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But if you're tired of hearing from me, unsubscribe.

And if you want more photography stuff to read, there's a place on the interwebs where past emails I wrote are stored.

You'll find 'em in the "Newsletter Hub."

Remember, I'd like to know what you want to know about photography.

So, if you have any questions, email me at sam@samdamico.com. 

And for what it's worth, when you send me an email unless someone's lookin' over my shoulder, I'm the only one who sees it.

It’s a sunny, clear, blue sky day in Washington, DC.

I’ve been walking around making pictures, and as usual, I’m doing some street photography.

That means spontaneous, unposed moments in flux that I have no control over.

But what I do have control over is my response to this uncontrolled light I’m working in.

There’s a sunny side of the street and a shady side of the street.

Because of the hard and soft light, both sides of the street will have different feelings, requiring different exposures.

The shadow side of the street has less light intensity and will require more exposure, which might mean higher ISO, wider apertures, or slower shutter speeds.

However, I could get away with faster shutter speeds, lower ISO, and smaller lens openings on the sunny side of the street.

The tricky thing is metering to get the tonality we prefer.
 

I make this easy on myself.

I work one side of the street at a time, and I work in the same direction regarding where the light is in relation to me and the subject.

In other words, I'm always walking in the same direction, especially if I’m working on the sunny side.

I’m always making pictures while walking in the same direction, because doing that makes it easy on me.

It makes it easier on me because if I get the tonality right for one thing, I get it right for everything: people’s faces, clothing, storefronts, everything.

As long as it’s in the same light, I’m good to go.

All I gotta do is raise my camera, handle framing and content, focus, and make the exposure.

The shadow side of the street is not much of an issue because the light is soft.

The only issue might be the slower shutter speeds.

I don’t mind the extra noise, and the wider aperture will just give me a shallower depth of field, so I gotta make sure my focusing is spot on.
 

If we’re street photographers, we can make it easy on ourselves by only working one side of the street at a time and going in the same direction.
 

This way, as long as we get our preferred tonality before we start making pictures, we don’t have to keep re-metering.

And we don’t have to keep remetering because our preferred tonality applies to everything in the picture within the five-stop range that our digital sensors can hold.

All we gotta do is pay attention to framing and content, where to focus, and when to press the shutter release to make the exposure.

The Photography Basics (Introduction To Photography) classes are starting soon.
 

If you can’t make any of those schedules, you could study and practice at your own pace and on your own schedule by getting access to the Introduction to Photography video tutorials on my online learning platform for photographers.

It’s the next best thing to taking an in-person class with me; you could even ask me questions
 

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If you need help becoming a better photographer, I’ve got 

Photography Basics (Introduction To Photography) classs starting soon. If you can’t make the schedule, we could always do a series of Private Lessons that’ll give you the same instruction.

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In addition to the In-person ways to learn photography with me listed below, I’ve got collections of tutorials on my Online Learning Platform for Photographers that’ll help you learn to be a better photographer.

Access to this content and other content related to the photography classes I teach in person requires a membership, which costs $25 a month.

As one member told me, it’s cheaper than their weekly coffee habit, and more useful than any YouTube videos they’ve watched, especially since they could ask me questions.

Here’s the link:Online Learning Platform for Photographers
 

More ways to study and practice photography with me are below.

Call me at (202) 531-2344 if you need help determining the best course for you.

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A note about group class sizes: Did you know that some places that teach photography have up to 25 students in each class? 

Bigger ain't always better.

That's why I limit my group classes to no more than five participants because smaller classes make for better, more effective, and more efficient learning experiences.

But smaller classes also mean spots fill up quicker, so sign up soon. 

I'll help you be a better photographer—study and practice photography with me. 

Currently scheduled classes are below.

And what if the timing doesn't work for you in any of my scheduled group classes? Private in-person lessons suited to your schedule are always an option.