010 |
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