Workshop FAQ

Photography and Art Workshops – Images by Tiffany Schultz

1. Where are the workshops held and how often are they? I currently have various venues across Dubai where I hold workshops, the majority are either at the Dubai Community Theatre and Arts Centre in Mall of the Emirates, or at my own studio on Al Wasl Road, Al Manara Area. They are held at regular intervals throughout the year, usually every 5 weeks.

2. What days are the workshops and how long is the course? The Intro to Digital Photography workshops are always on a weekend, usually a Friday afternoon from 3-7pm, or a Saturday afternoon 2-6pm, a total of 16 hours over 4 consecutive weekends. Prac workshops and editing workshops are usually full day intensive or half day intensive workshops.

3. What are the fees? Intro workshop is 1200 AED. Lightroom Intensive Editing Workshop is 300 AED. Prac workshops will vary.

4. What equipment is required for the course? The course is designed for first-time DSLR users, so you’ll be needing one of those, a tripod sturdy enough for your camera and a laptop in the final editing class. The kit lens will be fine for the course, but if you have extra lenses, bring them along. Don’t rush out and buy any other lenses! Rather get advice and research before investing in a lens.

5. How many people in the class? Anything between 6 and 14 depending on the venue. 10 is my maximum class size for my studio and I find this is a good number to ensure individual attention and feedback.

6. Since all the students will be having different types, model and specification of cameras how will it be possible to teach each ones camera specific features? I mean I want to know what my camera has and what are all its features, how will I be getting to learn that? The majority of people have Canons or Nikons. Not only have I been teaching this workshop for over a year now, experiencing many different models, I have worked professionally with both Canon and Nikon camera’s. The basics are always the same, they are just in different places on different camera’s. I devote myself to studying and keeping up to date with all new models and brands, and make it a point to ensure that each person finds the correct button and menu feature as we go along.

7. Are discounts offered for a group booking? Yes, 3 people + would be considered a group and would get a 10% discount on the course fees.

8. Are there any follow-on workshops? Yes, I have a Lightroom Intensive Editing Workshop and various prac workshops where you will have the opportunity to apply all of the things learned in the Intro Workshop.

9. I don’t have a DSLR, but my camera has manual modes, will I be able to do the course? If you have any doubts about your camera model and capabilities, please email me. It is required to have a DSLR camera as I find anyone with a different camera slows the whole class down as a lot of things are not applicable to them.

10. What is covered in each class? We start with the camera menu and modes, followed by Focus and Exposure. Composition is covered in week 2 and we look at Light and metering in week 3. A bit of portraiture in the final class is followed up with some basic editing tips.  Please drop me an email for a detailed course outline.

11. Do you give feedback? I think critique is VITAL to the learning process and analysing your own and each others work will help you to improve your photography. I give “homework assignments”, and devote time to a group discussion about your work. I also have a dedicated facebook group and an online forum where I encourage participants to post their work for feedback.

12. Do you provide notes? Yes, I am continually adding to my workshop notes which are currently over 20 pages of content covered in the workshop along with sample images and homework exercises. You will recieve this on a CD in the first class.

13. Do you provide a certificate? Yes, if you complete all 4 classes you will receive a certificate of completion.

Tips for buying a DSLR Camera

Tips for Buying a DSLR Camera

If you’re thinking about moving from a point and shoot camera to a DSLR, it may seem a bit overwhelming, with all the different brands and models that are available. I get asked advice on such a regular basis, I have decided to put down some pointers.

Firstly, you should know why you are choosing a DSLR camera over a point and shoot. Here are the main differences:

◆    Manual control over the areas in focus and blurred in your image.
◆    Manual control over how you capture motion.
◆    Ability to shoot in low light conditions without the nasty little on-camera flash.
◆    Higher resolution and better quality images.
◆    The creative flexibility to use different lenses which give different effects like a wide angle or zoom lens.
◆    The ability to shoot fast action shots.
◆    Manually controlling focus.
◆    The ability to shoot in RAW format, rather than shooting in JPEG, a compressed format, RAW captures all the details and dynamic range in the image, allowing for really high quality and ability to edit images creatively in Photoshop or Lightroom.
◆    The option to attach an external flash which gives far better results than the built in flash.

Before making a decision on which model to go for, the questions you should ask yourself first are:

◆    What do I anticipate using the camera for mostly? Sports, events, family portraits, landscapes, macro (flowers, close up), night shots and low light, travel, indoors…  what do I love to photograph?
◆    What is my budget?

Now, to know which camera model is going to help you to capture the things you love most effectively, you will need to understand some basic photo-jargon, here I will try to decipher some of the most important aspects to compare:

◆    Megapixels: Digital images are made up of pixels, tiny dots essentially. The more pixels you cram into a digital image the larger you can print it. We are talking millions here, mega = millions, so there is no perceived difference in quality, it is really the output size that is effected. For example, you can print a maximum size of 12 x 16 in. with a 10 MP camera (you can go larger, but image quality will be compromised). You probably wont be printing too much larger than this, and if you’re only planning on printing small sizes, the good thing with lots of pixels is that it gives you flexibility to crop the image without losing worrying about losing valuable pixels for printing. If you don’t plan on printing, don’t spend a fortune on a camera just because it has lots of pixels!

◆    Weight and build: This is important if you are planning on traveling a lot with the camera and are not keen on too much bulk in your hand luggage. The entry level cameras in the cheaper range will be perfect for your needs. The more expensive cameras are made of more rugged materials.

◆    FPS: Frames Per Second is the speed of the continuous drive of the camera. Basically, how many shots you can take per second while holding down the shutter button. The latest, more expensive,  cameras will have a faster drives, up to 10 frames per second on Pro cameras! Helpful for shooting fast moving subjects like sports.

◆    AF: Autofocus points. You will find most entry level DSLR’s now have 9 autofocus points. The more autofocus points, the more accurate the cameras autofocus will be. Also good for moving subjects when you have to move fast and accurately.

◆    High ISO and low noise: A high ISO will allow you to shoot in low light conditions without a flash. Newer camera’s have huge ISO ranges and is great for night time shots, they also preserve the image quality when shooting at high ISO settings (low noise), so you get less of that grainy effect.

◆    IS or VR: Image Stabilizer or Vibration Reduction allows for a certain amount of camera shake (wobbly hands) and reduces motion blur which usually results in low light conditions with slower shutter speeds. Most lenses come with this built in (Canon and Nikon) and some cameras have it in the body (Sony).

◆    Live View: Most new camera models now come with Live View. This allows you to use the camera’s LCD screen to check that you have an accurate focus when manually controlling focus for Macro shots. It also has a grid overlay that can help with composing your image and getting straight horizon lines.

◆    HD Video: Almost all the latest DSLR models come with HD video capabilities. More and more professionals are discovering the impressive quality of video recorded with a DSLR and the advantage of having the flexibility of the camera’s manual settings, high quality lenses.

Now, more than likely you are choosing between Nikon, Canon or Sony. All the best in the market at the moment. No, I am not going to say one is better than the other, because in terms of quality they are all excellent, but I will say that I find Canon’s user interface very user friendly and not as intimidating and overwhelming as Nikons. Sony is simple enough, like Canon, however, I find some features annoying and it is more difficult to find Sony lenses and accessories.

All brands have different ‘tiers’: the entry level DSLR, within a budget of around 2000 AED, light weight (more plasitc construction) and slightly smaller, with perhaps slightly reduced features like slower FPS and lower ISO’s. The next tier is the middle range DSLR’s coming in at around 3500 AED, this is a very common range and most of them feature HD video capability nowadays. Next up is the higher range consumer DSLR’s with a bigger, more rugged build, a few more features, fast FPS, high ISO’s possibly, usually around 5000 AED. At the top, we have the professional level consumer DSLR camera which is priced at around 7000 AED and comes with all the bells and whistles. BUT, I must warn you that the differences between these camera’s are all generally very very small. Especially at the higher end. The camera FPS and low light capability is the main big difference, aside from the obvious build differences, the more expensive camera’s being a lot bigger and heavier with a more solid, hardy casing. The manufacturers are coming out with new models at a breathtaking speed, faster than apple makes new iPhones! A lot of it is just consumer hype, so don’t be taken in by the lure to get you to buy, buy, buy… any camera is a great camera, as long as you have a good lens on it… it is what you do with it that counts. Many pro photographers are using point and shoots and are experimenting with iPhones… so don’t let equipment weigh you down and hold you back!