APERTURE ACADEMY - Fine Art Photography Gallery, Digital Photography Workshops

Announcing our EXTRAORDINARY EXPOSURES PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST

2010-04-23T12:58:00.000-07:00

Extraordinary Exposures 2010 Photography Contest, $1000 Grand Prize to be Awarded - Presented by Aperture Academy Fine Art Photo Gallery and Digital Photography Instruction

Aperture Academy in Campbell, CA, offers outdoor workshops, in studio instruction, Photoshop and digital darkroom classes and now they are hosting-sponsoring an annual photography contest with four prize levels and great sponsor gifts.

Campbell, CA–April 23, 2010–Aperture Academy founder and master photographer, Stephen Oachs, announced Aperture Academy's first annual photography competition, Extraordinary Exposures 2010. There are three theme categories for entry: Natural Landscapes, Wildlife, and Urban Landscapes.

Submissions are being accepted until midnight on November 30, 2010, with the judging and prize award winners to be announced December 15, 2010. Grand prize is $1,000 cash, awarded by Aperture Academy, along with prizes by ThinkTank, BayPhoto.com, LowePro and Red River Paper. Along with the grand prize, there will also be cash and product awards for first, second and third places.

The contest rules, submission form and list of prizes and sponsors can be found at Aperture Academy's website, ApertureAcademy.com. Along with the contest, their website also offers a Photo of the Day gallery, articles to help improve your photography skills, free online photo galleries, classes, workshops and a virtual tour of the Campbell, CA gallery.

To learn more about Extraordinary Exposures 2010 Contest, and submit your entries, go online to http://www.apertureacademy.com/photography-contest-2010.php. For more about Aperture Academy, see course schedules, or to inquire about reserving the gallery for your function, visit http://www.ApertureAcademy.com or call 408-369-8585.

About Aperture Academy

Founded by award-winning photographer and entrepreneur, Stephen W. Oachs, the Aperture Academy is a unique combination of fine art photography gallery and state-of-the-art teaching facility featuring classroom and in-field workshop instruction. Established in 2009 by Stephen Oachs, the Academy is located in Campbell, California, in the Pruneyard Shopping Center. The Academy offers a fun, interactive environment for learning everything related to digital photography, providing the best hands-on instruction in the industry. The state-of-the-art facility has individual student workstations outfitted with the latest software and hardware for Mac and PC platforms. Professional, award-winning instructors guide students of any skill level from learning to shoot in the field to techniques for digital post-processing, in a relaxed, personalized environment. Also an event venue, the 4,000 square foot facility's open floor plan makes it perfectly suited for social receptions, business and fund-raising events, camera club meetings and much more. Visit http://www.ApertureAcademy.com or call (408) 369-8585 to learn more about the school, reserve the gallery, or to register for classes.

About Stephen W. Oachs

Stephen Oachs is an award-winning photographer, successful entrepreneur and technology veteran who began his journey in photography the moment he picked up his first camera.

Stephen's unique and distinctive style has earned him recognition as one of today's finest nature photographers. He was recognized in 2007 as wildlife photographer of the year by the National Wildlife Federation and was awarded best nature photographer in 2008 by National Geographic for his work photographing the endangered snow leopard. In 2009, Stephen founded The Aperture Academy, a unique combination of fine art photography gallery and classroom.

His work has graced the pages of many notable worldwide publications, including National Geographic, Popular Photography, Outdoor Photographer, National Wildlife Magazine, among others. Stephen and his work have been profiled locally in Gentry Magazine, and The Mercury News, and he has made numerous appearances as a guest lecturer.

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Editorial Contact:

Kelly Baldwin

Aperture Academy Gallery Manager

info@apertureacademy.com

408-369-8585

Our Spring Open House party was a success!

2010-03-15T10:39:00.000-07:00

What an event!! If you attended, thank you for coming and we hope you had a great time! If you missed it, you REALLY missed a fun evening! (Don't worry, we'll do it again!)

We have posted over 100 photos from the event, so click here to take a look at all the fun!

New Digital Photography How-To Articles at ApertureAcademy.com - Newest is on Composition

2010-03-11T16:44:00.000-08:00

We are building a library of articles designed to provide a wealth of information to help any level of photographer improve his or her skills, techniques, or just think outside the box a bit. Our instructors are sharing their experience and knowledge, and it is available for everyone. We launched the page and have the first articles available. Following is a small portion of our newest article. Please let us know if you find these helpful, and if there are any subjects you'd like to read about!

What is Composition?

Composition is a tricky thing. There's no right and no wrong. Often a photographer's uniqueness, his or her style, is attributed largely to their approach and vision to composition. I'm going to share with you mine, and how I often teach it, and if you learn something from my approach you'll likely go on to develop your own eye for composition.

So what is it? To me, it's an ingredient, a balance and a flow. It is a means to tell the story, to pull the viewer into that single moment in time. It's a rock in the ocean that anchors the lower portion of the scene, tying the surf to the horizon and a warm, colorful sunset in the distance. It's the depth of field that isolates a subject from it's busy background. And sometimes, it's as simple as fresh perspective, the notion of conveying a common idea such as a road winding into the forest, but inches off the pavement where the freshly painted yellow stripe leads the eye out with great detail...you can almost feel the road, it's cold and rough.

Read the full article here: Tips for Better Photography Composition
Read more of the growing collection of articles at our How-To Better Your Photography article library.

Join the fun as Photoshop celebrates its 20th anniversary--today!

2010-02-18T11:16:00.000-08:00

Hosted by the National Association of Photoshop Professionals (NAPP), and its founder, Scott Kelby, the Photoshop 20th anniversary celebration will be streamed LIVE and feature special appearances by John Loiacono, Adobe Senior Vice President and General Manager, Creative Solutions Business Unit; NAPP Photoshop gurus Dave Cross and Matt Kloskowski; Adobe Photoshop star Russell Brown; and other key members of the Adobe Photoshop team.

This historic night will feature a walk through Photoshop history, a glimpse into the future, and celebrate all things Photoshop. Better yet, gather your fellow Photoshop enthusiasts for live streaming--tonight!

Sign up at www.photoshopuser.com/photoshop20th for a reminder, or bookmark the page and come back on February 18th at 7:30 p.m. PST for a fun-filled, history-making night.

Jeanette Smith
Instructor, Adobe Photoshop for Photography
Certified Adobe Photoshop Expert
jeanette @ apertureacademy.com

Aperture Academy
1875 S. Bascom, suite 600
Campbell, CA 95008
408-369-8585
www.apertureacademy.com

It's All About Light

2010-01-28T10:09:00.000-08:00

Post written by Jeanette Smith, Creative Arts Instructor for Aperture Academy

We thought we’d share some of our Photoshop and image processing tips on the blog, so for this entry, I'm going to show you how to create a "Luminosity Mask" in Photoshop CS4. First, you should know what luminance is; it’s the amount of light passing through a particular area of an image. Measured in a range from zero to 255 in an 8-bit image, it is expressed as red, green and blue channels of light.

Adjusting the luminance, by taking a selection from the image itself, is great because it creates a natural gradation, based on the intrinsic brightness of the image. Why? Because every pixel is affected in exact proportion to its native brightness. This technique works nicely, for example, when the sky is overexposed or the foreground underexposed.

Load the luminosity as a selection in Photoshop CS4 in one of two ways:

Option+Command+2, or
Command+Click the RGB thumbnail in the Channels palette.

You may also inverse the selection, Select>Inverse, or type on your keyboard, Command+Shift+I, to apply an adjustment to the opposite areas of the image. Then travel to the Layers Palette and apply a Levels or Curves Adjustment Layer to the layer that needs correcting.

You can use this technique for color adjustments, too. Load the luminosity as a selection and copy the selection to a new layer in the Layers Palette, Layer>New Layer via Copy, or type on your keyboard Command+J. Then apply a Blend Mode, like Overlay or Multiply, to the new layer and adjust the opacity if necessary. Don't forget to name your layers and keep things organized.

Give this a try and make your images really POP! To learn more creative techniques in Photoshop CS4, enroll in one of our courses or workshops at Aperture Academy, or come in for some private tutoring. Hope to see you soon!

It's not easy getting "The Shot"

2010-01-07T12:30:00.000-08:00

Post written by Brian Rueb, Photography Instructor for Aperture Academy

Often times, when we see an image in a magazine, online, or in a gallery, we’re impressed at the beauty, composition, or presentation of the shot. Most of the time we don’t stop to think of all that goes into actually getting "The Shot."

After completing seven days of photography in Southern Utah and Northern Nevada, I decided to give you a brief recap of exactly how hard photographers work to come away with a few images they can be proud of.

The goal of any landscape and wildlife photographer is to be in a position that allows them to spend as much time during the day shooting as possible. This means putting in hours and hours of research ahead of time so that we have a general idea of the layout, sun position, weather and composition possibilities before we even get to a scene.

With a good 50 hours worth of research already under my belt, I set off for the Southwest United States on a Tuesday afternoon.

Over the following days I endured:

Six nights sleeping in the back of a Toyota Prius. Photographers need to adhere to a budget in order to maximize the time we spend in the field, and to save cost, and put myself closer to the areas I want to photograph I’ve chosen to sleep in my vehicle. This saves cash…but the rest I get isn’t the best.

One shower. During the middle of the trip we broke down and got a proper hotel one night to clean and get a good night sleep. A shower does amazing things to rejuvenate you after five days of hiking grime has built up.

I hiked nearly 50 miles over the week. About half of that was in water that required special equipment to keep me warm, safe, and my gear dry.

I watched as rain began to fall while I was in the middle of a slot canyon. Slot Canyons are amazing places for photography, but during a storm they can be deadly. Watching rain drops keep fallin’ on my head while I was in the middle of one of these canyons was quite nerve wracking. Luckily, the sun came back out, and I was treated to a canyon all to myself for photography. Which is rare.

I drove over 2300 miles in seven days. A lot of photography is being in the right place at the right time. This means constant watching of weather reports, and changing plans on the fly to give yourself the best opportunity to be where the photography is hopefully great.

I was in a different location for sunrise and sunset every day….and spent the afternoons in still different areas. Being in the right place for sunrise photography requires that you get up at least an hour or two before, usually hike somewhere in the dark…and this is all before you really know whether or not you’re going to have conditions worthy of photographing. Over those seven days, I had only two sunsets that were worth photographing (one was amazing…which made up for the others). I had only one sunrise that was even decent…the rest were bland, but still required that I get up, break down camp, and get to my location before there was light to see.

This is hard work for only a couple of images, but these trips serve another purpose, too. They allow us to get out and experience places firsthand…so that when we’re conducting a workshop, we know where to be and the time of day to be there. We’re familiar with the types of issues students are going to come in contact with, because we’ve lived through them ourselves.

When you sign up for a workshop with us, you’re getting that experience and research working for you…so all you have to do is show up and shoot. It’s just up to you whether you sleep in your car or not.

There was a party going on...and it was a great success!

2009-12-08T10:12:00.000-08:00

Wow - what an event! We had over 500 people attend the grand open house celebration of the Aperture Academy.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words and we have over 200 photos from the event to share. FYI, in the gallery, we are offering 10% off prints and 15% off classes through the end of 2009...and we now have gift certificates! (Call 408-369-8585 to learn more.)

Take a look through the party photos (taken by our official event photographer, Steven Davis).

[To see the Old Crystal Mill larger, click here]
[Read about the party and see all the photos here]

The party was a great way for us to show the public what we're all about. Our in-field instructors, Brian Rueb and Jim Patterson, were available to talk to the public, answer questions about workshops, and share stories from their photographic experiences. Classroom instructors, Jeanette Smith and Scott Donschikowski, were there as well, offering some tips and tutorials on Photoshop and Lightroom. Stephen Oachs, the gallery founder and the gala's host, answered questions regarding his photographs and gave away over $5000 worth of prints and certificates as prizes in the raffle.

We sincerely wish to thank everyone who was able to attend; for those of you far away, thank you for all your kind wishes. Have a safe holiday and a new year!

Twitter Giveaway Winners Announced!

2009-12-05T20:43:00.000-08:00

Our grand opening celebration has been wonderful, and part of the fun included announcing our two prize winners!

We chose a winner from everyone who used the hashtag #ApertureAcademy in their tweets/retweets. The prize was a choice of one of four 8x10 matted, signed wildlife prints by our featured photographer (and Aperture Academy founder) Stephen Oachs. [See the prizes/selections here]

Our second winner was chosen from among all our Twitter followers as of midnight on the day of our celebration (Dec. 5th).

Oh...haven't we said who the winners are? Guess we'd better do that!

WINNER #1 Congratulations to vtully

WINNER #2 Congratulations to MartinaPowell

Winners, please send an e-mail to Kelly [at] ApertureAcademy.com with "Twitter Winner" in the subject line. Please give her your name, mailing address and your prize choice! She's waiting to hear from you!

P.S. We hope you will post a comment about which prizes you choose! (And Twitter about it, too!) We'd all love to know!
[See the prizes/selections here]

Aperture Academy Photoshop and Lightroom Classes...

2009-11-23T19:49:00.000-08:00

The Magic of Creation

2009-11-23T14:25:00.000-08:00

Post written by Jeanette Smith, Creative Arts Instructor for Aperture Academy

What is it that motivates us to create, to share for the pure pleasure of expression? Where does this energy come from?

We seek ways to express our uniqueness, connect with people who share the same excitement, and acquire knowledge so we can communicate more thoroughly. Then, one day we find ourselves in just the right place, at just the right time, and we are happy.

As a teacher of creative arts, I am lucky to witness, on a regular basis, the eagerness, that "ah-ha" moment of clarity and the ensuing satisfaction that comes with learning something new. I wish students could see themselves at that moment. See themselves gazing back at me with such wonder; confident that the knowledge they take with them will become a vehicle for a deeper channel of creativity.

My first classroom experience at Aperture Academy, the Photoshop® for Photographers class, awakened this magic.

"I loved the class, it was just what I needed for a boost to help my picture-taking." - Brenda Bresnahan

My advice to students learning Photoshop? Focus on doing one thing at a time.

Photoshop is a big animal, it does many things; not difficult things, but there are many, many things Photoshop can do. However, it's very methodical, and Photoshop will do exactly what you tell it to do. By defining one task at a time, and achieving just that, you will enjoy a powerful feeling of accomplishment.

In my class, our goal is to teach you to leverage the power of Photoshop as a modern day darkroom. Our on-site workshops blend perfectly with this digital classroom experience...at Aperture Academy, we provide a whole soup-to-nuts package for the digital photographer, no matter what experience or skill level.

When you join us in our workshops, you will shoot at beautiful locations, with the lighting at your back and a fantastic view in front of you...then come into my classroom and watch your images come to life!

Please visit our Website, sign up to come with us and join the fun!

Press Release: Aperture Academy Gallery and Photography School Grand Opening; Guest Speaker from Snow Leopard Trust

2009-11-20T15:54:00.000-08:00

You are invited to the Aperture Academy grand opening celebration from 6-10pm, Saturday, December 5th, 2009. Hosted by nature photographer Stephen Oachs, there will be food, drink and live music. Come meet the Aperture Academy instructors, get a free lesson, tour the gallery and sign up for some of the $5,000 worth of prizes...and bring a friend.

Campbell, CA--November 19, 2009--Stephen Oachs is extending a personal invitation to join him and his guests at the gala Grand Opening celebration of Aperture Academy on December 5th, from 6pm-10pm. Located at the Pruneyard Shopping Center in Campbell, California, the Aperture Academy is a beautiful 4,000 square foot gallery, studio and workshop for all things digital photography. The grand opening will be attended by local dignitaries, esteemed guests from across the U.S., from various organizations such as the Snow Leopard Trust, and award-winning photographers. "It's going to be a memorable evening," said Oachs.

Appetizers and refreshments will be catered by Sara Bromberg and Talula Bay Catering, who will be catering all of Aperture Academy's events and available to those who rent out the gallery space. Live music will be provided by renowned guitarist, Jerry Snyder. There will be special guest speaker from the Snow Leopard Trust, in recognition of Stephen Oachs' philanthropic efforts through his award-winning photograph, "Endangered Beauty." Photography instructors Brian Rueb, Scott Davis, Jim Patterson, Scott Donschikowski and creative software instructor Jeanette Smith will all be attending and contributing to the festivities.

This celebration not only officially launches the Aperture Academy, but it marks the first event of many to be held there. "We are booking up quickly for the holiday season, and we're very excited to see the interest in Aperture Academy. The gallery was designed to be a multi-purpose venue with an atmosphere of class, comfort, taste and distinction," said Oachs. "We look forward to the many events, celebrations and memories to come."

To learn more about Aperture Academy's grand opening, or to inquire about reserving the gallery for your function, visit http://www.ApertureAcademy.com or call 408-369-8585.

About Aperture Academy

Founded by award-winning photographer and entrepreneur, Stephen W. Oachs, the Aperture Academy is a unique combination of fine art photography gallery and state-of-the-art teaching facility featuring classroom and in-field workshop instruction. Established in 2009 by Stephen Oachs, the Academy is located in Campbell, California, in the Pruneyard Shopping Center. The Academy offers a fun, interactive environment for learning everything related to digital photography, providing the best hands-on instruction in the industry. The state-of-the-art facility has individual student workstations outfitted with the latest software and hardware for Mac and PC platforms. Professional, award-winning instructors guide students of any skill level from learning to shoot in the field to techniques for digital post-processing, in a relaxed, personalized environment. Also an event venue, the 4,000 square foot facility's open floor plan makes it perfectly suited for social receptions, business and fund-raising events, camera club meetings and much more. Visit http://www.ApertureAcademy.com or call (408) 369-8585 to learn more about the school, reserve the gallery, or to register for classes.

About Stephen W. Oachs

Stephen Oachs is an award-winning photographer, successful entrepreneur and technology veteran who began his journey in photography the moment he picked up his first camera.
Stephen's unique and distinctive style has earned him recognition as one of today's finest nature photographers. He was recognized in 2007 as wildlife photographer of the year by the National Wildlife Federation and was awarded best nature photographer in 2008 by National Geographic for his work photographing the endangered snow leopard. In 2009, Stephen founded The Aperture Academy, a unique combination of fine art photography gallery and classroom.

His work has graced the pages of many notable worldwide publications, including National Geographic, Popular Photography, Outdoor Photographer, National Wildlife Magazine, among others. Stephen and his work have been profiled locally in Gentry Magazine, and The Mercury News, and he has made numerous appearances as a guest lecturer.

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Grand Opening Gala on Dec. 5th, 6-10pm -- You are cordially invited...

2009-11-15T22:29:00.000-08:00

Grand Opening Celebration!

On December 5th, from 6pm to 10pm, the Aperture Academy will hold a grand opening event. We invite you to come tour the gallery, enjoy food and wine, win prizes and meet Stephen Oachs, the Aperture Academy staff, and our guest speaker from the Snow Leopard Trust.

Please bring a friend...or all your friends...to the Pruneyard Shopping Center in Campbell, CA, and enjoy:

live music by wonderful guitarist, Jerry Snyder;
hourly prize drawings for $5,000 worth of merchandise and classes;
refreshing appetizers and drinks;
a fun preview of our Photoshop® & Lightroom® classes;
meet Aperture Academy founder, Stephen Oachs, and the Academy staff;
guest speaker from the Snow Leopard Trust;
and the special unveiling of Stephen's latest fine art print!

Join us for a fun evening of great art, good food, fine music and stimulating conversation...and help us celebrate the opening of The Aperture Academy in style!

The Aperture Academy is Open!

2009-11-01T21:02:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the opening of Aperture Academy!

Located in the Pruneyard Shopping Center in Campbell, California, the Aperture Academy is a 4,000 square foot venue featuring the fine art photography of Stephen W. Oachs. In addition, this facility contains a large classroom which will provide a fun and interactive environment to learn everything photography!

Whether you're a beginner or advanced photographer and looking to brush up or polish existing skills, our state-of-the-art classroom and in-field workshops will provide you with hands-on instruction with the latest equipment by instructors who are teaching the most current approaches in photography, software and more.

At the Aperture Academy we do:

On-location digital photography workshops
Classroom instruction for Photoshop®, Lightroom® and much more
Lifestyle Photography shoots with models
101-style classes for those just getting started
Much, much more as we dream it up, and you request it!