About Me

My photo
Spofford, New Hampshire, United States
Jeff Newcomer had been a physician practicing in New Hampshire and Vermont for over 30 years. Over that time, as a member of the Conservation Commission in his home of Chesterfield New Hampshire, he has used his photography to promote the protection and appreciation of the town's wild lands. In recent years he has been transitioning his focus from medicine to photography, writing and teaching. Jeff enjoys photographing throughout New England, but has concentrated on the Monadnock Region and southern Vermont and has had a long term artistic relationship with Mount Monadnock. He is a featured artist in a number of local galleries and his work is often seen in regional print, web publications and in business installations throughout the country. For years Jeff has published a calendar celebrating the beauty of The New England country-side in all seasons. All of the proceeds from his New England Reflections Calendar have gone to support the Pulmonary Rehabilitation Program at the Cheshire Medical Center. Jeff has a strong commitment to sharing his excitement about the special beauty of our region and publishes a blog about photography in New England.

Monday, December 11, 2017

Up-coming Photograpraphy and Editing Classes. Winter/Spring


Stone Arch Bridge, Keene, NH
Recently, I completed the latest session of my Introduction to Digital Photography course.  I have offered this course for Keene Community Education four times before, but each time it is my “Latest Version” because my course varies based on the needs and interests of the participants.





Shooting at the Stone Arch Bridge

This seems like a good time to present my schedule for courses in the first part of the coming year.  With so many people discovering the amazing capabilities of digital photography, and struggling with the use of the new digital cameras, the interest in my introductory course seems to be persistent.  I love introducing so many enthusiastic people to this new world of photography, and will continue to offer my course until  the interest fades, if ever.  












Lightroom Library Module
One of the key advantages to digital photography is the ease with which images can be brought to their full potential with digital editing. In my introductory course, I inevitably refer to the power of the “Digital Darkroom”, particularly Photoshop and Lightroom, and in response to the many request, I created a hands-on course covering the essentials of image organization, editing and exporting within the amazingly powerful Lightroom program.  I’ll be repeating my Introduction to Lightroom Course, but this year in a new and more convenient venue.


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Introduction to Adobe Lightroom 
Tuesday Nights,
January 16th. – February 13th
Monadnock Imaging, Main Street, Keene N



Jaffrey Meeting House
I have been a dedicated Photoshop user for many years, but over the last few years, I have become increasingly impressed with the power of Lightroom, in terms of both its image management tools and its sophisticated editing capabilities.  I still bring almost all my images into Photoshop for final tweaking, especially when complicated masking is required, but I now use Lightroom for 80-90% of my global editing.  Given its power and ease of use, for the majority of digital photography enthusiasts, Lightroom is likely all they will need to get started with image management and editing.



The Big Name Juggle

New Lightroom CC
Recently Adobe has complicated all of our lives by splitting the Lightroom Program in two.  There are many good discussions of the differences between these very different programs, but simply speaking, the new Lightroom CC is an entirely new cloud based program.  With a simpler interface, but significantly pared down capabilities.  It is designed for more casual photographers, and those who work primarily through a mobile interface.  For more serious photographers who store larger image archives locally on hard drives and who want to use the full features of the old Lightroom, the new program has no significant place. 




Lightroom "Classic"
For me and most serious photographers, the new choice is called “Lightroom Classic”.  It sounds disconcertingly like the old “Coke Classic”, but Lightroom Classic is just the old Lightroom CC with all the old features and functions and a few new tricks.  This split seems to be designed to create a simpler path for mobile and other smart phone photographers, without stripping the power of the “Classic” Lightroom program.  Adobe promises to keep up with innovation on both versions of Lightroom.  We will be watching.



If you, like many, are still confused, just know that the CC and Classic versions are both included among the options in the Adobe Photography Subscription Plan, and still for $9.99/month.  My course will be covering the full power of the Lightroom Classic Program.


Lightroom Classic Course
I have developed my introductory course to cover all the essential capabilities of Lightroom.  In the last couple of years, I have offered the course four times and it has been warmly received.  I run the class as a live demonstration.  Students are encouraged to work along on their own laptops, but a computer is not necessary to benefit from the material.   I’ve had a great time with the classes.


Map Module
Without the use of PowerPoint slides, presentations are much more dynamic, and, as is always true of teaching a course,  have

learned a ton. I initially thought that four, two-hour classes would be enough to cover the program's many features, but because of my tendency to ramble and lots of great questions, I have added a fifth class to cover the Slide Show, Book and Web Modules. I probably could have used more time, but I learned that 2 hours of software complexity at a time is definitely the limit for my mature students – and their teacher.



Monadnock Imaging Hosts
Lightroom Around the Dining Room Table
I have held previous Lightroom classes at my home in Spofford NH, and had to limit the classes to the 8 people who could fit comfortably around my dining room table.  This year, the great folks at Monadnock Imaging in Keene have generously offered to host the class.  This will allow me to expand the group to around 12, and it will also make the location more easily assessable, especially during the snowy winter weeks.  There will be no more struggling over Chesterfield Hill, except for me and Robin.  We will continue to have five, two-hour, evening sessions, and of course, light snacks will be provided. The ten hour course is $195.  There are already people on the waiting list from last time, so please get in touch as soon as possible.


603-363-8338  


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Introduction to Digital Photography
Tuesday evenings 6-8pm
April 10, 17, May 1,8  (Corrected)



This spring I will again be offering my Introduction to Digital Photography Course as part of Keene Community Ed’s fall program.   The course includes 4 classes and two photo shoots. I cover a wide range of topics from understanding the difference in camera types to, image file formats, file management and archiving. Special emphasis is placed on exposure, composition and the use of different types of light.  All these topics are applied to the results of the photo shoots.


Golden Spire



The course size is limited and, if the past is any guide, it will tend to fill quickly.  Registration begins Wednesday, January 17 and can be done over the phone at 357-0088 or on-line at www.keenecommunityed.org.  Please feel free to get in touch with me for any questions.

Steadying the Camera



Waterfall Workshop
That is my list for now.  I will likely announce another Spring Waterfall Workshop for sometime in May.   I am excited how, in the last couple of years, teaching has become such an important part of my photographic activities. 



Of course, the classes and workshops have seemed a natural extension of the teaching I have been doing for years in my weekly Getting It Right in the Digital Camera Blog.  Working on the blog has greatly expanded my knowledge to the point that I feel comfortable offering my classes. I hope to get to know many more of my readers as I continue and expand my live programs.



Please get in touch if you have any questions about the up-coming classes and work-shops, or if there other topics you would like to see me cover either in a class or on the blog.  Any interest in a Photoshop Class – or classes.




Jeffrey Newcomer
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