Photoshop CS4 Fundamental Workflow
The Basics & Beyond of Photoshop for Photographers

About the course:

This is a course for photographers who understand that the photographic process does not stop in the camera, but only when the image is made into something that can be viewed and shared in all its intended glory. To paraphrase something Ansel Adams said in the days of film, the digital negative, or RAW file, is akin to a musical score, the final print is akin to the score being performed.

In the course, participants will work on the path to mastering the foundation of the digital darkroom in Photoshop CS4. During the week I will teach you the path, or workflow, that you will be able to use to download, organize, process, and print or digitally share the majority of your digital images. During the week, participants will work through 40 lessons covering the following topics:

The Publishing Workflow - 8 Lessons Covering:

Image Size
Soft Proofing Your Images
Printing Your Files at Home
Printing Your Files at a Photo-Finisher
Preparing your files for the Internet
Batch Resizing images using Bridge and Photoshop
Saving Files
Archiving your Images

Image Editing in Photoshop - 5 Lessons Covering:

The Filter Gallery
Adding Text to your Image
Transforming Images
Basic Selections for Compositing
Basic Layers for Compositing

**Bridge is part of Photoshop CS4

What this course is not:

This is not a class in basic computer skills.  Participants are expected to have a good level of proficiency using their chosen computer operating system, including a familiarly with finding and opening files using the Macintosh Finder or Windows Explorer.

Who should attend:

This class lays the foundation of mastering Adobe Photoshop CS4 for photographic applications and is designed for people with a basic to intermediate knowledge of Photoshop.

What should I bring with me?:

I recommend that you come prepared with the following items for this course:

• Your own laptop or portable desktop computer with Adobe Photoshop CS4 loaded.  If you do not own a copy of CS4, you can download a free 30-day trial version of the program here by rolling over the Photoshop CS4 icon and clicking the "try" button.  If you do not have an Adobe ID you will need to create one prior to downloading this software.
  
  
• Your digital SLR or camera.  Most of the class time will be spent in the digital darkroom, however some time will be dedicated to a discussion of your in-camera exposure using the histogram and there will be a short shooting exercise to give time for practical application of the exposure techniques.
  
  
• About ten to twenty of your own images to work with during the course.  I recommend that they are loaded on your computer already prior to class, but you may also bring them on a external hard drive, CD or CF card.
  
  
• If you need them, a good pair of both reading & regular glasses. Instruction takes place on a front projection screen located between ten and twenty feet from where you will be seated. Application of learned techniques takes place on your laptop.
  
  
• And of course yourself, ready to learn and work in a digital darkroom!