Beginners Photography Course

■ Learn how to use any digital camera to its fullest potential

■ Structures for time pressed individuals

■ Learning about your camera, its handling, its menus

■ We cater for smartphone users including creative & pro apps

■ Grasp the fundamentals of lighting & creative composition

■ Fun & creative learning with like minded fellow persons

■ Well structured, practical workshops covering the key points

■ Small groups of no more than 6 persons

■ Expert tuition from the professional photographer Andrew Thomasson

■ Detailed general course notes & pdf files to back up what we learn

■ Active 'hands on' learning in the Rocks, Botanic Gardens, Woolloomooloo, Hyde Park & QVB 

■ Learn how to use any digital camera to its fullest potential

■ Structures for time pressed individuals

■ Learning about your camera, its handling, its menus

■ We cater for smartphone users including creative & pro apps

■ Fundamentals of lighting & creative composition

■ Fun & creative learning with like minded fellow persons

■ Well structured, practical workshops covering the key points

■ Small groups of no more than 6 persons

■ Expert tuition from the professional photographer Andrew Thomasson

■ Detailed general course notes & pdf files to back up what we learn

■ $50 gift voucher to use towards another course or to 'gift' to another person

■ Active 'hands on' learning in the Rocks, Botanic Gardens, Woolloomooloo, Hyde Park & QVB 

■ No previous photographic experience required

■ Any full or cropped frame DSLR camera, mirrorless camera, compact  & smartphones is perfect * 

■ The standard kit lens or lenses which came with the camera

■ Memory Card(s): we recommend at least a 4 GB card for each session of shooting

■ Charged camera battery and a spare if you have one

■ A smartphone is ideal. Bring it as your main camera or to compliment your other camera

■ Whilst this is not a physically demanding course you should be able to walk 5-8km over the course of 7 hours 

■ Inclusions: instruction from professional photographers, detailed notes

■ Exclusions: Food and beverages

* there is more information on camera gear in the FAQ section

Time	10am to 5pm
Location	18 Argyle Street, Sydney
Meeting Point	Opposite the Clock tower. Beside outside tables near small fountain & red phone box

Why do this one day Beginners Course with Focus 10?
■ Wanting to get more out of your camera's features and learn more about photography in general. You learn much faster with 'hands on' instruction from a professional photographer and tutor

■ To fast track yourself into the world of photography

■ The security of booking with a reputable company. This digital course has been running for 19 years in Sydney with the experienced professional photographer / instructor Andrew Thomasson

■ Existing amateur photographers who just want to learn how to take better images

■ Maybe you are a designer, a traveller, have always loved photography, retired, wanting a new hobby or to start a new career

■ For those wishing to get back into photography after a long layoff - to learn about new digital technologies and devices such as smartphones and mirrorless cameras

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Is this Beginners Photography course suitable for me?
■ It's suitable for everyone: a clear path for the entry-level to intermediate photographer (maybe you need to brush up old skills learnt years ago shooting film or early digital), allowing you to gain essential new digital knowledge

■ This course will appeal to amateurs or hobbyists wanting to move on from shooting on the 'Auto' mode

■ A step by step structured course teaching you basic camera handling skills. Easy to understand and content backed up with detailed notes

■ Composition, lighting and other techniques to become a better photographer

■ You do not need expensive camera gear. Any full or cropped frame DSLR camera, mirrorless camera or quality compact with manual controls is suitable

■ Bring your smartphone as it's ideal for posting to social media and to share images & as a great snapshooter

■ Whilst this is not a physically demanding course you should be able to walk 4-7km over the course of 7 hours.

■ Inclusions: Instruction from professional photographers, detailed notes

■ Exclusions : Food and beverages

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How many people will be on my course?
■ A maximum of 6 persons for a highly personalised learning experience. This ensure plenty of one on one attention

■ We do cater for larger groups bringing in other tutors and splitting the groups into teams. Talk to us about your special requirements such as a 'team building' Beginners Photography course for a government organisation, company, your travel or camera club and for private groups

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What happens if it's raining?
■ We do not give refunds for inclement weather. Bring a raincoat and/or umbrella as some of the best photos are taken in the rain. We have a number of indoor shooting location options

■ We offer a 'repeat for free' weather guarantee. Join the course anyway. If the weather is really bad we will do a few hours and you then receive a gift voucher to come back at another time. If we call the course off you can 'gift' your credit voucher to a friend or to whoever you nominate

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Do I have the right camera gear for this Beginners course?
■ In your detailed notes you receive upon booking - we give lots of recommendations on the best camera gear, camera bag and accessories to consider as the move into the exciting world of photography

■ Most students have cropped frame DSLR camera's, a mirrorless camera, compact or smartphone. A base DLSR with two kits lenses such as a 18-55mm, a 18-135mm, 18mm-250mm etc is fine!

■ A back up smartphone or just your smartphone can take great images. So please bring yours along. We also run a dedicated Smartphone Photography course which you may prefer.

■ Choose the right camera gear based on portability, what you like to shoot, whether you aim to be a hobby or a professional photographer down the track and price point. Do not over invest when starting out. We recommend a camera you can grow into. Canon, Nikon, Sony, Olympus etc make great camera's you can learn on. As you get better, you can use these camera's as a second body or upgrade. Build up a system as requirements and your budget allows.

■ If money is no object - always Invest in the best lenses, filters and tripod - these should last you a long time under heavy use

■ Most beginners buy a camera with a built in flash which is fine for learning about flash. Down the track get an external flash. This will give you more versatility in getting the light right and shooting at a more advanced level.

■ You do not need a tripod for this course. If you want to bring your tripod- thats fine

■ Memory Card(s): we recommend at least a 4 GB card for this one day course. The rule of thumb with memory cards is 'Don’t put all your eggs in one basket' - better to use lots of smaller memory cards than few bigger ones in case of loss or dysfunction of cards.

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Can I rent a camera? Buy SD cards?
■ Yes - we have cropped DLSR Canon and Nikon Camera's for rent. The fee is $40 ( payable on the day via card or cash) Your camera will have a standard 18-55mm lens ( or equivalent)
■ Lexar 32GB high speed SD cards are available for purchase for $25 per card from us ( or bring your own SD card)

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What are some of the topics covered in the detailed notes I get?
DETAILED NOTES with every course booking include information on the following:

■ CAMERA GEAR - full frame DLSR camera's | cropped sensor DLSR CAMERA'S | prime & zoom lenses | compacts | mirrorless cameras | smartphones | tripods, | filters | batteries, memory cards | cleaning your gear | camera bags

■ CAMERA HANDLING - shooting modes | raw vs jpeg | metering modes | colour space | focusing modes | white balance | ISO | picture style & control | exposure lock compensation | bracketing | adding light into shadows | high dynamic range (HDR)

■ LIGHTING - types | natural light | artificial light | white balance | time the light

■ COMPOSITION - leading & converging lines | the rule of thirds | framing an image | reflections | look for unusual angles | colour | star bursts | showing motion | viewpoint | selective focus | vertical vs horizontal | aspect ratio

APPLICATIONS

■ PEOPLE - candid | frozen moments | street photography

■ LANDSCAPES - overview | technique | light | composition

■ ARCHITECTURE - light | composition

■ FOOD & DRINK - fresh & simple

■ ACTION - freeze the motion | showing blur

■ WILDLIFE & NATURE - flora & fauna in the Botanic Gardens

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Terms and Conditions when you book this course
FAQ's + TERMS & CONDITIONS

Payments
Paying for your course in full upon booking will confirm your attendance. Places are limited on all courses. Please note that there is a 2% surcharge for using Visa and MasterCard credit cards. We do not take American Express cards.

Refunds
We reserve the right to cancel and reschedule any course, due to inadequate enrolment, bad weather, instructor illness, an 'act of God' or a force majeure such as a pandemic. As an example, a photography course has to be cancelled or deferred to another date and time due to Covid 19 border closures and lockdowns which is beyond the control of Focus 10 Pty Ltd and other related parties. We also reserve the right to cancel any course if there is insufficient demand, especially if it means that our costs would be higher than our income. Please therefore do not leave it until the last few weeks if you are interested in a particular date, as you may find that it has been cancelled. As our costs for each training event remain the same no matter how many delegates attend, like any pre-booked tickets for the theatre, concert, flights etc, we are unable to give a full refund in the event of non-attendance, regardless of the circumstances. If withdrawal occurs within the 14 days before the course starts we will try to put you on an alternative date if places are available. Please note that we cannot be liable for any other costs incurred by yourself, so please check with us before booking any non-refundable accommodation or transport.

Workshop Photography:
We reserve the right to take photographic, (both still and video) records of any of our workshops/courses which may be used for promotional purposes, submissions, advertising and records. We grant permission for participants to use any images captured by them during this workshop for self-promotion only. Participants may not make any financial gain from any images captured during this workshop/course.

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Great job shooting the Bronte Flight Centre! Looks like they our client is bailing out at the right time .. retail strips are not going to be hot sellers in the near future. Are you able to send me hi-res of just the external whole building shots please? Thanks

--Hugh McGlone / Marketing Manager

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Andrew has been our corporate photographer for 8 years shooting all our events, functions and portraits. Focus 10 is reputable, flexible and innovative!

-- Laura 0'Donnell / Marketing Manager

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Thank you for one of the best 5 days ever. Lots of laughs, learn a huge amount, great group, food was fab, and eating out cheap. Super cooking class, brilliant photography with masses of variety each and every day. A highlight for me was the Full moon festival. Amazing! A memorable adventure. Sign me up for your Cinque Terre course in October! Cheers

--Samantha Knight

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Andrew has been training our staff, photographing for us over 30 years and has led many Australian and overseas photography tours for World Expeditions. A superb photographer with the ability to handle pressure and to deal with the unexpected. Andrew is very personable and always delivers way more than asked for. Highly recommended.

-- Sue Badyari / General Manager

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"The course was really helpful for our forthcoming jaunt around Asia. We'll take a look at the courses online and book something in (probably when we're back from Cambodia as we've only got a couple of weeks till we leave). These notes are terrific as well. I've already made a note to take a print out with me on our trip. Cheers,"

-- Sylvia Nguyen / Change Manager

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Thank you for one of the best weekends I can remember on your fabulous Margaret River tour. Lots of laughs, learnt a huge amount about photography, a great group, loved the variety of subjects & our Surfers Point sunset champers & oysters shoot was sublime. I will be doing your Goldfield tour next.

--Jen Risoli

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A great weekend and I learnt heaps - hope to do it again sometime.

--Sue Morris

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Andrew gave our staff training in how to get better social media shots on our smartphones in on location at our farms in Murrurundi NSW and Canungra QLD. The training was very concise and professional and he even gave us free lessons on flying his drone. We are certainly happy to recommend Focus 10 for photography for any training.

--Adelaide Moses / Marketing and Communications Manager

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