LessThanThreeLeo said:
Don't bother getting any technical advice. You can simply find all that on the internet (for free as well). Try and learn about design, composition, colour etc etc.

Second this sort of thing- technical knowledge is not too difficult to learn on your own, so I would rather learn something more abstract. Personally, I would use the time to learn more about lighting (not about using CLS or some other system but lighting in general). Of course, like Niko suggests, it would depend on what the instructor is good at teaching.

alchse said:
How about:

- Bracketing
- Exposure / Focus lock

do you guys use these features?

For HDR I use exposure-bracketing (High Dynamic Range)

I use the Exposure lock on hard light conditions only.. (that is, when I need to re-compose after taking the measurement of light). I never used Focus Lock.

alchse said:
How about:

- Bracketing
- Exposure / Focus lock

do you guys use these features?

Bracketing- my camera doesn't have it- you could do it manually. Just over-expose and underexpose manually, preferably on a tripod.

Exposure/focus lock- nope, I don't use it.

How about:

- Bracketing
- Exposure / Focus lock

do you guys use these features?

It's pointless to come up with a list of things to "learn" in an hour without knowing what the instructor's level of knowledge is. Most of these camera store classes only go over the very basics of photography. Mickey Mouse stuff kind of stuff. Aperture, shutter speeds, ISO, etc. The instructor might even be a Canon user so they might not know specifics to Nikon cameras like CLS.

So the question you should be asking is, who is your instructor and what is their background?

can you work your camera in the dark like i can ( 2 d40)

If it were me: AF modes A, S, and C and Lighting - especially Lighting - fill, bounce, mood setting, using available light and adjusting shutter speed, aperture, and/or ISO for that perfect look without using flash, etc. Also ask their opinion on using that 70-300mm f/4.5-5/6 lens for kids playing sports. That's a different topic on this board but it'd be good to see what they have to say.

mikenothing said:
if you want photoshop instruction, id get yourself a months subscription to *Link Removed*

its really excellent

and no i dont work there

Yes, agree with you.. there is a lot to learn there, specially in post-processing.

I also do not work for them :)

SkintBrit said:
What a nice present alchse, must get your wife to speak to mine :-)

+1 (I add my wife to the list your wife should talk)

alchse said:
I also like the idea of camera and lens maintenance topics....I'm afraid to even look inside the body let alone do any sensor cleaning.

Don't bother about maintenance, if you take care not to use your gear on a wrong environment, you don't need any maintenance yet.. only take care to exchange lenses with the camera turned off, and after changing, use the menu on the camera -> setup menu -> Clean image sensor. (just pressing the button and the camera will clean its sensor.)

Playing with the camera is the best way to learn, use also manual mode to see how you manage to configure the exposure correctly (by using the two dials, one for speed, one for the aperture, and using the on-board exposure meter on the viewfinder), then play with the different ways the camera measures light (average, center-weight, spot). I guess this is more fun than letting the camera do the things automatically.

The next step may be composition, read about it on the internet, and you will be surprised how your shots will improve.

Don't bother getting any technical advice. You can simply find all that on the internet (for free as well). Try and learn about design, composition, colour etc etc.

I would go for the "Creative Lighting System". Unless you are off to Afghanistan or The South Pole ,I would leave maintenance and repair to the professionals

So my kit is
d7000
35mm 1.8G AFS
50mm 1.4D AF
70-300 AFS (don't use this much at all...got it for down the road when the kids will be playing sports but thats a few years away)
SB400

I generally shoot in Aperture priority mode but also play around in full manual or fall back to one of the scene selections if I don't like the results I'm getting

I read both the manual and after market "D7000 experience" pretty intently so have a strong understanding of all the buttons / functions

I'm thinking lighting is the way to go..at least for part of the session.

For example I have no idea what the "Creative Lighting System" is

I also like the idea of camera and lens maintenance topics....I'm afraid to even look inside the body let alone do any sensor cleaning.

post-processing tips, otherwise, rest is a waste IMO

>> Was thinking of getting some photo shop instruction but think its better to improve my picture taking first

Photo editing is definitely part of the equation, but there are a lot of online tutorials that will help you out there. I think the question is, what can you get from this guy that would be difficult to get elsewhere.

If all you've got is a D7000 with a kit lens, perhaps it might be nice to get some advice (and perhaps some hands-on experience) with some peripheral gear... ask for recommendations on what you need to round out your kit: Lenses, lighting equipment, macro gear, etc. This would be a great chance to get some guidance, find out stuff like how ball heads compare to three-way tripod heads, or learn a bit about wireless flash, or find out if you might need a telephoto or wide angle for the type of shooting you do. If I was a beginning photographer and only had an hour, I'd want to stay away from questions that could be answered with a Google search. If he's a working photographer as well as a shop owner, he probably has a lot of interesting tips and preferences of a personal nature that might give you some insight into workflow and technique... ask him what his most useful lens is, ask him what essential stuff he keeps in his camera bag, ask him to show you how to clean your sensor...

Some very good suggestions here, I like Seven's idea of looking round your camera and thinking what buttons you don't fully understand the functionality of. I also like Mike's idea of learning what the CLS can do for you. What a nice present alchse, must get your wife to speak to mine :-)

Hi alchse,

Do you use your camera's modes? Do you have a variety of lenses and/or flashes? Do you use the Creative Lighting System? Are you versed in AF-A/AF-S/AF-C auto focusing modes and how they relate to the shooting modes in both stills and video and do you have the AF-S lenses need to work with them?

You can get a lot out of an hour, but like you said, know what to ask is key.

It it were me, I concentrate on what I wanted to know.

My best,

Mike

if you want photoshop instruction, id get yourself a months subscription to *Link Removed*

its really excellent

and no i dont work there

Thanks for the tips guys - much appreciated!

Was thinking of getting some photo shop instruction but think its better to improve my picture taking first

Editing is my weakness, I would ask about that if that's yours.

alchse

look through your work and pick out a few photos that seem "wrong" particularly those that you cant work out why they went "wrong"

look at all the buttons, dials and menus, are there any you dont fully understand
eg do you really understand the different focus modes ( exposure and WB can, to some extent, be corrected later, but not focus )

Good luck let us know how you get on

Some other topics you could gain experience with:

-Manually setting white balance.
-Exposure compensation.
-Using the camera in aperture priority, shutter priority, and full manual exposure.
-Using fill flash.

So my wife got me an hour of private instruction at my local camera shop.

As the old saying goes....you don't know what you don't know.....so I thought I reach out for some topics to cover

I've had my 7000 for about 2 months now...feel pretty well versed in the basics (Aperture, Shutter speed, ISO, etc) and the controls of the camera..

So what should I use the hour for?

What would you use an hour of instruction for?

thanks!