Welcome to Curvemeister 101 - July 2012

[ggroess]

Greetings everyone,

Please take a few minutes and introduce yourself...

I'm Greg and I will be leading the class over the next 6 weeks.  First, a little bit about myself.  I am a freelance photographer, educator, and computer support guy from Minneapolis Minnesota.  I finished my photographic schooling 35 years ago and converted to digital darkroom about 10 years ago.  I have run and QA'd E-6, RA4, and C-41 Labs.  I have taught Black and White Photography, Color, and Wedding Photography and now Curvemeister. 

I started working with Curvemeister just like you are, by buying the plug-in and asking questions.  After striking up a profound friendship with Mike Russell and just hanging around asking serious questions and helping discover the answers,  Mike asked me to help with the class.  That was 4 years ago; little did I know I was going to end up being the primary instructor for the classes .  After helping Mike teach the class a few times I was asked to take over.  Along the way I have learned more than I ever thought I wanted to about curves, digital images, and Photoshop. 

I want to be very clear that I am not the definitive word on Photoshop and many times you the students will teach me a new trick or 2 in the classes.  I may teach you a new skill in Photoshop as well so we'll both be working together on this stuff.

The Curvemeister forum is an open and "Flame Free" area where we try to treat everyone with respect and kindness.  We try very hard to answer questions with a open mind and a touch of empathy.  We want you to understand how curves work because we quite simply think they are the most powerful tool in your Photoshop tool bag and we hope to show you why. 

I want to leave you at this point with a simple statement....
There are no dumb questions here...OK maybe a few but we'll answer them anyway. 

Have fun and ask lots of questions...we cannot help you if we do not know something is wrong.
Greg

[imported_julie]

Hi everyone

My name is Julie and this will be the third time I have done the class.
I find that I just fall into doing the same thing all the time and the class really gets me trying new things again.
Greg is a great teacher and has always been very patient and helpful.
I live in Hobart Australia and work part-time as a paediatric nurse, For a few months of the year I also teach student nurses in the clinical setting.
I have always been interested in photography but not always had the time to follow my interest.
I am self taught and have much to learn.
Mostly I photograph our travel and family stuff but I am planning to participate in the monthly photo competition to get me thinking and doing new things.
I have found this site wonderfully flame free.
I am amazed what people will say about and to others on the internet and grateful to have found a site where people will answer simple questions and offer constructive advice and criticism.
Curvemeister is an amazing tool, and even with the simple understanding I have, the improvements I can make to images is impressive.

Looking forward to meeting everyone and doing the class
Julie 

[mikemeister_admin]

Hi,
My name is Ken and I'm looking forward to this class.
I would say that I am an advanced amateur photographer, looking to grow not only in my photography skills, but also with my post processing.  I know that mastering curves in Photoshop can make the difference between an average picture and a great one.  I heard about yur filter, and want to explore it further and gain some competance in understanding and using it.  I also love being in an environment where people feel comfortable sharing both their successes and failures, and getting help and support from others.
Ken

[ggroess]

Welcome Ken...

I for one look forward to helping everyone understand the plug in and how to maximize the tools we all use.

Greg

[Bursal]

Hi
My name is Di and I am another Aussie. I leave almost at the the other end of the country from Julie, Hi Julie. I live on the coast of Central Queensland at the southern end of the Whitsunday Islands (world famous tourist destination) and the Great Barrier Reef is due East.

I am retired and busier than ever. My more recent work experience has been as a MS Office trainer and IT Administrator. Many years ago I did a stint as a photographer for the local paper, B&W darkroom stuff. I have been interested in digital photography for many years, I did the CurveMeister course back in the days before Pins. I am coming back to photography because I can now see what I am doing thanks to cataract surgery.

I am just about to post my first effort.

Di

[mikemeister_admin]

Hi Guys!!!
Sorry I'm so late to introduce myself! My name is Jose and I'm living in North Miami Beach, Florida - USA. I consider myself an advanced amateur photographer trying to become a pro. I do mainly landscapes and wildlife. Right now, I'm into the world of macrophotography which fascinates me. I've been lucky and sold a couple of pictures to a private collector but I would love to try to make this my only source of income. Don't get me wrong but dedicate the rest of your days to do what you're so passionate about and get pay for it it's so sweet! That is also the main reason I took this class so I could get the best out my pictures. I think that today's market is so demanding and there are so many extraordinary photographer out there that I need to learn every single tool that might help me to reach my goal. I'll try to keep up with you guys but, unfortunately, I got three rough weeks ahead of me which I didn't expect before I signed for the class but, definitely, I'll be around.
Jose

[ggroess]

Not to worry...
We are flexible on the class time frame you work at your pace...
The weekly calls are recorded and you can watch them later on the forum. 

If you have a site you want to share feel free to post so we can see samples of your work...

Greg