This module explores how cameras capture light, covering sensor technology, lens characteristics, and how focal length affects your images. Understanding these fundamentals gives students control over their equipment rather than relying on automatic settings.

• Digital Sensor Basics: Photons strike the sensor and convert into electrical signals. Students learn the difference between APS-C sensors (approximately 1.5x crop factor on Nikon/Sony, 1.6x on Canon) and full-frame sensors, plus how crop factor affects effective focal length.
• Prime vs Zoom Lenses: A 50mm f/1.8 prime offers exceptional sharpness and low-light performance, while a 24-70mm f/2.8 zoom provides flexibility for events and travel. Students explore these trade-offs through direct comparison.
• Specialty Glass: Introduction to macro lenses with 1:1 reproduction ratio for extreme close-ups and fisheye lenses for 180-degree creative distortion.
• Practical Exercise – “The Focal Length Walk”: Students photograph the same subject at 24mm, 50mm, and 200mm around campus to observe facial feature distortion and background compression firsthand.

This module teaches students to leave Auto mode permanently. Mastering aperture, shutter speed, and ISO forms the foundation of all creative camera work and separates photographers from casual snapshooters.

• Aperture (f-stops): Understanding that f/1.8 admits far more light than f/16. Each full “stop” (f/1.4 → f/2 → f/2.8 → f/4 → f/5.6 → f/8) represents a doubling or halving of light reaching the sensor.
• Shutter Speed: Controls motion and time. A fast 1/1000s freezes action while 1/30s introduces motion blur. “Bulb” mode allows exposures longer than 30 seconds for Nairobi CBD night cityscapes.
• ISO and Signal-to-Noise Ratio: Students learn their camera’s “native ISO” (typically 100-200) and why shooting at ISO 100-400 produces cleaner images than ISO 6400, where digital amplification introduces visible grain.
• Metering Modes: Evaluative/Matrix metering works for general scenes, while Spot Metering becomes essential for high-contrast subjects like stage performances or backlit portraits.
• Practical Exercise – “The Motion & Depth Challenge”: Capture one image of a moving car frozen sharply and another using panning motion blur, both correctly exposed in Manual mode.

Consistently sharp images separate amateurs from professionals. This module covers the mechanics of focus and the workflow for achieving technical excellence in any shooting condition.

• Autofocus Mechanics: Phase Detection (faster, used in DSLRs and modern mirrorless) versus Contrast Detection (more accurate but slower, common in older systems and Live View).
• Focus Planes: Focus exists on a 2D plane parallel to the sensor. Understanding this concept helps students predict which elements will be sharp in portraits and product shots.
• Sharpness Workflow: Testing for lens diffraction (why f/8 is often sharper than f/22), using tripods for stability, and employing self-timer or remote triggers to avoid “shutter slap” vibration.
• Practical Exercise – “The Shallow Depth Test”: Three objects placed approximately 5 inches apart, shot at the widest aperture to isolate the middle object with smooth bokeh. Students review 100% crops to evaluate critical sharpness.

Light has measurable temperature, and understanding this transforms how students approach both capture and editing. This module covers color science, dynamic range challenges, and creative white balance manipulation.

• The Kelvin Scale: Blue Hour registers around 9000K, midday sun near 5500K, and candlelight approximately 1900K. These values directly affect mood and storytelling.
• White Balance Presets: Auto WB works for most situations, but Cloudy adds warmth while Tungsten cools images. Knowing when to override Auto WB gives creative control.
• Dynamic Range: Human eyes perceive significantly more shadow detail than camera sensors can capture. This limitation causes blown highlights or blocked shadows in high-contrast scenes.
• “Expose to the Right” (ETTR): Using the histogram to capture maximum data without clipping highlights, providing more information for RAW editing in Adobe Lightroom.
• Practical Exercise – “White Balance Manipulation”: Shoot the same Nairobi street or classroom scene on Auto, Fluorescent, and Cloudy presets to observe how color shifts the emotional tone of photographs.

Moving beyond the basic rule of thirds, this module introduces sophisticated compositional frameworks used by professional photographers across fashion, architecture, and documentary work.

• Golden Ratio and Fibonacci Spiral: Overlay exercises show how these mathematical principles guide viewer attention through natural, pleasing arrangements.
• Dynamic Symmetry: Creating energy and balance through diagonal divisions, particularly effective in fashion and street photography.
• Visual Balance: Symmetrical compositions convey formality and stability; asymmetrical arrangements create tension and visual interest.
• Psychology of Lines: Horizontal lines suggest calmness and stability. Vertical lines convey strength and growth. Diagonal lines introduce movement and tension.
• Practical Exercise – “The Geometry Hunt”: Students must capture at least five distinct geometric shapes (circles, triangles, leading diagonals, framing elements) in real Nairobi locations such as Kenyatta Avenue, Uhuru Park, or local markets.

Digital workflow skills are essential for modern photography. This module introduces non-destructive editing principles and professional file management using Adobe Lightroom and basic Adobe Photoshop techniques.

• RAW vs JPEG: RAW files capture 14-bit data depth versus 8-bit JPEGs, providing dramatically more information for recovering shadows and highlights during editing.
• Non-Destructive Editing: Using sliders for Exposure, Highlights, Shadows, Whites, and Blacks while preserving the original file for future adjustments.
• Basic Corrections: Color correction, cropping, horizon straightening, and spot removal for professional presentation.
• Export Settings: Understanding DPI requirements for print (typically 300 DPI) versus pixel dimensions for Instagram, Facebook, and web portfolios (72 DPI, optimized file sizes).
• File Organization: Students establish dated folder structures and collections, building habits that prevent chaos when managing thousands of images.

This module introduces off-camera flash and studio lighting using the professional equipment available at Melody House facilities. Understanding artificial light opens doors to studio work, event photography, and commercial assignments.

• Constant vs Strobe Lighting: LED panels and tungsten provide continuous illumination, while strobes deliver powerful bursts ideal for freezing motion and overpowering ambient light.
• The Inverse Square Law: When you double the distance between light and subject, only one-quarter of the light reaches them. This principle controls background darkness and creates dramatic fall-off.
• Flash Sync Speed: Most cameras sync around 1/200s or 1/250s. Exceeding this speed produces black bands from shutter curtains cutting across the frame.
• Practical Exercise – “The Invisible Black Background”: In a normally lit room, students use low ISO, high shutter speed, and close flash placement to render the background pitch black.

Portraiture forms the backbone of many photography careers, from weddings to corporate headshots to fashion work. Technical skills matter, but connecting with subjects determines whether images feel alive or stiff.

• Building Rapport: Moving past the subject’s “camera mask” through conversation, clear direction, and patience. Most people relax after the first few minutes of interaction.
• Environmental Portraits: Placing subjects in their natural context tells deeper stories—a Nairobi barista in their café, a musician in the Melody House studio, or a craftsman in their workshop.
• Foreshortening Principles: Body parts closer to the lens appear larger. Understanding this affects hand placement, face angles, and overall posing decisions.
• Practical Exercise – “The Stranger Project”: Students politely approach strangers in safe public locations, gain consent, and direct three distinct emotional portraits within 5 minutes.

Documentary photography and photojournalism require both technical competence and ethical grounding. This module prepares students for NGO work, editorial assignments, and visual storytelling across Kenya and beyond.

• The Visual Story Arc: Establishing Shot (context), Character (subject introduction), Detail (specific elements), Interaction (relationships and action), and Closing (resolution).
• Ethical Considerations: Avoiding “poverty porn,” respecting subject dignity, understanding consent in public versus private spaces, and maintaining honesty in imagery.
• Practical Exercise – “The 10-Frame Story”: Students document a local craftsman, small business, or sporting event using exactly 10 carefully planned frames to tell a complete beginning, middle, and end.

Photography branches into numerous specializations, each with unique technical demands. This module helps students explore possible niches that align with Kenya’s growing creative sectors.

• Night and Astrophotography: Long exposures, the Rule of 500 (500 ÷ focal length = maximum shutter speed before stars trail), and light painting techniques.
• Architectural Photography: Correcting keystoning (the leaning building effect) through perspective choices—essential for the growing real estate market.
• Macro Photography: Managing extremely shallow depth of field, focus stacking software, and controlled lighting for product and nature photography.
• Practical Exercise – “City Lights”: Tripod-based 30-second exposures of Nairobi traffic creating light trails while keeping buildings sharp.

Fashion, beauty, and commercial photography demand polished final images. This module teaches industry standard post production techniques that separate amateur edits from professional results.

• Layer-Based Editing: Understanding Photoshop’s layer architecture and using luminosity masks for precise adjustments.
• Frequency Separation: The industry standard for skin retouching. Separating texture from color and tone for natural-looking edits.
• Dodge and Burn: Manually sculpting light and shadow to enhance three-dimensional depth in portraits and product images.
• Practical Exercise – “The Commercial Edit”: Students perform a complete magazine-style retouch of a studio portrait, including blemish removal and skin refinement.

Technical excellence means nothing without clients. This module prepares students for real freelance and studio work in Kenya’s creative industry.

• Portfolio Building (The Rule of 10): Show only your strongest work. Curation matters more than quantity.
• Legal Essentials: Model releases, property releases, and basic copyright awareness to protect student work.
• Pricing Strategy: Calculating Cost of Doing Business (CODB)—including gear depreciation, software, and insurance—before setting fees.
• “Killing Your Darlings”: Learning to edit down a large shoot to a tight, focused selection for the client and portfolio.