Mary Louise is an experienced photography instructor who has trained hundreds of amateur photographers. Many of her students have gone on to earn awards for photographs made following their training with her. She can help with both the technical and aesthetic aspects of picture making.
This class is limited to only Canon camera users to make it easier to address participant questions in this online class format. Sessions will be recorded for later viewing in case a participant can't make all the live sessions. Additionally, participants receive PDF copies of each presentation, handouts, home practice exercises, and a quick reference sheet.
This class is limited to only Nikon camera users to make it easier to address participant questions in this online class format. Sessions will be recorded for later viewing in case a participant can't make all the live sessions. Additionally, participants receive PDF copies of each presentation, handouts, home practice exercises, and a quick reference sheet.
organize their images so they can be easily found
quickly identify which images to work on from a photo shoot
optimize their images for tone, color and artistic vision
edit photographs to remove unwanted objects
do basic portrait retouching
export their images for a variety of uses including social media
Fantastic wildlife photography
opportunities exist right in your own backyard, and species vary with the
seasons. In this workshop you’ll learn the secrets to capturing beautiful bird
portraits, and gain insights to the key factors for creating a bird-friendly
habitat suitable for photography in your own backyard. You will learn
about the best camera settings, shooting technique and composition for creating
beautiful backyard bird images in live online (zoom) sessions in preparation
for a day and a half in-person photo shoot at a private property location specifically
designed for backyard bird photography. This shooting location offers multiple
perches, water features, and two large photo blind structures, each large
enough to each comfortably accommodate 5 photographers at a time. This
workshop is suitable for photographers with mobility issues, since photographers
can sit in the photo blind and photograph either using a tripod or handheld.
The birds are acclimated to the setting and come in relatively close to the
blinds – typically within 10-25 feet. As a result, heavy super telephoto lenses
are not required and more manageable zoom lenses in the 150 – 600 mm focal
length range can work very well in this environment.
Some birds that may be
sighted during the workshop include: Northern Cardinal, Carolina Chickadee,
Carolina wren, Tufted titmouse, Ruby-crowned kinglet, House Finch, American
Goldfinch, American Robin, American Crow, Common Grackle, Brown-headed Nuthatch,
White-breasted Nuthatch, Red-winged Blackbird, Eastern Bluebird, Pine warbler,
Yellow-rumped warbler, Yellow-throated warbler, Brown- headed Cowbird,
White-throated sparrow, Chipping sparrow, Downy woodpecker, Red-bellied
woodpecker, Blue Jay, Eastern Towhee, Mourning Dove, Hermit Thrush, Brown
Thrasher, Northern Mockingbird. Adding to the possibilities, the workshop is timed
so there is a good chance of capturing the birds with colorful spring flowers
like azaleas and wisteria. Of course, Mother Nature will dictate which birds
and flowers will actually be seen.
For those who would like to extend their visit to the Clemson, SC area, other local attractions for photography include the South Carolina Botanical Garden in Clemson and the Blue Ridge Mountains which are a short drive away.
Creating a photo album, a travel journal, a family history, a cookbook on whatever flavor of "book" you desire doesn't have to be a complicated or expensive process. Your project could be 20 pages or 200 pages, a printed book or an eBook, just pictures or text and pictures. In this online class, Mary Louise will show you how to use Adobe Lightroom Classic's Book module to create your own book. Adobe Lightroom Classic is integrated with blurb.com to print hardcover or softcover books or magazine-style booklets. It uses a template-driven approach to simplify the process of book design. Users can drag and drop images from their Lightroom catalog into a desired page template.
The class is in three sessions. Session 1: Scoping out your book project - ideas, preparation and planning. Session 2: Customizing Lightroom's templates to create your desired look and layout. Then we'll break for a while to give you time to get started on your project before reconvening for Session 3: Project sharing and feedback where you can get feedback on your work in progress. If you've wanted to put together a book project, this class will help you get started on the path to success.
Join Mary Louise for a flower garden trifecta in this workshop based in America’s Garden Capital – the greater Philadelphia area. We’ll visit the area’s crown jewel – Longwood Gardens during the prime time for spring bulbs. This extensive garden on the former duPont estate offers a variety of flower and plant subjects in both outdoor gardens and a large indoor conservatory. Next, we’ll have a “straight out of Holland” experience at a tulip farm. Acres of tulip rows of different colors offer a variety of photo possibilities from macro closeups, to shoot throughs, and intentional camera movement. Rounding things out, we’ll visit another one of the area’s 30+ gardens – which one will be revealed at the workshop because Mary Louise will select it based on the bloom conditions the week of the workshop. In this workshop you’ll learn a variety of flower photography techniques – close-up/macro, shooting intimate landscape vignettes, intentional camera movement and soft glow - achieved either through use of in-camera multiple-exposures or a Lensbaby brand “velvet” lens
More advanced content-aware adjustments like fill, move, scale, etc.
Combining editing effects from multiple app programs
Localizing adjustments from multiple app programs
Blending 2 or more images, whether for HDR, selective colorization of a B&W image, adding a texture overlay, or another reason
In a world of color, black and white photography offers the photographer
the opportunity to get back to the basic essence of photography – the
importance of visual design, composition and exposure. That is why well
executed black and white images have such enduring appeal. But shooting
for, editing and printing black and white images require different
considerations than working in color. Today’s digital cameras, digital
darkroom software programs and digital printers provide phenomenal
advantages for producing black and white prints that would make Ansel
Adams envious.
In this hands-on workshop, Mary Louise will explain how to identify and
pre-visualize scenes with strong black and white image potential. She
will explain how to photograph color images with the intent of
converting them to black and white. In addition, Mary Louise will
explain how to make photographs using infrared light and how those
images can also make interesting black and white images. Participants
will have the opportunity to practice these techniques photographing a
variety of subjects including:
Over the course of the workshop in addition to photographing in the
field, participants will work on editing their own images with input,
guidance and feedback from Mary Louise. Mary Louise will share her
step-by-step approach for optimally converting images from color to
black and white using Adobe Lightroom Classic, Silver Efex Pro and
Photoshop programs.
Have you ever watched birds fly, swoop, eat, fight, court, or play out any of their myriad of amazing behaviors and said to yourself, "I wish I could capture this moment?" Birds provide a fascinating and inspiring subject to the photographer, and also a hugely challenging one. Artful bird photography is inspired by and celebrates our fascination with birds from our own backyards to vast natural expanses. It is a way of seeing birds and striving to photograph them in ways that capture our imagination.
Professional nature photographer Mary Louise Ravese partners with award-winning bird photographer Alan Clark to co-teach this workshop. They offer lots of practical tips and guidance in the field and classroom.
In this workshop, participants will learn the finer points about bird photography from planning to equipment and shooting techniques. In addition, we will address how to capture bird images that go beyond a documentary approach, to capturing birds in an artistic manner that fills our imagination - a style worthy of hanging on your wall and sharing with others. The workshop includes hands-on photo shoots at Sylvan Heights Bird Park, a unique 18-acre facility featuring walk-through aviaries that give an up-close view of a variety of birds from around the world, ranging from waterfowl to parrots, flamingos, exotic birds and more! It is the largest bird park in North America and the largest waterfowl park in the world. Additionally, there will be over 10 hours of live, interactive online video conference-based sessions to cover lecture content before the in-person photo shoot. A week after our hands-on sessions, we will have a follow-up webinar when class participants can receive feedback on a selection of their workshop images. Each of the online sessions will be recorded so they can be watched offline for review or if 100% attendance isn't feasible.
organize their images so they can be easily found
quickly identify which images to work on from a photo shoot
optimize their images for tone, color and artistic vision
edit photographs to remove unwanted objects
do basic portrait retouching
export their images for a variety of uses including social media
Beginner to intermediate photographers use Aperture Priority shooting mode for photographing scenes where controlling the image depth-of-field is important. Understanding how to use this mode in principle is one thing, but using it in real life is another, and some people struggle with how to photograph using this mode. In this 2.5 hour small group session, Mary Louise offers participants hands-on, step-by-step practice using this camera mode. Photographing at the museum's outdoor park grounds, we'll practice achieving both shallow and deep depth-of-field in Aperture Priority mode. Participants will better understand how setting aperture fits in with the other steps in capturing a photograph. Mary Louise will also explain how to adapt the exposure brightness using feedback from the camera's histogram graph to adjust exposure compensation as needed.
Suitable for cameras that support aperture priority shooting mode. A variety of lenses can be used from wide angle to telephoto, but for a more pronounced shallow depth-of-field look, a lens capable of a focal length over 80 mm is ideal. As a prerequisite, participants should have some basic understanding of the exposure triangle settings (aperture, shutter speed, ISO) and how to set them on their camera. For example, previous attendees of our lecture-based Digital Photography Essentials program will find this hands-on practice session very helpful.
Wildlife is one of the more challenging subjects that nature photographers can photograph. Interesting wildlife subjects are often far off and fast moving, which make practicing your settings and technique hit or miss. But what if you had the chance to practice this type of photography in a more controlled environment, where super long lenses are not required? Well, your chances for success are greatly improved, and you'll gain valuable experience. That's just the type of special photo shoot opportunity we'll take advantage of at the Carolina Raptor Center in Huntersville, NC, not far from Charlotte. You'll photograph side by side with Mary Louise as she gives you guidance and tips. The Carolina Raptor Center (CRC) cares for and rehabilitates orphaned and injured raptors including falcons, hawks, owls, eagles and more. With the autumn timing of this event, we should get some fall color as a backdrop for our bird portraits in the Raptor Center's woodland setting. We may even get some birds in flight opportunities. This workshop is broken into 4 parts:
1) Equipment and gear (online / zoom based session Thursday October 6, 6:30 - 8:30 pm)
2) Settings and shooting technique ((online / zoom based session Tuesday November 1, 6:30 - 8:30 pm)
3) Hands-on photo shoot at the Carolina Raptor Center (Saturday November 12, 8 - 11 am)
Join Mary Louise for brunch afterwards in Huntersville (optional)
4) Image review and feedback session (online / zoom based session Monday November 28, 6:30 - 8 pm)
Note: The online / zoom based sessions will be recorded, so you can review the recording and email questions if you can't make the live session.
This workshop is for the intermediate photographer interested in expanding their skills into wildlife / action photography. An understanding of how to shoot in shutter priority or manual mode is required, as is a basic understanding of how aperture, shutter speed and ISO impact exposure.
This workshop is limited to ONLY 4 Participants. Price includes admission to the CRC's PhotoWild special event where we will be part of a group of 25 photographers.
Suggested lodging options include:
Brunch location: Killington's Restaurant and Pub, 10010C Rose Commons Dr, Huntersville, NC 28078
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To use this feature, Just look for the "Live Preview AR" button when viewing any piece of art on this website!
