Photography Course for Beginners

What you'll learn

Learn digital photography with our photography short courses in Sydney.

Photography can feel like a complicated hobby. There’s nothing more frustrating than having a beautiful camera, but not knowing how to get the best from it. If you are a beginner photographer and you want to master the manual capabilities of your DSLR or Mirrorless camera as a hobby, for work or to build a new career then our foundational photography course will help you get started. We aim to deliver a fun, user-friendly and practical beginners photography course that demystifies the functions of your camera first so you can focus on the scene you want to capture.

Learning outcomes

By the end of this beginners photography course, you should be able to:

Use their DSLR Cameras manually with skill and confidence
Identify the standard functions and features of a DSLR Camera
Understand Aperture, Depth of Field and Shutter and Motion
Use the appropriate metering and exposure systems to correctly expose their image
Identify difficult lighting situations that result in incorrect exposures
Understand the basic principle of the Photographic Triangle
Select the appropriate ISO, Resolution, and White Balance settings
Understanding the physical equipment important to a photographer
The composition dimension of photography – what looks good in a frame and why

Course content

What will be covered in this photography course?

Introduction: camera anatomy & settings

How a mirrorless camera and DSLR work
Main features of most cameras
Modes of your camera and how they work: Manual Mode, Aperture Priority Mode, Shutter Priority Mode
File types: RAW vs JPEG

Exposure, focus & depth of field

The Exposure Triangle: Aperture, ISO & Shutter Speed
Focusing – Manual, Auto, Focus Points, Single/Continuous
Depth of Field (DoF) Control – Aperture Priority, Distance, Lens, DoF Preview
Shutter Speed and Movement

White balance & colour

White Balance
ISO and image quality
The Histogram – Dynamic Range and Exposure Latitude
Contrast and Tonal Range

Light & metering

The Light Meter – Correct, Under and Over Exposure
Metering Systems – Matrix, Centre Weighted, Partial, Spot
Situations that give inaccurate light readings and how to problem solve
Direction of Light

Composition

Rule of thirds
Leading lines
Perspective & angle
Backgrounds

Equipment

How to build your camera kit
Tripods
General camera care

Please note that individual teaching styles vary – there is scope for some flexibility and your tutor may prioritise particular content listed above dependent on the class needs. If there is anything specific you would like covered please ask your tutor at the beginning of class.

Intended audience

Who is this photography course for?

This course is for participants with any digital camera that has the capability of shooting in manual mode (DSLR and Mirrorless cameras). This is not suitable for compact 'point & shoot' cameras or smartphones.

Course venue

Rozelle Campus

2A Gordon Street, Rozelle NSW 2039 (corner of Gordon St & Victoria Rd on the grounds of St. Joseph's Church)

Course materials

What to bring to class

Manual Camera + lens
Camera manual (manual is important as different cameras have slightly different ways of operating the controls, you will need to locate these with your tutors help)
Tripod or monopod for outdoor shoots (Optional)
Notepad & pen or tablet

Course testimonials

Agatha said: It was amazing, way better than I was expecting. Richard is an excellent teacher, he explains things in an easy to understand way and is very approachable so you feel at ease asking questions. I learnt so much and I would definitely recommend it to others.
Philip said: A small class of 6, a well equipped and comfortable room and a very knowledgeable and competent tutor. Stephen Cooper delivered great course content with lots of practical hands on work with our cameras, one on one help and a course photography booklet. Highly recommended.
John said: Small group, personal attention and truly enlightening in relation to what I could achieve.
Christof said: The tutor had an encouraging & knowledgeable attitude which resonated really well with the course. I was researching courses for photography for quite a while before I decided to go with the Community college. I got exactly what I was looking for. I really appreciate the learnings that I got from the course. I started to love my camera & photography making however I can't wait to learn more about the topic. I hope that the second course will happen soon and I'll see you then.
Sharon said: Having some working knowledge of cameras, I still gained a deeper understanding of the elements that make a great photograph. It was particularly useful for learning manual camera settings that enable greater creative flexibility for composition. Irena is an expert in the field, extremely knowledgeable and approachable as a teacher. I highly recommend this course.

Course tutors

Irena Megaloconomos

Irena has years of experience teaching photography at high schools, TAFE, the Australian Centre for Photography, Macquarie University and Sydney Community College. She also works as a freelance...

View Irena Megaloconomos's profile

Classes Online Courses

Photography Course for Beginners

Sat 1 Mar 2025 - Sat 29 Mar 2025

5 sessions, 15 hours total

9:30am - 12:30pm (UTC+11:00) (first session)

2A Gordon St, Rozelle

Irena Megaloconomos

When	Time	Where
Sat 1 Mar 2025	9:30am - 12:30pm	C1-3: Training Room - 2A Gordon St, Rozelle
Sat 8 Mar 2025	9:30am - 12:30pm	C1-2: Training Room - 2A Gordon St, Rozelle
Sat 15 Mar 2025	9:30am - 12:30pm	C1-1: Training Room - 2A Gordon St, Rozelle
Sat 22 Mar 2025	9:30am - 12:30pm	C1-1: Training Room - 2A Gordon St, Rozelle
Sat 29 Mar 2025	9:30am - 12:30pm	C1-1: Training Room - 2A Gordon St, Rozelle

If there isn't a class to suit you, please join our waitlist and we will notify you when we have places available. Join waitlist for Photography Course for Beginners