Gone are the days when learning photography required considerable money and time in various courses. With the amount of internet penetration, you can access free online photography courses from anywhere in the world and learn the art of capturing memories right from the comfort of your home.
OR are you simply looking to improve your skills further in the art of taking pictures?
Whatever the case, we assure you that you have come to the right place!
Keep reading to learn the much-needed DSLR photography courses for Nikon and Canon, available online at no cost. You will become a great photographer in no time as you fine-tune your skills at the lens through these extremely well-curated lists.
We have also mentioned the difficulty level and the time taken to complete each course so that you can invest your time wisely and make a much more informed decision.
Kickstart Your Online Photography Today with these Free Courses!
1. Basics of Photography: The Complete Guide
Duration: Approximately 6 hours
Level of Difficulty: Beginner
This course is a masterclass since it teaches you to take better photos by understanding your camera. The course starts by explaining the physical elements of the camera, like the lens, body, and CPU, to the intricate settings of the camera. This course will make you the master of your digital camera.
This course covers all the bases, from taking raw photos to turning them into a masterpiece by editing and enhancing the image.
Many free online camera photography courses, such as Nike and Canon, but only some courses tell you the basics.
This course is very content-heavy and is in a written format, so taking notes and sitting with your camera in hand is advisable to follow through quickly.
2. Your Road to Better Photography
Duration: Approximately 1 hour
Level of Difficulty: Intermediate
This course offered by Udemy is specifically designed for someone who feels trapped operating their DSLR in just auto mode and fumbles when switching to manual mode because there are so many terms, like ISO, aperture, shutter speed, etc., that seem so intimidating.
This course is not just all videos; it also includes a field assignment so that its easy for you to grab the concepts taught and use them in the real world.
The only requirement for this course is having the camera in hand, which makes sense since it requires a field project to be completed.
3. Commercial Photography: Still and Moving Image
Duration: Approximately four weeks
Level of Difficulty: Intermediate
This course, offered by Norwich University of the Arts, is for all commercial photographers who want to take their photography skills to the next level and increase their earnings exponentially.
This free online photography course help aspiring photographers learn the art of mastering still image and moving image photography. Expert and highly successful commercial photographers teach the course with years of experience and expertise.
4. Creativelive On-Air Classes
Duration: Variable
Level of Difficulty: Depends on the session
Creativelive platform is a boon for all the creators out there! The diversity of courses available on the platform is astonishing, ranging from music, art, and craft to photography. There are also live sessions and events performed every day on this platform, most related to photography.
Even though some courses are paid, the live events and the seminars are free for everyone and will be valuable additions to your photography skills. Check out the upcoming events and RSVP to save your seat for an incredible learning experience.
5. Professional Family Portraits
Duration: 2 Hours
Level of Difficulty: Expert
This course offered by Craftsy is the holy grail of the branch of photography that is known for being the hardest to master since it requires working with families and many different people from all walks of life. Its always challenging to capture the true essence of a family in a single photo. Therefore, this free online photography course is explicitly taught by Kirk Tuck, keeping family portraits in mind.
To be more specific, the course spans over 5. videos. Also, the course has a bonus section, FAQs, and even an area of class discussion where students can freely discuss and ask their doubts, if any.
6. Canon DSLR Photography: Getting Started with Your DSLR
Duration: 4 hours
Level of Difficulty: Beginner
Among all the online photography courses available, this is the single most free online photography course specifically for Canon. The course is extensive in coverage, i.e., illustrating 39 lessons for around 4 hours, teaching you the basics of almost everything you need to get started with your DSLR camera.
This course will not teach you the fundamentals of photography or the creative side of photography. Instead, it focuses on the technical specifications of your Canon DSLR camera and how you can achieve the maximum out of it.
7. Cambridge in Color
Duration: Not Applicable
Level of Difficulty: Depends
It will not be wrong to say that this website is the Wikipedia of the photography world. The content is text-based (primarily), written very lucidly with crisp explanations surrounding all the topics regarding camera and photography. The site is easy to navigate, and the topics are covered for beginners and experts alike!
This site also sports a section of recent additions of fresh tutorials so that your knowledge remains the latest.
8. Free Photoshop Tutorials – Phlearn
Duration: Not Applicable
Level of Difficulty: Depends
Other than winning the most complicated name to pronounce award, this platform doesn’t deal with photography directly but with the auxiliary part of it like Lightroom, Adobe Photoshop, etc. Even though this site is not entirely free, 450 well-detailed free resources are available that you can utilize immediately. The site’s unique selling proposition (USP) is small tutorials on everything related to the above platforms, making it a one-stop solution for all your needs. For instance, a tutorial on how to delete a photo on Photoshop, create or highlight shadows, etc., has gained enough likes from the viewers.
9. World of EOS
Duration: Approximately 2 hours
Level of Difficulty: Beginner
This YouTube channel World of EOS is the official channel of Canon Australia. The content there is reliable, covering photography and cameras’ philosophy and technical aspects, especially the Canon. There are 26 lessons with a 3-minute average length, so the content is easy to grasp and implement practically. Canon’s free online photography course also has expert interview sessions such as Craig Golding, Chris Bray, etc.
10. Lectures on Digital Photography by Marc Levoy
Duration: Depends
Level of Difficulty: Expert
This technical course covers the core theories and maths behind photography. It is not designed for the general public but only for someone who is hardcore into photography and deeply relates to the subject. The course spans over ten weeks, starting from the introduction and ending with an explaining the history of photography.
Besides the course, this site offers comprehensive coverage of everything related to digital cameras, such as how digital cameras are made, a complete breakdown of what is inside a digital camera, etc.
The instructor, Mark Levoy, is a professor at Stanford and was also awarded the title of Distinguished Engineer at Google. He is well versed with all the concepts at hand since he uses them daily as a VP in Adobe.
There are Enough Free Online Photography Courses Available!
It’s for you to decide which one suits your requirements the most. Photography is a creative skill, one that requires a free mind and also an analytical mindset.
But its a myth that art and creativity are something we are born with, and we cannot hone them further.
You can take your photography game to the next level by taking the above courses with the utmost attention.
So grab a camera, and capture the world with all its finer perfections and imperfections!
Sign me up, I have a lot to learn
im interested on doing course
SO MUCH INTERESTED