McDonald DIGITAL Institute
The Advanced Complete Digital Nature Photo Course
The Flash Course
This course
For all of our graduates of the D-CNPC, here's the perfect follow-up -- a course that takes what you've learned one BIG further step. In this course we'll delve further into both TTL and manual flash exposures, where you'll actually do a few setups yourself to master electronic flash lighting indoors or out. The course is divided into two main sections - flash theory, where you'll understand and practice TTL flash techniques, and Manual Flash, where you'll learn the techniques useful for studio flash, many outdoor setups, and most remote work, and flash practice, where you'll actually do several flash setups to apply what you have learned. We'll be spending more time shooting -- both for your Lab assignments but also in the field shooting that we'll critique later.
We anticipate this Special course filling quickly, so contact our office ASAP!
Price includes great food, lodging, computer supplies, and a wonderful portfolio of photographic subjects.
THERE IS NO COURSE MORE THOROUGH, MORE INTENSE, MORE FILLED WITH ACTUAL LEARNING, AND MORE PRODUCTIVE FOR YOUR TIME - AND THAT'S THE OPINION OF ALL OF OUR HUNDREDS OF GRADUATES! iT'S ALSO FUN AND RICH WITH WONDERFUL
PHOTOGRAPHIC OPPORTUNITIES ...
BUT OUR GOAL IS FOR YOU TO
LEARN AND MASTER
THE CRAFT OF FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY
at the
McDonald DIGITAL Institute
Flash opens up the world, allowing you to capture images
obtainable no other way.
You will be learning all you need to master flash, both in a TTL mode and in Manual Mode,
and you'll also be exposed to how camera-remote tripping devices, like Pocket Wizards,
the PhotoTrap, and remote cords can be incorporated for making spectacular photographs.
June 19 - 25, 2011
Limited to TEN participants
Price: $2,195 includes ALL Food and Lodging!
Pennsylvania courses
Please read some of our testimonials for our Courses
For the last twenty years we have been offering THE COMPLETE NATURE PHOTO COURSE and our ADVANCED DIGITAL CNPC here at Hoot Hollow. And for the last five years, those courses have been digital-based. The digital world is upon us and we are excited about the photographic possibilities this provides.
The ADVANCED D-CNPC is unique. The course stresses the importance of sound photographic techniques, emphasizing flash to make THE BEST IMAGES YOU CAN, RIGHT IN THE CAMERA. You will be learning a variety of flash photography techniques, you will be using a variety of flash equipment, and you will be challenged in solving several different shooting scenarios. Most importantly, you will learn a lot and you will have fun doing so!
Limited to 10 participants, with two instructors for all field sessions, our people enjoy quality, personal care in this fast paced, challenging week.
JUST SOME OF WHAT YOU WILL LEARN:
Using TTL Flash.
Everything YOU need to know, including how to balance flash with daylight as YOU control your lighting.
Using Manual Flash Mode.
Manual techniques are often essential for obtaining the correct exposure for a variety of reasons. You'll learn why!
Understand the PhotoTrap and
other ways to trigger cameras remotely
Macro Photography and flash
Learn the lenses and the best lighting
Composites - using Masks and Layers
for maximizing a digital image
Portfolio Reviews -
we'll be viewing your best work
Questions and Answers
Plenty of Photographic Assignments
If this interests you, PLEASE READ ON!
About the Course...
Time Frame: Each course is intense, requiring commitment and long hours on everyone's part. Depending upon the weather, some days begin before sunrise, to capture the magic of early-morning light, and continue throughout the day. After the evening's break for dinner, we meet for image sharing via digital projection, and further instruction. On most days we are often ending after 10PM!
This sounds like an incredibly long day, but the days are fun, and extremely productive, and in truth, the time speeds by in an incredibly fast and enjoyable week.
Our Format: The Advanced DCNPC is divided into lecture, flash classroom lab time, and field camera sessions in a flexible schedule that accommodates the group's needs and accounts for the vagaries of weather. Most lecture and in-door instruction and computer lab time occurs in the mid-morning, early afternoon, and after dinner -- times when the light is NOT at its peak. Photography can occur at any time, but generally occurs before and after breakfast and in the late afternoon. This schedule results in some shooting every day, so you'll have plenty of time to practice your new skills!
On several days you will be doing studio flash setups where you will be solving a particular flash task, applying the skills you've learned in real shooting situations.
Our Participants: This course is designed for any photographer seriously interested in improving his or her skills in photography and digital photography. This course IS NOT for beginners or for those who do not have a foundation in traditional ambient light exposures. The course is designed for digital SLR shooters, amateur or professional, who want to advance their skills in the most productive manner possible.
Evaluating Your Skills: Participants are given a pre-course homework assignment designed to test your skills and provide a base-line for our assistance. Although doing the homework isn't mandatory, it's a fun exercise that assesses your abilities and helps us help you.
During the week, you'll have several shooting assignments to complete -- a week long portfolio (easy to get as we shoot during the week) and the sessions during our Lab sessions, where you'll be doing the problem solving photography-- you'll love the shooting!
Preparation: Prior to arrival you'll be sent a full list of equipment and suggested clothing, as well as your homework assignment. A large amount of photo gear is NOT required for the course. In fact, I'd rather you purchase gear after you do the course, so that you'll buy right based upon your needs.
Equipment: However, if you need help on buying equipment for the course, please feel free to call us for our best recommendations. The course is limited to digital SLR shooters -- since we'll be discussing TTL flash, using varying focal length lenses, etc. We feel that point-and-shoot digital camera users would not obtain sufficient benefit because of the topics we'll be covering. Your basic equipment should include a DIGITAL SLR 35mm camera, an 80-200 (or 75-300 or similar focal length), some macro capability (either through close-up lenses, extension tubes, or a true macro lens), and you might consider some telephoto reach, via a converter or fixed lens, of 300mm or longer.
An electronic flash is extremely helpful and we'd recommend having one along. Please call our office if you need advice on models. However, a tripod is required. We recommend either a Bogan 3021 or 3022 tripod, with a true ballhead, or a Gitzo tripod (your choice of models) and a ballhead.
Some of what you'll learn...
1. TTL Electronic Flash - Flash imagery will no longer disappoint you. Many students feel this is one of the most important items that they learned during the course, but knew nothing about before
they began the course!
2. Manual Flash Techniques - High speed flash photography, remote photography, and challenging lighting conditions often require using manual flash techniques. Indeed, studio photography is usually done using manual flash modes, and you'll master the method.
3. Aquarium Photography - making great lighting setups, dealing with reflections, and the equipment you'll need.
4. Studio Photography - You'll be doing a number of setups where you'll photograph wildlife subjects in studio. These techniques not only apply to traditional studio situations but also are necessary for creating natural-looking lighting setups in the field.
This Blue Jay is a perfect example of 'studio photography' applied in the field, at a feeder setup outside my studio. It was done with a PhotoTrap ...
5. PhotoTraps, Pocket Wizards, and ways to capture images remotely. Just as flash allows you to capture images obtainable no other way, so, too, do using camera-triggering devices. You'll learn how.
6. Trail Cameras - These are simple hunting Point N Shoot cameras, really, but they can be a valuable tool for using in conjunction with a remote-triggering device. You'll be exposed to several.
7. Learn From Your Shooting. You'll be making photographs all week - we won't. Except for instructional demonstrations with our cameras and lenses, we won't be photographing during your week. Instead, our creative energies will be devoted to helping you reach your creative potential.
8. The Art of Seeing: Many people have the technical aspects of photography mastered, but lack vision. We'll work on improving your personal vision and technique. We'll be doing this through traditional photography, reviewing all the important concepts, but we'll also show you how you can expand your creative vision through Photoshop. Our goal is not to have Photoshop correct a poorly made image, but instead to show you how digital photography can expand your opportunities, and produce images not impossible to capture before. Real images, not fake composites, but images that require your 'seeing' the digital potential before you incorporate Photoshop to produce your results. Spectacularly EXCITING!
This course, this year 2011, the Advanced D-CNPC is preceded by our Reptiles of the World Photo Shoot. You may wish to book both to maximize your time and travel.
Brain-picking time: As I tell every group, consider me a bucket of water and yourself as a sponge. It's my sincere hope, and I make it my goal, to impart everything I know, and that you need to know, by week's end. Saturday's last session is devoted exclusively to this objective.
YOUR COURSE SYLLABUS, in brief....
This syllabus is subject to some change as weather, the group's progress, or unpredicted photo opportunities cannot be anticipated. However, for most groups, most times, the following schedule applies:
1st Evening: Registration and check-in at Mountain Dale Farm. Introductory meeting begins at 5PM, followed by dinner at 6, followed by a TTL flash discussion/quiz where you'll discover how applicable flash can be, and how easy flash can be, when you understand the principles.
Day 1: We'll devote most of the day to TTL flash photography, covering flash theory in the morning and flash practice in the afternoon. You'll also have time to work on your individual assignments in the latter part of the afternoon. In the evening, we'll reconvene for follow-up teaching and/or portfolio reviews.
Day 2: We'll devote most of the day to MANUAL flash photography, covering theory in the morning and some practice in the afternoon. You'll learn about High Speed Flash techniques and how power ratios and guide numbers are related, and how to work with both to capture the image you're envisioning. In the late afternoon you'll have time for your personal shooting, and in the evening we'll do portfolio reviews.
Day 3 - 4: You'll spend the next two days working in small groups as you solve several flash problems, real time photographic situations where you'll be photographing aquarium subjects, bursting balloons, and some wildlife subjects in studio with flash. You'll learn by doing, applying what you've learned in class..
Day 5: We'll start the day with a TEST, a written exam that will put everything together. Don't be afraid! The test is reviewed and corrected by you, so there's no pressure if an answer is wrong, but more importantly, you will see how the information you learned can be applied to challenging photographic situations that you thought were impossible (for you) to photograph before you took the course.
After we review and thoroughly explain the solution to these questions, we'll spend the rest of the day in an enjoyable studio shoot where we'll photograph as variety of subjects, with flash, to round-out your portfolio and to put what you learned to great use.
Last Day: After breakfast we'll meet at Hoot Hollow for a digital slide show that will showcase your work from the week. Afterwards, there is. Graduation! and a final session where we'll conclude by answering any and all final questions you have.
The course concludes at 11AM, and participants can easily make flights scheduled for after 3PM in Harrisburg.
Each evening concludes with an informal social hour where you're invited to relax, have a beer or a wine or a soft drink, and share the day and unwind in our meeting room.
Our Location
The landscape of central Pennsylvania is green and rolling, farm country and mountains, offering thousands of subjects from farm scenes to foliage, flowers to fauna, allowing you to practice and perfect the skills you will be learning.
Lodging is included, at a farm vacation home, which we have been using since the inception of our D-CNPC and CNPC courses here at Hoot Hollow. The Farm is an extremely target rich photo environment filled with interesting subjects, including Americana, farm animals, tools, and, nearby, wonderful Pennsylvania scenic's. Most breakfasts and all diners are served at the Farm, and the food is terrific. Below, there is much more detail on the farm.
All meals are included. Lunches, usually, are served at Hoot Hollow. The food is delicious. All refreshments, including snacks, soft drinks, wine, and beer, are included. Don't plan on dieting that week! Although the objective of this course is not based around food, you wouldn't know it, for the meals are terrific and they are always a 'highlight' of the week, regardless.
Hoot Hollow is located near McClure, Mifflin County, an extremely photogenic area of central Pennsylvania, about 45 miles SE of State College (home of Penn State University) and 90 minutes NW of Harrisburg, the state capital. All major airlines serve Harrisburg, where car rentals are available for anyone flying in for our courses. By car we are about 3 hours from Philadelphia or Baltimore, 4 hours from New York City or Pittsburgh. Our location is within a day's drive of much of the eastern, southeastern, and mid-west states. For example, the North Carolina border is around 8 hours away, and Indianapolis around 10. If you prefer to drive, rather than fly, we're really not that far away from much of the eastern US. Leaving the main highways, as you drive through the rolling farm country or cross over mountain ridges, one might think we are in the middle of nowhere, but the scenic possibilities in the area are fantastic. The farm and our Digital Lab are located in a broad valley framed by Jack's and Shade Mountains, and within a few minutes one can be filming within a hemlock forest, or driving along ridge top roads through miles of deciduous forests, or wandering the country roads through rolling hills in Amish and 'English' farm country.
At dusk, in June and July lightning bugs by the hundreds, and sometimes by the thousands, gather in our meadows. In our 'garden,' colorful milkweed bug nymphs cluster on a milkweed pod.
Our property, and the farm vacation lodge where our participants stay are both target rich environments for photographers. Our property is a mix of flower gardens, wild fields, streams, ponds, and forest; the home to flying squirrels, bluebirds, goldfinches, treefrogs, and more. We've recorded 100 species of birds on our property and virtually every species of nonvenomous reptile and amphibian recorded in central Pennsylvania, as well as most mammal species. It's not unusual to see six or more species of mammal in a single day. In summer there are a variety of insects, including swallowtail and tiger butterflies, and in spring and fall the foliage change (the green wave of spring, the vibrant reds of autumn) makes for dramatic images. The location and landscaping is perfect for breakout sessions and for shooting images that you may wish to incorporate into your digital imagery.
The Mountain Dale Farm is a working farm, with chickens, horses, dairy cows, cats, dogs, peacocks, and more. It is a farm filled with 'Americana,' antiques, statues, old wagons, etc., etc. -- filled with potential images. The countryside around the farm, with rolling hills overlooking farm fields and barns, as well as the deciduous forest surrounding the farm, offers the potential for forest, fern, fungi, and macro images.
Participants stay at the Mountain Dale Farm, a farm-vacation facility similar to a bed and breakfast.
Breakfasts and dinners are served at the farm where our participants eat AS A GROUP family-style. Lunches are served here at Hoot Hollow (the name of our property). We feel this aspect of our course is unique and special -- people traveling alone are not alone once they arrive, and the time spent together as a group provides participants with the opportunity to share information, have fun, and build friendships. One warning, however! The meals both at the farm and at Hoot Hollow are tasty and filling and we cater to special diets as needed, so don't expect to go hungry during your stay! You will not lose weight! One of the advantages, we feel, that we offer is simply the fact that everything is self-contained and included -- all meals, drinks, etc., both at the Digital Institute and also where you spend the night at the Mountain Dale Farm.
A special treat is our 'Happy Hour' that wraps up each evening where the group has a chance to relax, have a beer or a wine or a soft drink and a snack, and We feel that the camaraderie and 'family' that developed from sharing meals is an important aspect of the entire experience. Students get a chance to unwind, of course, but to also ask questions and discuss photography outside of the formal classroom environment.
Price: The tuition for the Advanced DCNPC is $2,195 and includes all meals from Sunday dinner to Saturday breakfast, lodging (based upon double occupancy from Sunday to Friday),and instruction. The fee does not include transportation to or from the course.
A Personal Note ...
If you haven't experienced the infectious joy of nature photography, you soon will. And you'll discover this rewarding pursuit only grows more exciting and challenging as your skills increase. And that's the rub, for to get the most out of your shooting, your skills should improve. Unfortunately, on many of our tours and out-of-state workshops we've found participants lacking in the essential basics of exposure, techniques, procedures, and basic usage. That being so, we sincerely wish everyone who takes any of our tours or exotic workshops or safaris would first take the time to do this course. As you'll discover, it will become the foundation of your skills, and your future photography will benefit enormously from doing so.
The above statement is even more relevant, and important, for digital photographers. While digital photography seems easy, because of the immediate feedback it provides, an 'easy' image doesn't necessarily make a good one. Further, digital shooting opens up a whole new world of opportunity where a photographer is no longer hampered by scenes with varying ranges of exposure (within limits, of course!), or by the limitations of a lens's depth of field. Wide-view images that lose their impact as a wide-angle shot become dynamic, riveting images when shot as a panorama -- sometimes by using a telephoto! A whole new world of photography is now available, one that truly mirrors what our eyes see and not what our films have been able to capture. Now, we can capture what we truly see, using digital to capture the world as we see it.
Many have compared our DCNPC to a college-level course offered in an entire semester, and almost everyone states that they haven't worked so hard in a very long time, BUT that they enjoyed the hard work! You will, too, and we promise you that you will learn quality photography!
Our goal is not simply to present a thorough and enjoyable Digital Photography Course but, quite sincerely, to offer the most complete, most rewarding, and simply the best instructional program you will find, anywhere. Feedback from our participants tell us we've met that goal; one we intend to continue to meet.
About Your Instructors
Joe McDonald is widely known in nature photograph as 'the master of flash,' and he has presented programs on flash, and taught flash techniques at Hoot Hollow, for over thirty years. He has been a full-time professional wildlife and nature photographer since 1983. He is the author of six books on wildlife photography and another on African Wildlife, as well as a how-to video produced with his wife, Mary Ann, on Photographing on Safari. His work has appeared in every major nature and wildlife publication published in North America. Along with operating their own stock photography business, Joe is represented by over a dozen stock photo agencies worldwide, including Cobras, Animals Animals, Auscape, Okapia, and others.
In addition to maintaining an active and informative website, www.hoothollow.com, Joe is a columnist for OUTDOOR PHOTOGRAPHER, writing the 'Focus on Big Game' column, and Joe and his wife Mary Ann write a photography column for Joe Van Os's web magazine, www.photosafaris.com on wildlife and nature photography.
For over eighteen years Joe and Mary Ann have been teaching photography courses and leading photography tours and workshops. Their very popular photo tours and safaris have them afield for over twenty-five weeks each year.
Joe has worked with Photoshop for several years, mainly for creating sales promotional material and for web site use. Now, with the advent of digital cameras, he is using Photoshop nearly daily. He is a member of the National Association of Photoshop Professionals.
Mary Ann McDonald, who runs the business end of the Digital Institute as well as thefood-kitchen-cooking team, has been a full-time professional photographer since 1990. Mary is the author of 29 children's books on natural history, including titles on Leopards, Flying Squirrels, Jupiter, Horses, Mosquitoes, and other diverse topics. Her work has appeared in many of the major nature and wildlife publications in North America and is represented by several stock agencies worldwide, including Corbis and the BBC Natural History Archives. Mary Ann has been honored by winning in the Nature's Best Photo Competition and has won several times in the prestigious BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition. In 1994, she won two first places, the only time for a woman to accomplish this in the history of the competition and in 2005, both Joe and Mary Ann were selected as winners, the first time a husband and wife team have separately won in the competition in the same year.
Digital Nature Photography: From Capture to Output
Joe and Mary Ann have recently co-authored a book along with Rick Holt, one of their digital Photoshop instructors. The book "Digital Nature Photography: From Capture to Output" is one of the best books out there for encompassing the basic techniques of digital photography as well as the basic Photoshop techniques required to enhance your nature and wildlife images. One of the most exciting sections covers Digital Workflow, the foundation for all of your digital shooting. This .pdf book is 'The Ultimate Laptop Field Guide' but also has a print-ready version included for those who want a hard copy of the book. This is the perfect accompaniment for this course.
Our Educational Commitment - a note from Joe McDonald
If you've read the above biographies, you'll see that we are dedicated photographers that are interested in sharing our knowledge and helping people. I've been involved in teaching my entire adult life, from teaching assistantships in graduate school to a six-year stint as a high school biology teacher before starting my career as a wildlife photographer and photo workshop instructor. In this role I've been a full-time professional photographer and instructor since 1983.
Our goal is simple - to offer the most complete, thorough, and rewarding learning experience available, in terms of the knowledge you'll gain, the quality of the experience you'll have, the intensity, and, just as importantly, the amiability and fun you'll experience.
McDonald DIGITAL Institute
The Advanced Complete Digital Nature Photo Course
The Flash Course
The Advanced Complete Digital Nature Photo Course
The Flash Course
This course
For all of our graduates of the D-CNPC, here's the perfect follow-up -- a course that takes what you've learned one BIG further step. In this course we'll delve further into both TTL and manual flash exposures, where you'll actually do a few setups yourself to master electronic flash lighting indoors or out. The course is divided into two main sections - flash theory, where you'll understand and practice TTL flash techniques, and Manual Flash, where you'll learn the techniques useful for studio flash, many outdoor setups, and most remote work, and flash practice, where you'll actually do several flash setups to apply what you have learned. We'll be spending more time shooting -- both for your Lab assignments but also in the field shooting that we'll critique later.
We anticipate this Special course filling quickly, so contact our office ASAP!
Price includes great food, lodging, computer supplies, and a wonderful portfolio of photographic subjects.
THERE IS NO COURSE MORE THOROUGH, MORE INTENSE, MORE FILLED WITH ACTUAL LEARNING, AND MORE PRODUCTIVE FOR YOUR TIME - AND THAT'S THE OPINION OF ALL OF OUR HUNDREDS OF GRADUATES! iT'S ALSO FUN AND RICH WITH WONDERFUL
PHOTOGRAPHIC OPPORTUNITIES ...
BUT OUR GOAL IS FOR YOU TO
LEARN AND MASTER
THE CRAFT OF FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY
at the
McDonald DIGITAL Institute
Flash opens up the world, allowing you to capture images
obtainable no other way.
You will be learning all you need to master flash, both in a TTL mode and in Manual Mode,
and you'll also be exposed to how camera-remote tripping devices, like Pocket Wizards,
the PhotoTrap, and remote cords can be incorporated for making spectacular photographs.
June 19 - 25, 2011
Limited to TEN participants
Price: $2,195 includes ALL Food and Lodging!
Pennsylvania courses
Please read some of our testimonials for our Courses
For the last twenty years we have been offering THE COMPLETE NATURE PHOTO COURSE and our ADVANCED DIGITAL CNPC here at Hoot Hollow. And for the last five years, those courses have been digital-based. The digital world is upon us and we are excited about the photographic possibilities this provides.
The ADVANCED D-CNPC is unique. The course stresses the importance of sound photographic techniques, emphasizing flash to make THE BEST IMAGES YOU CAN, RIGHT IN THE CAMERA. You will be learning a variety of flash photography techniques, you will be using a variety of flash equipment, and you will be challenged in solving several different shooting scenarios. Most importantly, you will learn a lot and you will have fun doing so!
Limited to 10 participants, with two instructors for all field sessions, our people enjoy quality, personal care in this fast paced, challenging week.
JUST SOME OF WHAT YOU WILL LEARN:
Using TTL Flash.
Everything YOU need to know, including how to balance flash with daylight as YOU control your lighting.
Using Manual Flash Mode.
Manual techniques are often essential for obtaining the correct exposure for a variety of reasons. You'll learn why!
Understand the PhotoTrap and
other ways to trigger cameras remotely
Macro Photography and flash
Learn the lenses and the best lighting
Composites - using Masks and Layers
for maximizing a digital image
Portfolio Reviews -
we'll be viewing your best work
Questions and Answers
Plenty of Photographic Assignments
If this interests you, PLEASE READ ON!
About the Course...
Time Frame: Each course is intense, requiring commitment and long hours on everyone's part. Depending upon the weather, some days begin before sunrise, to capture the magic of early-morning light, and continue throughout the day. After the evening's break for dinner, we meet for image sharing via digital projection, and further instruction. On most days we are often ending after 10PM!
This sounds like an incredibly long day, but the days are fun, and extremely productive, and in truth, the time speeds by in an incredibly fast and enjoyable week.
Our Format: The Advanced DCNPC is divided into lecture, flash classroom lab time, and field camera sessions in a flexible schedule that accommodates the group's needs and accounts for the vagaries of weather. Most lecture and in-door instruction and computer lab time occurs in the mid-morning, early afternoon, and after dinner -- times when the light is NOT at its peak. Photography can occur at any time, but generally occurs before and after breakfast and in the late afternoon. This schedule results in some shooting every day, so you'll have plenty of time to practice your new skills!
On several days you will be doing studio flash setups where you will be solving a particular flash task, applying the skills you've learned in real shooting situations.
Our Participants: This course is designed for any photographer seriously interested in improving his or her skills in photography and digital photography. This course IS NOT for beginners or for those who do not have a foundation in traditional ambient light exposures. The course is designed for digital SLR shooters, amateur or professional, who want to advance their skills in the most productive manner possible.
Evaluating Your Skills: Participants are given a pre-course homework assignment designed to test your skills and provide a base-line for our assistance. Although doing the homework isn't mandatory, it's a fun exercise that assesses your abilities and helps us help you.
During the week, you'll have several shooting assignments to complete -- a week long portfolio (easy to get as we shoot during the week) and the sessions during our Lab sessions, where you'll be doing the problem solving photography-- you'll love the shooting!
Preparation: Prior to arrival you'll be sent a full list of equipment and suggested clothing, as well as your homework assignment. A large amount of photo gear is NOT required for the course. In fact, I'd rather you purchase gear after you do the course, so that you'll buy right based upon your needs.
Equipment: However, if you need help on buying equipment for the course, please feel free to call us for our best recommendations. The course is limited to digital SLR shooters -- since we'll be discussing TTL flash, using varying focal length lenses, etc. We feel that point-and-shoot digital camera users would not obtain sufficient benefit because of the topics we'll be covering. Your basic equipment should include a DIGITAL SLR 35mm camera, an 80-200 (or 75-300 or similar focal length), some macro capability (either through close-up lenses, extension tubes, or a true macro lens), and you might consider some telephoto reach, via a converter or fixed lens, of 300mm or longer.
An electronic flash is extremely helpful and we'd recommend having one along. Please call our office if you need advice on models. However, a tripod is required. We recommend either a Bogan 3021 or 3022 tripod, with a true ballhead, or a Gitzo tripod (your choice of models) and a ballhead.
Some of what you'll learn...
1. TTL Electronic Flash - Flash imagery will no longer disappoint you. Many students feel this is one of the most important items that they learned during the course, but knew nothing about before
they began the course!
2. Manual Flash Techniques - High speed flash photography, remote photography, and challenging lighting conditions often require using manual flash techniques. Indeed, studio photography is usually done using manual flash modes, and you'll master the method.
3. Aquarium Photography - making great lighting setups, dealing with reflections, and the equipment you'll need.
4. Studio Photography - You'll be doing a number of setups where you'll photograph wildlife subjects in studio. These techniques not only apply to traditional studio situations but also are necessary for creating natural-looking lighting setups in the field.
This Blue Jay is a perfect example of 'studio photography' applied in the field, at a feeder setup outside my studio. It was done with a PhotoTrap ...
5. PhotoTraps, Pocket Wizards, and ways to capture images remotely. Just as flash allows you to capture images obtainable no other way, so, too, do using camera-triggering devices. You'll learn how.
6. Trail Cameras - These are simple hunting Point N Shoot cameras, really, but they can be a valuable tool for using in conjunction with a remote-triggering device. You'll be exposed to several.
7. Learn From Your Shooting. You'll be making photographs all week - we won't. Except for instructional demonstrations with our cameras and lenses, we won't be photographing during your week. Instead, our creative energies will be devoted to helping you reach your creative potential.
8. The Art of Seeing: Many people have the technical aspects of photography mastered, but lack vision. We'll work on improving your personal vision and technique. We'll be doing this through traditional photography, reviewing all the important concepts, but we'll also show you how you can expand your creative vision through Photoshop. Our goal is not to have Photoshop correct a poorly made image, but instead to show you how digital photography can expand your opportunities, and produce images not impossible to capture before. Real images, not fake composites, but images that require your 'seeing' the digital potential before you incorporate Photoshop to produce your results. Spectacularly EXCITING!
This course, this year 2011, the Advanced D-CNPC is preceded by our Reptiles of the World Photo Shoot. You may wish to book both to maximize your time and travel.
Brain-picking time: As I tell every group, consider me a bucket of water and yourself as a sponge. It's my sincere hope, and I make it my goal, to impart everything I know, and that you need to know, by week's end. Saturday's last session is devoted exclusively to this objective.
YOUR COURSE SYLLABUS, in brief....
This syllabus is subject to some change as weather, the group's progress, or unpredicted photo opportunities cannot be anticipated. However, for most groups, most times, the following schedule applies:
1st Evening: Registration and check-in at Mountain Dale Farm. Introductory meeting begins at 5PM, followed by dinner at 6, followed by a TTL flash discussion/quiz where you'll discover how applicable flash can be, and how easy flash can be, when you understand the principles.
Day 1: We'll devote most of the day to TTL flash photography, covering flash theory in the morning and flash practice in the afternoon. You'll also have time to work on your individual assignments in the latter part of the afternoon. In the evening, we'll reconvene for follow-up teaching and/or portfolio reviews.
Day 2: We'll devote most of the day to MANUAL flash photography, covering theory in the morning and some practice in the afternoon. You'll learn about High Speed Flash techniques and how power ratios and guide numbers are related, and how to work with both to capture the image you're envisioning. In the late afternoon you'll have time for your personal shooting, and in the evening we'll do portfolio reviews.
Day 3 - 4: You'll spend the next two days working in small groups as you solve several flash problems, real time photographic situations where you'll be photographing aquarium subjects, bursting balloons, and some wildlife subjects in studio with flash. You'll learn by doing, applying what you've learned in class..
Day 5: We'll start the day with a TEST, a written exam that will put everything together. Don't be afraid! The test is reviewed and corrected by you, so there's no pressure if an answer is wrong, but more importantly, you will see how the information you learned can be applied to challenging photographic situations that you thought were impossible (for you) to photograph before you took the course.
After we review and thoroughly explain the solution to these questions, we'll spend the rest of the day in an enjoyable studio shoot where we'll photograph as variety of subjects, with flash, to round-out your portfolio and to put what you learned to great use.
Last Day: After breakfast we'll meet at Hoot Hollow for a digital slide show that will showcase your work from the week. Afterwards, there is. Graduation! and a final session where we'll conclude by answering any and all final questions you have.
The course concludes at 11AM, and participants can easily make flights scheduled for after 3PM in Harrisburg.
Each evening concludes with an informal social hour where you're invited to relax, have a beer or a wine or a soft drink, and share the day and unwind in our meeting room.
Our Location
The landscape of central Pennsylvania is green and rolling, farm country and mountains, offering thousands of subjects from farm scenes to foliage, flowers to fauna, allowing you to practice and perfect the skills you will be learning.
Lodging is included, at a farm vacation home, which we have been using since the inception of our D-CNPC and CNPC courses here at Hoot Hollow. The Farm is an extremely target rich photo environment filled with interesting subjects, including Americana, farm animals, tools, and, nearby, wonderful Pennsylvania scenic's. Most breakfasts and all diners are served at the Farm, and the food is terrific. Below, there is much more detail on the farm.
All meals are included. Lunches, usually, are served at Hoot Hollow. The food is delicious. All refreshments, including snacks, soft drinks, wine, and beer, are included. Don't plan on dieting that week! Although the objective of this course is not based around food, you wouldn't know it, for the meals are terrific and they are always a 'highlight' of the week, regardless.
Hoot Hollow is located near McClure, Mifflin County, an extremely photogenic area of central Pennsylvania, about 45 miles SE of State College (home of Penn State University) and 90 minutes NW of Harrisburg, the state capital. All major airlines serve Harrisburg, where car rentals are available for anyone flying in for our courses. By car we are about 3 hours from Philadelphia or Baltimore, 4 hours from New York City or Pittsburgh. Our location is within a day's drive of much of the eastern, southeastern, and mid-west states. For example, the North Carolina border is around 8 hours away, and Indianapolis around 10. If you prefer to drive, rather than fly, we're really not that far away from much of the eastern US. Leaving the main highways, as you drive through the rolling farm country or cross over mountain ridges, one might think we are in the middle of nowhere, but the scenic possibilities in the area are fantastic. The farm and our Digital Lab are located in a broad valley framed by Jack's and Shade Mountains, and within a few minutes one can be filming within a hemlock forest, or driving along ridge top roads through miles of deciduous forests, or wandering the country roads through rolling hills in Amish and 'English' farm country.
At dusk, in June and July lightning bugs by the hundreds, and sometimes by the thousands, gather in our meadows. In our 'garden,' colorful milkweed bug nymphs cluster on a milkweed pod.
Our property, and the farm vacation lodge where our participants stay are both target rich environments for photographers. Our property is a mix of flower gardens, wild fields, streams, ponds, and forest; the home to flying squirrels, bluebirds, goldfinches, treefrogs, and more. We've recorded 100 species of birds on our property and virtually every species of nonvenomous reptile and amphibian recorded in central Pennsylvania, as well as most mammal species. It's not unusual to see six or more species of mammal in a single day. In summer there are a variety of insects, including swallowtail and tiger butterflies, and in spring and fall the foliage change (the green wave of spring, the vibrant reds of autumn) makes for dramatic images. The location and landscaping is perfect for breakout sessions and for shooting images that you may wish to incorporate into your digital imagery.
The Mountain Dale Farm is a working farm, with chickens, horses, dairy cows, cats, dogs, peacocks, and more. It is a farm filled with 'Americana,' antiques, statues, old wagons, etc., etc. -- filled with potential images. The countryside around the farm, with rolling hills overlooking farm fields and barns, as well as the deciduous forest surrounding the farm, offers the potential for forest, fern, fungi, and macro images.
Participants stay at the Mountain Dale Farm, a farm-vacation facility similar to a bed and breakfast.
Breakfasts and dinners are served at the farm where our participants eat AS A GROUP family-style. Lunches are served here at Hoot Hollow (the name of our property). We feel this aspect of our course is unique and special -- people traveling alone are not alone once they arrive, and the time spent together as a group provides participants with the opportunity to share information, have fun, and build friendships. One warning, however! The meals both at the farm and at Hoot Hollow are tasty and filling and we cater to special diets as needed, so don't expect to go hungry during your stay! You will not lose weight! One of the advantages, we feel, that we offer is simply the fact that everything is self-contained and included -- all meals, drinks, etc., both at the Digital Institute and also where you spend the night at the Mountain Dale Farm.
A special treat is our 'Happy Hour' that wraps up each evening where the group has a chance to relax, have a beer or a wine or a soft drink and a snack, and We feel that the camaraderie and 'family' that developed from sharing meals is an important aspect of the entire experience. Students get a chance to unwind, of course, but to also ask questions and discuss photography outside of the formal classroom environment.
Price: The tuition for the Advanced DCNPC is $2,195 and includes all meals from Sunday dinner to Saturday breakfast, lodging (based upon double occupancy from Sunday to Friday),and instruction. The fee does not include transportation to or from the course.
A Personal Note ...
If you haven't experienced the infectious joy of nature photography, you soon will. And you'll discover this rewarding pursuit only grows more exciting and challenging as your skills increase. And that's the rub, for to get the most out of your shooting, your skills should improve. Unfortunately, on many of our tours and out-of-state workshops we've found participants lacking in the essential basics of exposure, techniques, procedures, and basic usage. That being so, we sincerely wish everyone who takes any of our tours or exotic workshops or safaris would first take the time to do this course. As you'll discover, it will become the foundation of your skills, and your future photography will benefit enormously from doing so.
The above statement is even more relevant, and important, for digital photographers. While digital photography seems easy, because of the immediate feedback it provides, an 'easy' image doesn't necessarily make a good one. Further, digital shooting opens up a whole new world of opportunity where a photographer is no longer hampered by scenes with varying ranges of exposure (within limits, of course!), or by the limitations of a lens's depth of field. Wide-view images that lose their impact as a wide-angle shot become dynamic, riveting images when shot as a panorama -- sometimes by using a telephoto! A whole new world of photography is now available, one that truly mirrors what our eyes see and not what our films have been able to capture. Now, we can capture what we truly see, using digital to capture the world as we see it.
Many have compared our DCNPC to a college-level course offered in an entire semester, and almost everyone states that they haven't worked so hard in a very long time, BUT that they enjoyed the hard work! You will, too, and we promise you that you will learn quality photography!
Our goal is not simply to present a thorough and enjoyable Digital Photography Course but, quite sincerely, to offer the most complete, most rewarding, and simply the best instructional program you will find, anywhere. Feedback from our participants tell us we've met that goal; one we intend to continue to meet.
About Your Instructors
Joe McDonald is widely known in nature photograph as 'the master of flash,' and he has presented programs on flash, and taught flash techniques at Hoot Hollow, for over thirty years. He has been a full-time professional wildlife and nature photographer since 1983. He is the author of six books on wildlife photography and another on African Wildlife, as well as a how-to video produced with his wife, Mary Ann, on Photographing on Safari. His work has appeared in every major nature and wildlife publication published in North America. Along with operating their own stock photography business, Joe is represented by over a dozen stock photo agencies worldwide, including Cobras, Animals Animals, Auscape, Okapia, and others.
In addition to maintaining an active and informative website, www.hoothollow.com, Joe is a columnist for OUTDOOR PHOTOGRAPHER, writing the 'Focus on Big Game' column, and Joe and his wife Mary Ann write a photography column for Joe Van Os's web magazine, www.photosafaris.com on wildlife and nature photography.
For over eighteen years Joe and Mary Ann have been teaching photography courses and leading photography tours and workshops. Their very popular photo tours and safaris have them afield for over twenty-five weeks each year.
Joe has worked with Photoshop for several years, mainly for creating sales promotional material and for web site use. Now, with the advent of digital cameras, he is using Photoshop nearly daily. He is a member of the National Association of Photoshop Professionals.
Mary Ann McDonald, who runs the business end of the Digital Institute as well as thefood-kitchen-cooking team, has been a full-time professional photographer since 1990. Mary is the author of 29 children's books on natural history, including titles on Leopards, Flying Squirrels, Jupiter, Horses, Mosquitoes, and other diverse topics. Her work has appeared in many of the major nature and wildlife publications in North America and is represented by several stock agencies worldwide, including Corbis and the BBC Natural History Archives. Mary Ann has been honored by winning in the Nature's Best Photo Competition and has won several times in the prestigious BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition. In 1994, she won two first places, the only time for a woman to accomplish this in the history of the competition and in 2005, both Joe and Mary Ann were selected as winners, the first time a husband and wife team have separately won in the competition in the same year.
Digital Nature Photography: From Capture to Output
Joe and Mary Ann have recently co-authored a book along with Rick Holt, one of their digital Photoshop instructors. The book "Digital Nature Photography: From Capture to Output" is one of the best books out there for encompassing the basic techniques of digital photography as well as the basic Photoshop techniques required to enhance your nature and wildlife images. One of the most exciting sections covers Digital Workflow, the foundation for all of your digital shooting. This .pdf book is 'The Ultimate Laptop Field Guide' but also has a print-ready version included for those who want a hard copy of the book. This is the perfect accompaniment for this course.
Our Educational Commitment - a note from Joe McDonald
If you've read the above biographies, you'll see that we are dedicated photographers that are interested in sharing our knowledge and helping people. I've been involved in teaching my entire adult life, from teaching assistantships in graduate school to a six-year stint as a high school biology teacher before starting my career as a wildlife photographer and photo workshop instructor. In this role I've been a full-time professional photographer and instructor since 1983.
Our goal is simple - to offer the most complete, thorough, and rewarding learning experience available, in terms of the knowledge you'll gain, the quality of the experience you'll have, the intensity, and, just as importantly, the amiability and fun you'll experience.
This course
For all of our graduates of the D-CNPC, here's the perfect follow-up -- a course that takes what you've learned one BIG further step. In this course we'll delve further into both TTL and manual flash exposures, where you'll actually do a few setups yourself to master electronic flash lighting indoors or out. The course is divided into two main sections - flash theory, where you'll understand and practice TTL flash techniques, and Manual Flash, where you'll learn the techniques useful for studio flash, many outdoor setups, and most remote work, and flash practice, where you'll actually do several flash setups to apply what you have learned. We'll be spending more time shooting -- both for your Lab assignments but also in the field shooting that we'll critique later.
We anticipate this Special course filling quickly, so contact our office ASAP!
Price includes great food, lodging, computer supplies, and a wonderful portfolio of photographic subjects.
THERE IS NO COURSE MORE THOROUGH, MORE INTENSE, MORE FILLED WITH ACTUAL LEARNING, AND MORE PRODUCTIVE FOR YOUR TIME - AND THAT'S THE OPINION OF ALL OF OUR HUNDREDS OF GRADUATES! iT'S ALSO FUN AND RICH WITH WONDERFUL
PHOTOGRAPHIC OPPORTUNITIES ...
BUT OUR GOAL IS FOR YOU TO
LEARN AND MASTER
THE CRAFT OF FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY
at the
McDonald DIGITAL Institute
THERE IS NO COURSE MORE THOROUGH, MORE INTENSE, MORE FILLED WITH ACTUAL LEARNING, AND MORE PRODUCTIVE FOR YOUR TIME - AND THAT'S THE OPINION OF ALL OF OUR HUNDREDS OF GRADUATES! iT'S ALSO FUN AND RICH WITH WONDERFUL
PHOTOGRAPHIC OPPORTUNITIES ...
BUT OUR GOAL IS FOR YOU TO
LEARN AND MASTER
THE CRAFT OF FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY
at the
McDonald DIGITAL Institute
Flash opens up the world, allowing you to capture images
obtainable no other way.
You will be learning all you need to master flash, both in a TTL mode and in Manual Mode,
and you'll also be exposed to how camera-remote tripping devices, like Pocket Wizards,
the PhotoTrap, and remote cords can be incorporated for making spectacular photographs.
June 19 - 25, 2011
Flash opens up the world, allowing you to capture images
obtainable no other way.
You will be learning all you need to master flash, both in a TTL mode and in Manual Mode,
and you'll also be exposed to how camera-remote tripping devices, like Pocket Wizards,
the PhotoTrap, and remote cords can be incorporated for making spectacular photographs.
June 19 - 25, 2011
Limited to TEN participants
Price: $2,195 includes ALL Food and Lodging!
Pennsylvania courses
Pennsylvania courses
For the last twenty years we have been offering THE COMPLETE NATURE PHOTO COURSE and our ADVANCED DIGITAL CNPC here at Hoot Hollow. And for the last five years, those courses have been digital-based. The digital world is upon us and we are excited about the photographic possibilities this provides.
The ADVANCED D-CNPC is unique. The course stresses the importance of sound photographic techniques, emphasizing flash to make THE BEST IMAGES YOU CAN, RIGHT IN THE CAMERA. You will be learning a variety of flash photography techniques, you will be using a variety of flash equipment, and you will be challenged in solving several different shooting scenarios. Most importantly, you will learn a lot and you will have fun doing so!
Limited to 10 participants, with two instructors for all field sessions, our people enjoy quality, personal care in this fast paced, challenging week.
Manual techniques are often essential for obtaining the correct exposure for a variety of reasons. You'll learn why! |
|
other ways to trigger cameras remotely |
Learn the lenses and the best lighting |
for maximizing a digital image |
we'll be viewing your best work |
About the Course...
About the Course...
Time Frame: Each course is intense, requiring commitment and long hours on everyone's part. Depending upon the weather, some days begin before sunrise, to capture the magic of early-morning light, and continue throughout the day. After the evening's break for dinner, we meet for image sharing via digital projection, and further instruction. On most days we are often ending after 10PM!
This sounds like an incredibly long day, but the days are fun, and extremely productive, and in truth, the time speeds by in an incredibly fast and enjoyable week.
Our Format: The Advanced DCNPC is divided into lecture, flash classroom lab time, and field camera sessions in a flexible schedule that accommodates the group's needs and accounts for the vagaries of weather. Most lecture and in-door instruction and computer lab time occurs in the mid-morning, early afternoon, and after dinner -- times when the light is NOT at its peak. Photography can occur at any time, but generally occurs before and after breakfast and in the late afternoon. This schedule results in some shooting every day, so you'll have plenty of time to practice your new skills!
On several days you will be doing studio flash setups where you will be solving a particular flash task, applying the skills you've learned in real shooting situations.
Our Participants: This course is designed for any photographer seriously interested in improving his or her skills in photography and digital photography. This course IS NOT for beginners or for those who do not have a foundation in traditional ambient light exposures. The course is designed for digital SLR shooters, amateur or professional, who want to advance their skills in the most productive manner possible.
Evaluating Your Skills: Participants are given a pre-course homework assignment designed to test your skills and provide a base-line for our assistance. Although doing the homework isn't mandatory, it's a fun exercise that assesses your abilities and helps us help you.
During the week, you'll have several shooting assignments to complete -- a week long portfolio (easy to get as we shoot during the week) and the sessions during our Lab sessions, where you'll be doing the problem solving photography-- you'll love the shooting!
Preparation: Prior to arrival you'll be sent a full list of equipment and suggested clothing, as well as your homework assignment. A large amount of photo gear is NOT required for the course. In fact, I'd rather you purchase gear after you do the course, so that you'll buy right based upon your needs.
Equipment: However, if you need help on buying equipment for the course, please feel free to call us for our best recommendations. The course is limited to digital SLR shooters -- since we'll be discussing TTL flash, using varying focal length lenses, etc. We feel that point-and-shoot digital camera users would not obtain sufficient benefit because of the topics we'll be covering. Your basic equipment should include a DIGITAL SLR 35mm camera, an 80-200 (or 75-300 or similar focal length), some macro capability (either through close-up lenses, extension tubes, or a true macro lens), and you might consider some telephoto reach, via a converter or fixed lens, of 300mm or longer.
An electronic flash is extremely helpful and we'd recommend having one along. Please call our office if you need advice on models. However, a tripod is required. We recommend either a Bogan 3021 or 3022 tripod, with a true ballhead, or a Gitzo tripod (your choice of models) and a ballhead.
Some of what you'll learn...
1. TTL Electronic Flash - Flash imagery will no longer disappoint you. Many students feel this is one of the most important items that they learned during the course, but knew nothing about before
they began the course!
2. Manual Flash Techniques - High speed flash photography, remote photography, and challenging lighting conditions often require using manual flash techniques. Indeed, studio photography is usually done using manual flash modes, and you'll master the method.
3. Aquarium Photography - making great lighting setups, dealing with reflections, and the equipment you'll need.
4. Studio Photography - You'll be doing a number of setups where you'll photograph wildlife subjects in studio. These techniques not only apply to traditional studio situations but also are necessary for creating natural-looking lighting setups in the field.
This Blue Jay is a perfect example of 'studio photography' applied in the field, at a feeder setup outside my studio. It was done with a PhotoTrap ...
5. PhotoTraps, Pocket Wizards, and ways to capture images remotely. Just as flash allows you to capture images obtainable no other way, so, too, do using camera-triggering devices. You'll learn how.
6. Trail Cameras - These are simple hunting Point N Shoot cameras, really, but they can be a valuable tool for using in conjunction with a remote-triggering device. You'll be exposed to several.
7. Learn From Your Shooting. You'll be making photographs all week - we won't. Except for instructional demonstrations with our cameras and lenses, we won't be photographing during your week. Instead, our creative energies will be devoted to helping you reach your creative potential.
1. TTL Electronic Flash - Flash imagery will no longer disappoint you. Many students feel this is one of the most important items that they learned during the course, but knew nothing about before
they began the course!
2. Manual Flash Techniques - High speed flash photography, remote photography, and challenging lighting conditions often require using manual flash techniques. Indeed, studio photography is usually done using manual flash modes, and you'll master the method.
3. Aquarium Photography - making great lighting setups, dealing with reflections, and the equipment you'll need.
4. Studio Photography - You'll be doing a number of setups where you'll photograph wildlife subjects in studio. These techniques not only apply to traditional studio situations but also are necessary for creating natural-looking lighting setups in the field.
This Blue Jay is a perfect example of 'studio photography' applied in the field, at a feeder setup outside my studio. It was done with a PhotoTrap ...
5. PhotoTraps, Pocket Wizards, and ways to capture images remotely. Just as flash allows you to capture images obtainable no other way, so, too, do using camera-triggering devices. You'll learn how.
6. Trail Cameras - These are simple hunting Point N Shoot cameras, really, but they can be a valuable tool for using in conjunction with a remote-triggering device. You'll be exposed to several.
7. Learn From Your Shooting. You'll be making photographs all week - we won't. Except for instructional demonstrations with our cameras and lenses, we won't be photographing during your week. Instead, our creative energies will be devoted to helping you reach your creative potential.
8. The Art of Seeing: Many people have the technical aspects of photography mastered, but lack vision. We'll work on improving your personal vision and technique. We'll be doing this through traditional photography, reviewing all the important concepts, but we'll also show you how you can expand your creative vision through Photoshop. Our goal is not to have Photoshop correct a poorly made image, but instead to show you how digital photography can expand your opportunities, and produce images not impossible to capture before. Real images, not fake composites, but images that require your 'seeing' the digital potential before you incorporate Photoshop to produce your results. Spectacularly EXCITING!
This course, this year 2011, the Advanced D-CNPC is preceded by our Reptiles of the World Photo Shoot. You may wish to book both to maximize your time and travel.
Brain-picking time: As I tell every group, consider me a bucket of water and yourself as a sponge. It's my sincere hope, and I make it my goal, to impart everything I know, and that you need to know, by week's end. Saturday's last session is devoted exclusively to this objective.
8. The Art of Seeing: Many people have the technical aspects of photography mastered, but lack vision. We'll work on improving your personal vision and technique. We'll be doing this through traditional photography, reviewing all the important concepts, but we'll also show you how you can expand your creative vision through Photoshop. Our goal is not to have Photoshop correct a poorly made image, but instead to show you how digital photography can expand your opportunities, and produce images not impossible to capture before. Real images, not fake composites, but images that require your 'seeing' the digital potential before you incorporate Photoshop to produce your results. Spectacularly EXCITING!
This course, this year 2011, the Advanced D-CNPC is preceded by our Reptiles of the World Photo Shoot. You may wish to book both to maximize your time and travel.
Brain-picking time: As I tell every group, consider me a bucket of water and yourself as a sponge. It's my sincere hope, and I make it my goal, to impart everything I know, and that you need to know, by week's end. Saturday's last session is devoted exclusively to this objective.
YOUR COURSE SYLLABUS, in brief....
This syllabus is subject to some change as weather, the group's progress, or unpredicted photo opportunities cannot be anticipated. However, for most groups, most times, the following schedule applies:
1st Evening: Registration and check-in at Mountain Dale Farm. Introductory meeting begins at 5PM, followed by dinner at 6, followed by a TTL flash discussion/quiz where you'll discover how applicable flash can be, and how easy flash can be, when you understand the principles.
Day 1: We'll devote most of the day to TTL flash photography, covering flash theory in the morning and flash practice in the afternoon. You'll also have time to work on your individual assignments in the latter part of the afternoon. In the evening, we'll reconvene for follow-up teaching and/or portfolio reviews.
Day 2: We'll devote most of the day to MANUAL flash photography, covering theory in the morning and some practice in the afternoon. You'll learn about High Speed Flash techniques and how power ratios and guide numbers are related, and how to work with both to capture the image you're envisioning. In the late afternoon you'll have time for your personal shooting, and in the evening we'll do portfolio reviews.
Day 3 - 4: You'll spend the next two days working in small groups as you solve several flash problems, real time photographic situations where you'll be photographing aquarium subjects, bursting balloons, and some wildlife subjects in studio with flash. You'll learn by doing, applying what you've learned in class..
Day 5: We'll start the day with a TEST, a written exam that will put everything together. Don't be afraid! The test is reviewed and corrected by you, so there's no pressure if an answer is wrong, but more importantly, you will see how the information you learned can be applied to challenging photographic situations that you thought were impossible (for you) to photograph before you took the course.
After we review and thoroughly explain the solution to these questions, we'll spend the rest of the day in an enjoyable studio shoot where we'll photograph as variety of subjects, with flash, to round-out your portfolio and to put what you learned to great use.
Last Day: After breakfast we'll meet at Hoot Hollow for a digital slide show that will showcase your work from the week. Afterwards, there is. Graduation! and a final session where we'll conclude by answering any and all final questions you have.
The course concludes at 11AM, and participants can easily make flights scheduled for after 3PM in Harrisburg.
Each evening concludes with an informal social hour where you're invited to relax, have a beer or a wine or a soft drink, and share the day and unwind in our meeting room.
Our Location
The landscape of central Pennsylvania is green and rolling, farm country and mountains, offering thousands of subjects from farm scenes to foliage, flowers to fauna, allowing you to practice and perfect the skills you will be learning.
Lodging is included, at a farm vacation home, which we have been using since the inception of our D-CNPC and CNPC courses here at Hoot Hollow. The Farm is an extremely target rich photo environment filled with interesting subjects, including Americana, farm animals, tools, and, nearby, wonderful Pennsylvania scenic's. Most breakfasts and all diners are served at the Farm, and the food is terrific. Below, there is much more detail on the farm.
All meals are included. Lunches, usually, are served at Hoot Hollow. The food is delicious. All refreshments, including snacks, soft drinks, wine, and beer, are included. Don't plan on dieting that week! Although the objective of this course is not based around food, you wouldn't know it, for the meals are terrific and they are always a 'highlight' of the week, regardless.
Hoot Hollow is located near McClure, Mifflin County, an extremely photogenic area of central Pennsylvania, about 45 miles SE of State College (home of Penn State University) and 90 minutes NW of Harrisburg, the state capital. All major airlines serve Harrisburg, where car rentals are available for anyone flying in for our courses. By car we are about 3 hours from Philadelphia or Baltimore, 4 hours from New York City or Pittsburgh. Our location is within a day's drive of much of the eastern, southeastern, and mid-west states. For example, the North Carolina border is around 8 hours away, and Indianapolis around 10. If you prefer to drive, rather than fly, we're really not that far away from much of the eastern US. Leaving the main highways, as you drive through the rolling farm country or cross over mountain ridges, one might think we are in the middle of nowhere, but the scenic possibilities in the area are fantastic. The farm and our Digital Lab are located in a broad valley framed by Jack's and Shade Mountains, and within a few minutes one can be filming within a hemlock forest, or driving along ridge top roads through miles of deciduous forests, or wandering the country roads through rolling hills in Amish and 'English' farm country.
At dusk, in June and July lightning bugs by the hundreds, and sometimes by the thousands, gather in our meadows. In our 'garden,' colorful milkweed bug nymphs cluster on a milkweed pod.
Our property, and the farm vacation lodge where our participants stay are both target rich environments for photographers. Our property is a mix of flower gardens, wild fields, streams, ponds, and forest; the home to flying squirrels, bluebirds, goldfinches, treefrogs, and more. We've recorded 100 species of birds on our property and virtually every species of nonvenomous reptile and amphibian recorded in central Pennsylvania, as well as most mammal species. It's not unusual to see six or more species of mammal in a single day. In summer there are a variety of insects, including swallowtail and tiger butterflies, and in spring and fall the foliage change (the green wave of spring, the vibrant reds of autumn) makes for dramatic images. The location and landscaping is perfect for breakout sessions and for shooting images that you may wish to incorporate into your digital imagery.
The Mountain Dale Farm is a working farm, with chickens, horses, dairy cows, cats, dogs, peacocks, and more. It is a farm filled with 'Americana,' antiques, statues, old wagons, etc., etc. -- filled with potential images. The countryside around the farm, with rolling hills overlooking farm fields and barns, as well as the deciduous forest surrounding the farm, offers the potential for forest, fern, fungi, and macro images.
Participants stay at the Mountain Dale Farm, a farm-vacation facility similar to a bed and breakfast.
Breakfasts and dinners are served at the farm where our participants eat AS A GROUP family-style. Lunches are served here at Hoot Hollow (the name of our property). We feel this aspect of our course is unique and special -- people traveling alone are not alone once they arrive, and the time spent together as a group provides participants with the opportunity to share information, have fun, and build friendships. One warning, however! The meals both at the farm and at Hoot Hollow are tasty and filling and we cater to special diets as needed, so don't expect to go hungry during your stay! You will not lose weight! One of the advantages, we feel, that we offer is simply the fact that everything is self-contained and included -- all meals, drinks, etc., both at the Digital Institute and also where you spend the night at the Mountain Dale Farm.
A special treat is our 'Happy Hour' that wraps up each evening where the group has a chance to relax, have a beer or a wine or a soft drink and a snack, and We feel that the camaraderie and 'family' that developed from sharing meals is an important aspect of the entire experience. Students get a chance to unwind, of course, but to also ask questions and discuss photography outside of the formal classroom environment.
Price: The tuition for the Advanced DCNPC is $2,195 and includes all meals from Sunday dinner to Saturday breakfast, lodging (based upon double occupancy from Sunday to Friday),and instruction. The fee does not include transportation to or from the course.
A Personal Note ...
If you haven't experienced the infectious joy of nature photography, you soon will. And you'll discover this rewarding pursuit only grows more exciting and challenging as your skills increase. And that's the rub, for to get the most out of your shooting, your skills should improve. Unfortunately, on many of our tours and out-of-state workshops we've found participants lacking in the essential basics of exposure, techniques, procedures, and basic usage. That being so, we sincerely wish everyone who takes any of our tours or exotic workshops or safaris would first take the time to do this course. As you'll discover, it will become the foundation of your skills, and your future photography will benefit enormously from doing so.
The above statement is even more relevant, and important, for digital photographers. While digital photography seems easy, because of the immediate feedback it provides, an 'easy' image doesn't necessarily make a good one. Further, digital shooting opens up a whole new world of opportunity where a photographer is no longer hampered by scenes with varying ranges of exposure (within limits, of course!), or by the limitations of a lens's depth of field. Wide-view images that lose their impact as a wide-angle shot become dynamic, riveting images when shot as a panorama -- sometimes by using a telephoto! A whole new world of photography is now available, one that truly mirrors what our eyes see and not what our films have been able to capture. Now, we can capture what we truly see, using digital to capture the world as we see it.
Many have compared our DCNPC to a college-level course offered in an entire semester, and almost everyone states that they haven't worked so hard in a very long time, BUT that they enjoyed the hard work! You will, too, and we promise you that you will learn quality photography!
Our goal is not simply to present a thorough and enjoyable Digital Photography Course but, quite sincerely, to offer the most complete, most rewarding, and simply the best instructional program you will find, anywhere. Feedback from our participants tell us we've met that goal; one we intend to continue to meet.
About Your Instructors
Joe McDonald is widely known in nature photograph as 'the master of flash,' and he has presented programs on flash, and taught flash techniques at Hoot Hollow, for over thirty years. He has been a full-time professional wildlife and nature photographer since 1983. He is the author of six books on wildlife photography and another on African Wildlife, as well as a how-to video produced with his wife, Mary Ann, on Photographing on Safari. His work has appeared in every major nature and wildlife publication published in North America. Along with operating their own stock photography business, Joe is represented by over a dozen stock photo agencies worldwide, including Cobras, Animals Animals, Auscape, Okapia, and others.
In addition to maintaining an active and informative website, www.hoothollow.com, Joe is a columnist for OUTDOOR PHOTOGRAPHER, writing the 'Focus on Big Game' column, and Joe and his wife Mary Ann write a photography column for Joe Van Os's web magazine, www.photosafaris.com on wildlife and nature photography.
For over eighteen years Joe and Mary Ann have been teaching photography courses and leading photography tours and workshops. Their very popular photo tours and safaris have them afield for over twenty-five weeks each year.
Joe has worked with Photoshop for several years, mainly for creating sales promotional material and for web site use. Now, with the advent of digital cameras, he is using Photoshop nearly daily. He is a member of the National Association of Photoshop Professionals.
Mary Ann McDonald, who runs the business end of the Digital Institute as well as thefood-kitchen-cooking team, has been a full-time professional photographer since 1990. Mary is the author of 29 children's books on natural history, including titles on Leopards, Flying Squirrels, Jupiter, Horses, Mosquitoes, and other diverse topics. Her work has appeared in many of the major nature and wildlife publications in North America and is represented by several stock agencies worldwide, including Corbis and the BBC Natural History Archives. Mary Ann has been honored by winning in the Nature's Best Photo Competition and has won several times in the prestigious BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition. In 1994, she won two first places, the only time for a woman to accomplish this in the history of the competition and in 2005, both Joe and Mary Ann were selected as winners, the first time a husband and wife team have separately won in the competition in the same year.
Digital Nature Photography: From Capture to Output
Joe and Mary Ann have recently co-authored a book along with Rick Holt, one of their digital Photoshop instructors. The book "Digital Nature Photography: From Capture to Output" is one of the best books out there for encompassing the basic techniques of digital photography as well as the basic Photoshop techniques required to enhance your nature and wildlife images. One of the most exciting sections covers Digital Workflow, the foundation for all of your digital shooting. This .pdf book is 'The Ultimate Laptop Field Guide' but also has a print-ready version included for those who want a hard copy of the book. This is the perfect accompaniment for this course.
Digital Nature Photography: From Capture to Output
Joe and Mary Ann have recently co-authored a book along with Rick Holt, one of their digital Photoshop instructors. The book "Digital Nature Photography: From Capture to Output" is one of the best books out there for encompassing the basic techniques of digital photography as well as the basic Photoshop techniques required to enhance your nature and wildlife images. One of the most exciting sections covers Digital Workflow, the foundation for all of your digital shooting. This .pdf book is 'The Ultimate Laptop Field Guide' but also has a print-ready version included for those who want a hard copy of the book. This is the perfect accompaniment for this course.
Our Educational Commitment - a note from Joe McDonald
If you've read the above biographies, you'll see that we are dedicated photographers that are interested in sharing our knowledge and helping people. I've been involved in teaching my entire adult life, from teaching assistantships in graduate school to a six-year stint as a high school biology teacher before starting my career as a wildlife photographer and photo workshop instructor. In this role I've been a full-time professional photographer and instructor since 1983.
Our Educational Commitment - a note from Joe McDonald
If you've read the above biographies, you'll see that we are dedicated photographers that are interested in sharing our knowledge and helping people. I've been involved in teaching my entire adult life, from teaching assistantships in graduate school to a six-year stint as a high school biology teacher before starting my career as a wildlife photographer and photo workshop instructor. In this role I've been a full-time professional photographer and instructor since 1983.
Our goal is simple - to offer the most complete, thorough, and rewarding learning experience available, in terms of the knowledge you'll gain, the quality of the experience you'll have, the intensity, and, just as importantly, the amiability and fun you'll experience.
