The Digital Workshops

High Dynamic Range photography, (HDR), is one of the hottest tools and techniques in photography today and Aspen Photo Workshops is pleased to have one of the masters of HDR, David Nightingale, join us for this exciting workshop. Based in the U.K., David's company Chromasia, is one of the top online Photoshop training sites on the net and he brings a wealth of experience to this workshop.

This workshop will be held in Tampa, Florida where we will explore the cities new and old architecture, photograph streets scenes, historic areas, boat harbors, and anything else that catches our eyes.

The Art of High Dynamic Range photography workshop is an opportunity for photographers to learn from the best photographers in the field and in the business. You will experience and learn more in these five days than you brain can absorb. The days will be long, the instruction intense, and the education immeasurable. Your instructors will bring decades of professional experience and an intense passion for landscape photography. 

                                                                                        The Tampa bay area is a perfect location to hold this spring workshop. With its modern architecture and cityscape along with New Orleans style Architecture, historic areas, boat harbors, and warm spring weather, this is the perfect location for the HDR workshop.

Topics that will be covered include:

   * Understanding tonal range and dynamic range in relation to HDR images.
    * How to shoot a bracketed exposure sequence for HDR.
    * Using Photoshop's Merge to HDR function.
    * Using Photoshop's Local Adaptation method to convert an HDR image.
    * Using Photomatix Pro's Exposure Blending function.
    * Creating a photo-realistic effect.
    * Understanding tone mapping.
    * Using the Tone Compressor method in Photomatix Pro.
    * Using the Details Enhancer method in Photomatix Pro.
    * Creating the 'illustrative' look with Photomatix Pro.
    * Using Photomatix to enhance a low-contrast scene.
    * Using FDRTools to create a photo-realistic image.
    * Creating a pseudo-HDR image from a single RAW file.

Each day we’ll arise before sunrise and meet to go photograph in the early morning light. Mid morning when the light flattens, we’ll return to the hotel, grab a meal and meet in the conference room promptly at 11:00 am for The Digital Darkroom. At the beginning of each session, your instructors will give presentations on a variety of subjects. During the these days we’ll cover the digital darkroom, workflow, Photoshop techniques, and David's HDR workflow techniques.  You will then have several hours to download your images and work on them with an instructor nearby. We’ll finish our computer session by mid afternoon and then grab a meal. Next we’ll meet up again to carpool back into the park to photograph in the warm light of the setting sun.

The Agenda

Wednesday 11th
1:00 Registration begins in the conference room.
      Meet the instructors and get acquainted  social.               2:00 pm Multimedia presentation by Charlie & David            5:00 - 6:00 Dinner Break                                                              6:00 - More presentations    

Thursday 12th - Saturday 14th
7:00 am - 9:30 am Sunrise shoot
11:00 am – 3:00 pm the Digital Darkroom/Multimedia Presentations by Charlie and David
5:00 pm until dark. Evening shoot                                   

Sunday 15th
7:00 am -9:30 am Sunrise shoot
11:00 am - 3:00 pm Computer Session                                   3:00 pm Group slideshow and workshop ends

 (Actual times may vary depending on conditions, sunrise and sunset times, and any unknown factors)

                                                          Photo Equipment
The Art of HDR Workshop is for digital photographers and proper equipment is crucial to your successful workshop experience. You will need a digital SLR with interchangeable lenses. The variety of lenses is up to you, but a wide angle through telephoto lenses are good choices, such as 28mm up to 200mm. You will also need a laptop computer with a minimum of 1Gig of RAM and more would be better. You should also have at least 8 gigabytes of compact flash card space, more is better, and/or a portable hard drive. You also need a means to download your images to your laptop, either by cord, card reader, or CF Card adapters. A sturdy tripod is mandatory for HDR photography and this is very important. Don't buy cheap here as a solid tripod is crucial to the success of HDR techniques.

You will need Photomatix software as well and can get this at www.hdrsoft.com. Download Photomatix Pro AND the Tone Mapping plugin. Both are required.

You will also need Photoshop and if you do not have Photoshop CS3, follow this link and download the 30 day free trial. http://www.adobe.com/products/tryadobe/main.jsp  Do this several days before you leave for the workshop so you may use it for a few weeks after the workshop.

Getting There
Tampa is in western Florida and major airlines fly there. The Sailport Resort (www.sailport.com) is 10 minutes from the airport.

Registration
The workshop price is $895.00. Price includes transportation during the workshop only. Meals and hotel are not included. You can arrange airport transportation through the hotel. 

1) To register for The Art of High Dynamic Range Photography you can use several options. Our online registration  uses (PayPal). If you wish to not use Paypal then you can provide us your credit card information which we will run through Quicken Merchant Services. Click on this link and follow the steps. Or you can download our registration form and pay by check or money order.

2) Next, contact the Sailport Resort ( www.sailport.com) at (800)255-9599 and make your room reservations. They have reserved a block of rooms starting at $69.00. Use the promo code: #1556NI  You are not required to stay here, but we strongly encourage it. This is the best way for you to receive all information regarding the next day’s events. If the weather changes and we decide to move to a different location, we want you to know about it.   

3) Next, open and read the Workshop Packet and the Registration and General Info pages. There is important information essential to a successful workshop experience.

4) This workshop also requires a liability waiver for participation in this workshop. Please click on this link Liability Waiver, print it out, complete the form, and mail to the address on the form.

Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 30 days prior to the workshop and receive a refund, minus a $100 processing fee. Less than 30 days prior to the workshop there is no refund (unless your space can be filled, and then a $50 admin fee), or you may apply it to any Aspen Photo Workshop program.