Welcome to the Photoparents Summer School!
Hello Friends with cameras and children!
If you're here, it's because you want to capture fantastic images of your kids this summer! Summers are for fun and adventures so it's the perfect time to get acquainted with your cameras and get shooting.
I'm here to help you do just that, and since we have 6 whole weeks together, we can take things at a nice leisurely pace, taking your time to try stuff out and get clicking.
Every week, we’ll be sharing a new set of resources with you, each focused on a specific aspect of photographing your children and in particular - capturing your children in summer, doing all the summery thing we all love and associate with this lovely season.
Here is what I will do for you:
- I will help you THINK ahead to possible scenarios, challenges within, and considerations for you. Genuinely 50% of what we do as photographers is anticipation and preparation. If you're only reactive, you will miss a tonne of stuff.
- I will give you ideas for shots to take, including explanations on how to take them. I'll give you strategies for making sure you capture a lot of diverse images that tell a story, along with some 'try this!' shots
- I will talk you through managing typical summer problems - like yes, I know you've been told to avoid taking photos at midday, but Oh My God, whoever said that: a) never met any actual children who are creatures mostly active at that time, b) didn't have a good handle on shooting in challenging light and preferred to avoid it instead. The coward.
- Finally I will be expecting that you actually take out your cameras (whether they be camera-cameras or phone cameras) and take some photos every week.I said it before, and I will keep saying it till I die - YOU CANNOT LEARN PHOTOGRAPHY WITHOUT ACTUALLY DOING SOME PHOTOGRAPHY!
Here is what I will NOT do :
- I will not be going into more technical stuff. There will be some, for those who have enough base knowledge to take it on board ( I know we get really diverse audiences!) - but by and large that's not what this bootcamp is about.
- We will also not have the time to go over every possible summer scenario and activity. Not enough time! We do have extra resources that can help with that so keep an eye out as I'll be posting about them as we go
I will say this - if you have a camera, and you're not sure what you're doing with it, and you want to actually use it this summer, you should absolutely check out our flagship Fundamentals course. It is both about what you're doing with the camera and its many buttons and dials with a really solid grounding in photography fundamentals BUT ALSO photography composition AND using light in photography ALL with a firm focus on photographing children!
What's in this course?
There are 3 components to this course:
- Weekly Learning Resources - essentially a photo lesson. This is where we introduce new material and give you a challenge task to try it out for yourself. These include a written lesson summary and a video that goes over more exaples and more explanations
- BINGO - ok, this one is just for fun. Since this project is all about helping your capture MORE of your children's summer, we thought we'd give you an extra activity that you may want to attempt ( with or without your kids!). It's a set of photo prompts, connected with summer - both the highlights and the 'real summer' moments.
- And then there is our Facebook Group - If you're not a member yet, you really need to be. This is where we will be sharing the resources, answering your questions and - IMPORTANT! - sharing our weekly images.
And there is a great reason to shoot and post …
I cannot emphasise how important actually having a go at capturing photos in this course is.
There is no substitute for it. No shortcut. You have to take a lot of terrible pictures ( with some good ones peppered in) before you start taking great ones consistently. Sorry for the bad news. The good news is – if you really have a go at this course and all the lessons we have for you here, and you post for each of the topics, you will improve. You will see a difference. But you have to try. Studies show that making an effort to share what you do and engaging with a community makes you much more likely to stick with a project. This is what our Facebook group is for.
but if you need an extra incentive ...
We will be giving 1 lucky person a year long free membership access to our Photoparents Membership space ( open to both current and new members) with a whopping 10 full size photography courses for you to explore - a full year's worth of education ( if you chose to do them one after another)
All you have to do is actively participate.
What does 'actively mean?
Simple - post at least 1 photo each week to our Facebook group for the first 5 weekly topics.
We’ll draw a winner at random from among all the people who will have posted something for each of the 6 topics at the end of the course in a blind live draw.
The draw will NOT be based on how good your images are – we will be rewarding effort, so don’t worry whether your photos are perfect – just get them posted.
Your camera and photography skills
We have a large diverse group starting this course so there will be a big variety of cameras and photo skills on show. What I want to say to you is – it doesn’t matter if you’re a complete novice with a normal camera or if you’re advanced with lots of fancy gear. You’re here because YOU want to take great pictures of YOUR family. Don’t let the fact someone may be further along in this journey take away from documenting and sharing this. Your family, your kids will love cherishing and looking back at these photos so make sure you shoot, share, ask, get help - we’re here for all of those things.
Some of you will already be further along in this journey and you may find that you already know a lot of what we’ll be covering. But even if it’s simple and you’ve done it a million times, still have a go and take that shot – you can always find a new angle and perspective on the same theme. And then go and help a newbie who might be struggling with the very same thing.
I’ll be there – helping you in that process, cheering you on and answering your questions – don’t be afraid to reach out to me! .
OK, I think I went on for long enough now, I hope you’re ready for your first lesson!!
Let’s GO!
Plan for the course :
So now that we're all clear about what's going on, let's talk about the plan for the course:
WEEK 1
Week 1 is about getting warmed up up : I want you to think about what you actually want to capture, how you work with your kids, and how to get some variety in this. I am giving you a framework that will ensure you get a variety of shots and a little cheat sheet to save to your phone ( so you can keep using it through the week)
WEEK 2
In week 2 we're exploring ways to capture your family's summer adventures ( even if the adventure is just a trip to your local park!) - we'll talk about what to capture and how to capture it and I'll give you some guidance of capturing and framing expecially those bigger picture shots
WEEK 3
In week 3 we'll take on water - there are many different ways that water plays a part in our summer adventures, but a few solid principles on how to shoot it, regardless of the kind of body of water you have - the sea, the padling pool or a sprinkler - will set you on the right path
WEEK 4
Week 4 is all about that gorgous summer light - seeing it. working with it, capturing it and making the most of it.
WEEK 5
For week 5 we'll do some some ideas for 'summer at home' photos. For most of us, the majority of summer is spent close to home, but it doesn't mean it's any less fun for the kids. And if you are not one of those people and you spend your whole summer in some exotic location, we cannot be friends.
WEEK 6
Finally week 6 will be all bout gathering your photos, selecting your best ones, discarding the duds and printing them out in one way or another