Photography 101: In the beginning

Photography classes at the Florida Museum of Photographic Arts

Cathy and Pierre Dutertre don't pussyfoot around. If you take their Photography 101 class at the Florida Museum of Art, you're going to shoot manual...on the first day. You will learn what aperture, shutter speed, and ISO are. Why? Because photography is so much easier when you know what all those fancy settings on your camera do.

As a freelance photographer, I already know what these settings are and how they affect my photographs. Without this knowledge, I wouldn't be able to freeze motion, blur busy backgrounds, or take good photos at night.

Even so, there is still plenty for me to learn in this class. Between the two of them, the Dutertre's have two Master of Fine Arts degrees and 45 years experience as photographers. I am mostly self-taught, with only two years photography experience.

It is clear from the beginning that the Dutertre's care about what each and every student hopes to get out of the class, including me. The course begins with two simple questions: Why are you here and what are your expectations?

Everyone's answers are similar yet different at the same time. One woman is a nurse at Tampa General who loves photography and hopes to turn it into a business someday. Another women cites a similar joy of photography. She typically shoots automatic, but she wants to learn more about her camera's settings. A young man is here because he loves sports photography and wants to take better pictures of his 10 month old son. I'm here to tell you what this class is like and to improve my photography in the process.

All of us love photography, and all of us want to take better photographs. For most of us, this means we need to learn more about light and exposure.

In the first class we are taught how our camera sees things, and what affects the lightness and darkness of our images. We are shown bright and shiny overexposed images, and dark and mysterious underexposed images. With each advancing Powerpoint slide, students are brought closer to achieving the perfect exposure.

In the final hour, we are given time to practice what we've learned. The room is bathed in gold as the sun goes down. We peer into our LCD screens, watching the light paint peaks and valleys on our cameras' histograms, and make adjustments. Pierre and Cathy walk the room, providing assistance where needed.

In the end, everyone is shooting manual.

That was fast.

Photography Classes at the Florida Museum of Photographic Arts

(click the course name to learn more and register)

Photography 101 (already in progress) Cathy and Pierre Dutertre teach the essentials. Aug. 9, 16, 23 and 30: 6-8 p.m. $200; members, $180. 

Introduction to Mobile Photography Scott Bolendz teaches how to take better photos with a cell phone in a two-hour workshop. Aug. 17: 6-8 p.m. $40; members, $35.

How to make a picture after you take a picture Katherine Campbell teaches how to enhance cell phone photos. Sept. 13 and 20: 1-3 p.m. $115; members, $75.

iPhoneology 101 Deirdre Powell teaches how to take — and edit — photos with an iPhone. Oct. 21: 1-3:30 p.m. $100; $60, members.

Advanced courses also available.

Source: Photography 101: In the beginning