Understanding Your Digital Point & Shoot Camera

Have you purchased a digital point and shoot camera in the last few months – or the last few years – and still aren’t really sure how to use it? Digital point and shoots give you many more options and opportunities than did their film counterparts, but there’s also a steep learning curve that can lead to confusion and frustration. Get to know and really use and enjoy your digital camera! This class will cover all the beginner level information you need to understand your camera and take great photos. Topics covered include camera settings such as shooting modes, ISO, white balance, file sizes, flash control, and image review plus the basics on how to download and use your digital photos. (Class is suitable for all beginners. Please bring your camera, owner’s manual, and any accessories to class. If you don’t yet own a digital point and shoot camera, consider taking the Selecting a Digital Point & Shoot Camera class first.)

Instructor: Kim MacDonald has worked as chief photographer and photography services manager at Habitat for Humanity International for the past nine years. During that time she has worked in over 30 countries photographing tens of thousands of images of beauty, tragedy, and everyday life in countless communities. She also guided the organization in the initiation and use of a digital asset management system, photography workshops, and their transition from film to digital photography. She has covered the tsunami in Asia, Katrina devastation in the Gulf, annual events with President Jimmy Carter, and many, many other adventures. Her photos have been published in numerous magazines, newspapers, and textbooks around the world. And she loves to teach!

New Media Arts offers a coordinated series of non-credit and credit classes. Our Summer 2008 courses include classes in the well-known and comprehensive digital imaging software program Photoshop, as well courses in selecting and using a digital camera, travel photography, documenting life using photos, studio lighting, Webpage making, and digital imaging. All classes are held in the New Media Arts PCATT Lab in Kopiko 202.

In addition to the non-credit courses, New Media Arts offers an Associate in Science degree in Animation and the Associate of Science in Interface Design. For more information about degree programs in New Media Arts, please contact Teri Durland at 734-9290.

Customized Training in New Media Arts

Kapi ‘olani Community College can develop non-credit courses and workshops specifically designed to meet the needs of your company or organization. Our customized training is a cost-effective and convenient way to enhance an employee’s knowledge and skills. We design the curriculum and materials for instruction and arrange all sessions. Customized classes meet either in the New Media Lab on campus or on-site, where employees learn in their workplace environment. For more information on customized training in the New Media Arts areas of digital imaging, Website design, animation, and interactive multimedia, contact Jennifer Liu, Arts & Sciences Continuing Education and Training Coordinator, at 734-9315, or by e-mail at liujenni@hawaii.edu.

An updated calendar is also available at pcatt.org/pcatt/schedule (Click on "Sizzling Seminars.") and on the New Media Arts Web site at nma.kcc.hawaii.edu/noncredit.