Online Photography Course
Better Color for Great-Looking Prints

What You Get

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	Benefits: You get direct feedback on your photos from world-acclaimed, professional photographers. You can learn photography in this way from anywhere in the world.
Learn at your pace, with structure. Be guided by a real pro instructor. Get your photos critiqued every week. Join students from around the world. Go far beyond any book or DVD. Make great pictures, again and again!

Instructor

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Jon Canfield
Jon Canfield is a landscape and nature photographer living in the Pacific Northwest. He writes for several photography magazines, including PC Photo, Digital Photo Pro, and Shutterbug.

His "Output Options" column in Shutterbug has been a popular resource for thousands of people with questions on digital output and he is a consultant on digital printing for Canon, HP, and Pantone.

Jon is the co-author of Photo Finish: The Digital Photographer's Guide to Printing, Showing, and Selling Images, and the author of RAW 101: Better Images with Photoshop Elements and Photoshop; The Digital SLR Guide; and Print Like a Pro.

Listen to the fascinating BetterPhoto Radio Interview with Jon!

A Couple of Photos by the Instructor

© Jon Canfield

© Jon Canfield

Course Outline

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Lesson 1: Calibrating Your Display And Workspace
Introduction: Everyone talks about color management. What is it in plain terms, and why is it important to you? Lesson one will teach you the concepts and show you how to calibrate your display for accurate color.
Assignment: For your first assignment, I'd like everyone to select 3 images that represent the type of shots that you normally take, and more importantly, are interested in printing. If you have images that have given you problems in the past, they are good choices for working with in class. The ideal image will have a broad range of color for landscapes, or head shots for people photography. I want to see each of these before and after calibrating your display.

Lesson 2: Using Printer Profiles
The image on screen is only half the battle. Getting a print that matches can be a frustrating and expensive task. Lesson two is all about using the proper printer settings to get a print that matches your screen.
Assignment: For your second assignment, I'd like everyone to select 2-4 images that represent the type of shots that you normally take, and more importantly, have printed with mixed success. Using your normal printing process, print one copy of each image. Now, using the steps covered in this lesson, use Photoshop (or Elements) to manage the color and printer with the correct profiles and rendering intent. Upload each image along with details on what you did differently and the results you achieved.

Lesson 3: Soft Proofing
Did you know you can simulate the look of your output before hitting print? Soft Proofing can save time and money by showing you how the print will look on the selected media before wasting expensive paper.
Assignment: For this week's assignment, I'd like you to select 2 images you've had problems with in printing. Using the Soft Proofing features covered this week, including Gamut Warning, make corrections to the image to adjust the print to match your desired output.

Lesson 4: Creating Custom Profiles
A clear and understandable lesson on creating your own custom profiles for printers and digital cameras.
Assignment: I would like to create a custom profile for each of you on a paper that has given you problems in the past. Download the profile and print it out following the included instructions. Mail the print to me. I will create a custom profile for you and email it back. Once you have the profile, install it following the directions in this lesson and do a sample print using this new profile. Your new print should be more accurate than what you previously had with the previous settings.

© Jon Canfield

© Jon Canfield

Requirements

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Digital Hardware calibration device such as ColorVision, Monaco, or Gretag Macbeth. Image editing software that supports color management. Digital images. Scanning is fine for film users.  Printer recommended, but not absolutely required.

FAQ

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This 4-week course is open to everyone who is interested in learning how to get accurate results from their monitor and printer, reducing the frustration common to many.  

Yes. Every type of photography can benefit from color-managed devices. Whether you shoot digital or scan images, this class will show you how to get accurate results.  

You will need to have or take digital images. Scanning is fine for film users. A printer will increase the value of the class, but is not absolutely required. 

To create profiles, I recommend one of the hardware products from ColorVision, Gretag Macbeth, or Monaco. You can create profiles using Adobe Gamma or Apple's Calibrator Assistant but results will not be as accurate.  

© Jon Canfield

© Jon Canfield

No, you do not need to be online at any specific time. The lessons are sent to your email and you are also provided the Campus Square - where you interact with your classmates and instructor. This is also where you upload your photos to be critiqued by your instructor. The instructors are very punctual and respond quickly.

Absolutely! Students can ask questions in the special Q&A forum set up in the course's Campus Square, or can ask the instructor via email.

Yes. We are confident that you will fully enjoy our courses. All the same, for our 8-week classes, we offer a 100% money-back guarantee before the Wednesday that Lesson #3 is sent out. If for any reason, you are not satisfied and let us know that you would like to withdraw before the Wednesday that Lesson #3 is sent, you will be promptly refunded.

For our 4-week courses, we offer a 100% money back guarantee before the Wednesday that Lesson #2 is sent out from BetterPhoto. If for any reason you are not satisfied and you let the ordering department know that you would like to withdraw before the Wednesday that Lesson #2 is sent, you will be refunded within 7 days. After the second lesson has been sent out, no refunds will be given.


If you have further questions about this course, feel free to contact us via the Contact link below.

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