RPS SE Region, April Newsletter

RPS SE REGION NEWSLETTER April 2022

One of the Herstmonceux Observatories adjacent to the observatory where we held our Astro photography workshop in March

Welcome to the April Newsletter SE region from the

A very warm welcome to you all and I hope you have been enjoying the warmer temperatures and the sunnier days of late.

Astro Photography course and F2F courses The image above shows what a fantas c day we had for our Astro Photography course. John Fox, the presenter, imparted his phenomenal knowledge about Astro Photography to a very interested audience. Did you know the Milky way is best photographed from May through to September, with as li le moon as possible, in a place with as li le light pollu on as possible?

Use a wide angle lens, wide open at ISO 800, for 25 seconds, and most importantly, manually focus on the brightest star you can nd.

We did struggle to ll the number of places on the course and we are realising that Covid is s ll having an e ect on our Face-to-Face courses. In the AGM, (next sec on), we learnt that Thames Valley are successfully running F2F courses, but the di erence is they are very cheap.

Unless things change signi cantly, we are going to postpone some of our planned F2F courses for some me.

One excep on to this is a planned day photographing Orchids at Samphire Hoe on May 1st. This event isn’t nalised but we hope it will be very cheap and it is all outdoors.

We are going to suggest some outdoor events in the region where just we meet up and shoot some images together.

Some events are free and some require an entry free, but there is no charge by RPS SE. We would suggest a mee ng me and place.

Ideas so far are: Tulips of Arundel in late April Rochester chimney sweeps fes val at the beginning of May Kent Show June Has ngs Pirates Day in mid-July More in the next newsle er.

The 2021/2022 AGM

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Be careful what you wish for! I did say we were planning a low-key AGM. That was because we only held the last AGM in September 2021. It was certainly low key as we only had 2 non commi ee members a end.

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RPS SE REGION NEWSLETTER April 2022

We are obliged to hold an AGM annually, and the lesson for me is that we do need to provide some other speakers and/or a compe on to a ract people to listen to a number of reports. (As far as I can ascertain there is no quorum requirement.)

You can read the full presenta on with any ques ons/discussions added to the slides. (Click here to access)

The Celia Henderson courses

were

to be rolled out on Monday 7th March to everyone in the SE Region and everyone who had a ended one of Celia’s courses before, but from outside the region.

Unfortunately, the broadcast, to you in the SE, was delayed by RPS central for 36 hours. I hope this did not a ect your ability to book courses and if it did, I do apologise. We will be repea ng all the courses, but only a er this current set nish in late October. My es mate of when they will be published is around August.

(Click here to access) the web site.

Joe Houghton Courses Last week saw a very successful pilot by Joe Houghton as a prelude to a series of courses on Lightroom. Based on feedback so far, the courses will be aimed at di erent levels of ability, like Celia’s current courses and will have notes provided to enable people to follow the techniques as Joe demonstrates them.

Joe intends to use Google Drive as a central resource for the course instruc ons, images and recordings. It will take a li le while for Joe to actually write the courses, but we already know they will all be on a Friday at 1000, las ng 90 mins each. We expect to have an outline plan by the next newsle er.

Posi ve View RPS central have authorised us to donate 10 cameras to the charity Posi ve View. This was talked about in the AGM, however brie y, Posi ve View is a charity that helps disadvantaged young people in the SE region, through photography. They run courses for 10 young people and provide them with the kit and instruc on from photographers, (who give their me for free). This happens on 1 day per week for 10 weeks. The whole process is designed to give the recipients a sense of self-worth and steer them back into educa on and even employment. Their success rate is over 87%. We will be documen ng the journey of the cameras and will bring you a fuller story in May.

We need you

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Don’t forget if you have any ideas for the region or want to help contact me at southeast@rps.org We are looking for people to ll roles such as: Treasurer Secretary Publicity O cer Event co-ordina on John Gough RPS SE Regional Organiser

RPS SE event programme - April 2022, (Only events up to July are shown) (Status of event correct as of March 24th) How to publish a Photobook in Lightroom with Joe Houghton First workshop 22/04/2022

Number of workshops: 1

Joe will take you through the steps in Lightroom from editing, to page layouts and printing/ordering your own photo book

Click for access on RPS website (places)

Photographing Orchids at Samphire Hoe with Alan Bousfield First workshop 01/05/2022

Number of workshops: 1

This an opportunity to photpgrapgh wild orchids with he help of All Bousfield ARPS. Alan has recently had a portfolio of 6 orchids shortlisted for the exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery in April

No link available, this event is still being planned

Getting Started: Discover the Tools and Panels First workshop 10/05/2022

Number of workshops: 2

A guided tour of the Photoshop Interface. Working with Panels, Tools and their options. Learn how to quickly pan and zoom around the interface; undo your actions. Explore methods to increase and decrease image and canvas size with an overview of the crop tool and how to use Content Aware fill. Saving images and file formats. Explore the Toolbar and understand the options and settings.

Click for access on RPS website (places)

Smart Objects: Ultimate tool for working non-destructively First workshop 10/05/2022

Number of workshops: 2

Smart Objects are the ultimate tool for working non destructively and creatively. See how to erform non-destructive transformations to an image without losing original image quality.

Click for access on RPS website (sold out)

Actions: Automate repetitive tasks and get creative First workshop 17/05/2022

Number of workshops: 2

A number of processes in your workflow could be automated if you used Actions. This workshop will demonstrate the Action presets built in to Photoshop, how and where to use them.

Click for access on RPS website (sold out)

Essential Skills: Introduction to Layers and Selections First workshop 17/05/2022

Number of workshops: 2

Good image editing nearly always requires more than one layer. This workshop covers everything you need to know about working with layers: duplicating, moving, deleting, adding, merging, stamp copies, naming conventions and creating new documents from layers.

Click for access on RPS website (sold out)

Patterns: Patterns, Stamp tool and Textures First workshop 24/05/2022

Number of workshops: 2

Starting with understanding Patterns and the Pattern Stamp tool is a great place to start. Patterns can be created from scratch in Photoshop and also from your own captured images. However, to use them really effectively they should be modified to behave as seamless patterns - this workshop will show you how (and why). I'll also introduce you to the Library Panel and show you how to create and save amazing patterns from the Adobe Capture tool.

Click for access on RPS website (places)

Artboards and Layer Comps: for creating multiple designs First workshop 31/05/2022

Number of workshops: 2

An artboard enables the Photographer to create multiple designs in one single file for example an A3, A4 and A6 poster as well as a range of User Interface layouts for iPad, mobile all using the same design components. This workshop will create a single file with multiple and duplicated artboards.

Click for access on RPS website (places)

Colours: Colours, Adjustment Layers and Masks First workshop 31/05/2022

Number of workshops: 2

Make changes to your image by applying Adjustment Layers without changing the pixels of your original image. Best practice for working non destructively. This workshop explores the adjustment layers to change colour, hue, saturation, exposure, brightness and contrast.

Click for access on RPS website (sold out)

RPS SE event programme - April 2022, (Only events up to July are shown) (Status of event correct as of March 24th) Layer Styles and Effects: Create shadows, borders, gradient overlays and lots more …

First workshop 07/06/2022

Number of workshops: 2

Layers can have styles applied to them which create shadows, emboss, apply borders and gradient overlays. In this introductory workshop to layer effects we will look at the settings, how they can be applied to pixel and text layers.

Click for access on RPS website (sold out)

Selections: In depth overview of selection tools First workshop 07/06/2022

Number of workshops: 2

Quick Recap of the selection basics and their options and properties. Creating and saving selections, reloading saved selections, adding and subtracting pixels to a selection.

Click for access on RPS website (places)

Brushes: Overview of preset Brushes and explore Kyle Webster brushes First workshop 21/06/2022

Number of workshops: 2

Knowing how the brush tool works in Photoshop is key to getting the best out of the majority of Photoshop tools. It is essential for editing, selecting, healing and of course being creative. This workshop ensures you know all the basics and quite a bit more about the Brush.

Click for access on RPS website (places)

Transforming: selections, layers and images First workshop 21/06/2022

Number of workshops: 2

How transforming works with selections, single layer, multiple layers, layer masks, shapes and paths. Transforming involves scaling, rotating, skewing, distorting and working with perspectives together with warping. This workshop will cover all of the above, the transform options - working with a reference point, transform controls and settings.

Click for access on RPS website (sold out)

Adobe Camera Raw: RAW processing in Photoshop First workshop 28/06/2022

Number of workshops: 2

Introduction to Adobe Camera Raw (ACR). Methods for getting your files into ACR. Using the Basic tab to adjust colour - white balance, tone, saturation. Set workflow options in Photoshop. Overview of Camera Raw Plug in interface, panels and tools.

Click for access on RPS website (sold out)

Filters: Wonderful world of Filters First workshop 28/06/2022

Number of workshops: 2

The vast range of filters in Photoshop can be overwhelming, which ones to use, and why? This introductory workshop to filters will demystify this amazing and creative set of tools to show you how they can be used to create wonderful textures from scratch, be used in combinations to apply image enhancements and creativity.

Click for access on RPS website (places)

Layouts, Templates and Guides: Collages, poster publication layouts First workshop 05/07/2022

Number of workshops: 2

Bring multiple images together to create engaging collages, poster and magazine layouts. This workshop introduces the Frame tool, working with Text Placeholders and using shapes to create clipping masks.

Click for access on RPS website (places)

Selections: Advanced methods and tools First workshop 05/07/2022

Number of workshops: 2

When the many selection tools on the toolbar are just not good enough, explore some of the more advanced methods for creating selections - colour ranges, focus ranges, sky selections and a full overview of the Select and Mask Workspace.

Click for access on RPS website (places)

Filters: Delve deeper into the world of Filters First workshop 12/07/2022

Number of workshops: 2

Filters can be used to modify image depth of field with Field, Path and Shift and Tilt blurs. Complex Field Blurs automatically create Gradient masks - this workshop will demonstrate how to and why.; pan and zoom effects, Distance Blur and Depth of Field - Gradient Masks.

Click for access on RPS website (places)

RPS SE event programme - April 2022, (Only events up to July are shown) (Status of event correct as of March 24th) Gradients: Overview of all the gradient tools First workshop 12/07/2022

Number of workshops: 2

There are so many reasons to use a Gradient when image editing - gradients make lovely soft backgrounds, or vignettes. Text can be made more exciting with a gradient overlay. In this workshop we will explore the different methods for creating and using gradients - on layers, on text, on masks. Emulate the effects of an ND Grad filter.

Click for access on RPS website (places)

Learn to love your Tablet First workshop 12/07/2022

Number of workshops: 1

An overview of the advantages of using a pen in place of a mouse. Part 2 will explore using the pen as an artist's brush.

Click for access on RPS website (sold out)

Blend modes and Textures: Blending, colours and textures First workshop 19/07/2022

Number of workshops: 2

An introduction to creating your own textures using Photoshop filters and patterns. We will look at basic blending modes, art filters to create textured effects, parchment papers. And when you have an image with a great set of colours I'll show you how to extract all the colours with a Colour Index Table and save them to a Swatches Panel.

Click for access on RPS website (places)

Channels: Overview and The Advanced stuff First workshop 19/07/2022

Number of workshops: 2

What are Channels? Why do you need to know about them? Knowing how the channels impact on your image enables the Photographer to create complex selections and apply controlled colour adjustments and enhancements.

Click for access on RPS website (places)

Blend Modes and Textures: Brush settings and Layer Blend Modes First workshop 26/07/2022

Number of workshops: 2

Brushing with different blend modes is for both creative work but also for subtle image editing and repair. Some brush blend modes will also help when making selections - learn what all those blend modes can do for your image making. Painting with blend modes - how to change colours with the brush using Color mode and Luminosity Mode for colour changes and swapping.

Click for access on RPS website (places)

Pens and paths: The mighty pen tool First workshop 26/07/2022

Number of workshops: 2

The Mighty Pen tool. The pen is an accurate tool for creating selections. Starting with how to use and control the pen through to creating selections with simple Bezier curves.

Click for access on RPS website (places)

Pens and paths First workshop 26/07/2022

Number of workshops: 2

A two part Bytesize workshop - in part 1 you will explore the mechanics of setting up your Wacom tablet and how to make the most of the various dynamics provided by the Wacom system. An overview of the advantages of using a pen in place of a mouse. Part 2 will explore using the pen as an artist's brush.

Click for access on RPS website (places)