In a letter to his brother Theo, the great artist Vincent van Gogh wrote, "It often seems to me that the night is much more alive and richly colored than the day." The advent of digital photography has revolutionized the practice of night photography because a digital sensor can record the spectacular colors of the night. These colors are created by light waves in spectrums that are invisible to the naked human eye. For the first time we can truly "see" the world of the night around us.
Night covers the globe half the time and—surprising to many—photographic opportunities with digital equipment are as exciting at night as they are during the day. Join night photographer Harold Davis, the author of Creative Night: Digital Photo Tips & Techniques (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0470527099/), a book explaining night photography techniques and 100 Views of the Golden Gate (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0899974473/), a book celebrating the visual glories of San Francisco's iconic structure, as we explore the freedom of the night in the glorious surroundings of San Francisco.
What: Night Photography in San Francisco with Harold Davis
When: Feb 20-22, 2015
Where: Berkeley, CA (classroom sessions); field locations around the San Francisco Bay area
Tuition and registration: $695; RSVP YES to register for this workshop using Paypal, or contact us if you'd prefer to pay by check or using an installment plan.
Workshop size: Minimum 4 and Maximum 12 participants
Field locations: Depend on conditions and group inclinations, may include Berkeley Pier, Oakland Waterfront Park, Mare Island, Marin Headlands, Golden Gate Bridge, Kirby Cover, Lombard Street curves, San Francisco waterfront and Bay Bridge
On Friday, Harold will cover techniques, equipment, and night safety issues during an orientation session before moving outdoors to create images of the night. In the morning we’ll regroup to demystify post-processing of night time captures in Photoshop and evaluate our work in the context of personal goals.
A second night shoot on Saturday gives participants the opportunity to put into practice their newly acquired skills.
Time permitting, we will take advantage of the wonderful locations available to also shoot some daylight landscapes!
Classroom sessions will provide critiques of participant work, and demonstrate night photographic post-production Photoshop techniques including multi-RAW processing, stacking, layering, and LAB enhancements.
Field locations depend upon conditions, but will likely include the Golden Gate and the Marin Headlands, the curves on Lombard Street, Berkeley Municipal Pier and downtown San Francisco. Conditions permitting, we may be able to take advantage of the early-setting new moon the weekend of Feb 21-22 to also practice capturing star trails.
We will learn to make beautiful night landscapes together, and enjoy the spectacular San Francisco scenery from a unique perspective. You’ll leave the workshop with great images and the skills to capture the world of the night while others sleep.
Agenda and Curriculum
Friday (Feb 20, 2015 sunset 5:53 PM)
5 PM Classroom session
Orientation to night photography
Night photography gear
Low-light and night shooting techniques
Safety in the dark
6 PM Proceed to location for low-light and night photography (location(s) tbd)
