So here we are, it is April 5th as of this writing. What are you doing to further your photography during this forced break and extra time? Maybe you are just bored and are looking for something interesting to attempt/do. For most of us “stay at homes” we have completed what we think are the necessary steps to survive and get though the pandemic. You know the basics; toilet paper, hand sanitizer and a Netflix subscription to watch Tiger King. We are all in this together. 😉 Beyond that, let me share a few resources for photographers. No matter what your skill level, these are options to learn something more or to go out of your comfort zone altogether. These include Photoshop, Lightroom, enhancing your own photography technique, incorporating flash, and using other raw file editing processes. I’m listing teaching professionals that I have turned to in the past to help me improve my own skills. Some offer partial lessons or information free on their youtube channels and more in paid or subscription tuition blocks. This includes downloadable videos and or books that will get you on your way to more! Understand, I’m not compensated, I’m not endorsing them nor do I have personal relationships with most of the people listed in the following links. Please support them if you can they are sure to be hurting and some are running specials!
The first teacher I will add (and its not in any particular order) is Matt Kloskowski. This guy is mainly a landscape photographer but definately knows his way around wildlife images. He knows the Adobe systems and others very well. His main focus is on real photo editing and not creating images with photoshop art skills. He will explain himself in the connected youtube video. I think this first quick tutorial was a perfect method to clean up messy backgrounds and/or hide landmarks which has become increasingly and unfortunately needed to conceal wildlife locations. The bobcat image above was done in ten minutes and I did not remove a couple of twigs over the chest area but could have cleaned that up if needed. You can find his website at https://mattk.com and currently he is having a 50% sale on some products.
Tomorrow I will be adding more links to other teachers and tutorials that are wildlife specific.
This guy is well known for tutorials and is pretty much a youtube staple with his Photo News Fix episodes keeping photo enthusiasts up to date on industry news and camera specifications . All though I started following him for the “FroKnowsPhoto Raw Talk” series he and his team also produce professional tutorials worthy of your time. He is not wildlife specific in his work and he has trouble identifying creatures in critiques I have watched. To me that makes it amusing and funny! His latest youtube posting grabbed my attention. He is offering a flash photography series as a “Pay What You Want” offer. As we are mostly all at home and indoors I thought this is probably a good way to improve a skill most wildlife photographers don’t often employ. Anyway I just supported him. The downloads and store experience was smooth as silk. His name is Jared Polin and you will find his website at https://froknowsphoto.com
That is it for today and I will add other teacher and tutorial links tomorrow. If you have any questions or suggestions please contact me or leave a comment below!
Cheers! Randall