Photography Class: The Art of The Portrait

Great portrait photography doesn’t require expensive equipment, just a solid understanding of your subject, your tools and proper use of lighting. 

In this illuminating online class from BKC, you’ll see demonstrations of how light, shadow and focal length affect the dimensions of the human face, and learn to observe, visualize and control natural light to achieve stunning results. You'll also get valuable practice in the art of photographing people and learn to put your subjects at ease, so you can make creating vivid portraits a part of your everyday practice. Students should have an understanding of manual focus before taking this class; a basics of photography class is a recommended prerequisite.

COVID-19 UPDATE:

Using live video demonstrations, guided feedback to exercises, screen-sharing for slides and illustrations, and submitted assignments, we’ll be able to translate the great majority of the content from this class to the online format, and develop exciting new content for the medium as well. We look forward to the challenge, and we hope you do too!

Who should take this class?

Anyone who wants to learn how to make surprisingly awesome portraits quickly, easily and without a lot of fancy equipment.

What to prepare?

Make sure to have a working laptop or desktop with a web camera or a tablet/smartphone, and a good internet connection. We will send you an invite to join the class, along with instructions and a number you can call if you have technical issues. You might want headphones. Charge camera batteries ahead of time and make space on your camera's memory card.  

Prerequisites

Understanding of manual exposure control. It is recommended to take an intro class like Crash Course: Camera Basics, 1-Day Workout: Camera Warm-Up! or Digital Photo I: The Basics prior to taking this class.

Remote Learning

This course is available for remote learning and will be available to anyone with access to an internet device with a microphone (this includes most models of computers and tablets). Classes will take place with a live instructor at the date/times listed below.

Upon registration, the instructor will send along additional information about how to log-on and participate in the class.