LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHY
Colourclass Lofoten
Colourclass Lofoten is dedicated to teaching the fundamentals of landscape photography. We travel all the way to the Lofoten Islands in northern Norway at the best time of the year, and teach you the full workflow for landscape photography on-site through a series of six lessons with accompanying films. We cover topics such as equipment, location planning, lighting, filter use and image design, alongside camera and monitor adjustment, printer profiling, photo printers, fine art paper, the softproofing function and ICC profiles.
The Episodes
Episode 1: Choosing our equipment and reaching our destination
The first Colourclass Lofoten lesson is all about equipment. A landscape photographer is always on the lookout for the ideal piece of equipment, which should combine the best possible quality with the lowest weight. That’s why we use light, compact GFX- and X-series systems by Fujifilm. These pair perfectly with carbon tripods by Gitzo. We also pack insert filters by Haida for light control, and transport our equipment in f-stop gear rucksacks. Serdar from PhotoTour4U will explain what you can’t do without when taking photographs beyond the Arctic or Antarctic Circle.
Episode 2: Location planning using apps
Light and weather are two crucial environmental conditions that you simply can’t disregard if you are planning on taking landscape photographs. During the second Colourclass Lofoten lesson, we will show you how to approach location planning and which apps we use for this. The periods between the civil and nautical sunrises and sunsets is particularly enthralling for landscape photographers.
Episode 3: The histogram and using graduated and ND filters
Light creates a significantly greater dynamic in landscape photography than even the best photosensors can capture. That’s why perfect lighting is particularly important. During the third Colourclass Lofoten lesson, we will show you how to make the most of your sensor’s dynamic range with the aid of the histogram and how to adjust the dynamic using Haida graduated filters. And we will also use ND filters to achieve long exposure times during the day.
Episode 4: Analysing the location – How to take an impressive photo of a stunning landscape
‘How do I transform a spectacular landscape into a striking landscape photograph?’ During the fourth Colourclass Lofoten lesson, Serdar and Christian will show you how to approach locations using the example of the old Gimsøy wooden church, while Serdar will explain how he ‘fillets landscapes’.
Episode 5: Camera adjustment, monitor technology and adjustment
During the fifth Colourclass Lofoten lesson, we will tackle the topic of colour management in the ‘digital dark room’. Christian will demonstrate how to use SpyderCube and SpyderCheckr by datacolor in order to establish the ideal basis for RAW conversion and subsequent image editing on our PixelStation by PixelComputer. A photographer needs a graphics monitor such as a ColorEdge monitor by EIZO. This must also be regularly calibrated to ensure an unadulterated look at your image file in the long run. The reason for this will also be addressed in this lesson.
Episode 6: Printer profiling, ICC profiles, paper and printer settings, printing
‘How can I see on the monitor what my image will look like if I print it out on special paper? What does softproofing mean?’ Christian will answer these questions and more during the sixth Colourclass Lofoten lesson. He will also explain how or where you can get your hands on ICC profiles, and how you can create them yourself. Moreover, he will explain what needs to be kept in mind when printing using our Epson printer to achieve our Colourclass Lofoten goal and hold our images in our hands, printed on the best fine art paper by ILFORD.
The Mission
Colours and light play a special role in landscape photography. They mean the difference between a simple reflection of what a landscape looks like, and a breath-taking example of landscape photography.
From equipment to planning, we will also address how you can perfectly expose landscape photographs using a histogram and adjust the light using filters to make the most of the image sensor’s limited dynamic range or increase the exposure time during the day. We will also demonstrate how we find a subject for a photo. As you can tell from the course’s name, colours play an important role in the Colourclass series. We will show you how to calibrate your camera, which monitor photographers should use and why you have to calibrate it. With the aid of ICC profiles, you will be able to see on your monitor how your printed image will look. Colourclass Lofoten will also teach you how to get the softproofing view, how to create ICC profiles yourself and what you need to bear in mind when printing.
The Location: Lofoten, Norway
The Lofoten archipelago (which means ‘lynx foot’ in Norwegian) is located in northern Norway, up to 300 km north of the Arctic Circle. You can witness the ‘midnight sun’ on the Lofoten Islands from the end of April due to their location in the far north. That means magnificent, golden, slanted light for hours. And with a stroke of luck, you might even be able to see the Northern Lights. In other words, during this time of year, this location offers the perfect conditions for landscape photography and achieving spectacular colours.
The photographers
The Partners
Landscape photography always involves a great deal of equipment. EIZO worked in close collaboration with many partners in the photography industry to make Colourclass Lofoten happen:
We would like to take this opportunity to thank datacolor, EPSON, f-stop gear, Fujifilm, Gitzo, Haida, ILFORD, PhotoTours4U and PixelComputer for their outstanding support.
Making Of
Desktop Backgrounds
Preview Lofoten Background 1
Preview Lofoten Background 2
