This school offers nationwide workshops on digital photography, taught by professional photographers in various cities. It tailors each class to students' skill levels and aims to build long-term photo communities by providing helpful tips and techniques for all different camera types.
Upcoming Classes (651)
All courses are held at 10701 Columbia Pike, Silver Spring, MD unless indicated.
The school began with the idea of a nationwide workshop series dedicated to promoting the culture of digital photography. The workshops would be taught by talented and accredited professional photographers who live in the cities where they teach. The classes would be small, and the students would be grouped according to skill level so that nobody would feel bored or intimidated.
Richard Rabinowitz and his company R2Rainmaker, which has been working with the world's most accomplished photographers for the last 25 years, started by finding talented professional photographers to teach in each city. A long and rigorous selection process led to signing up 48 accomplished shooters from 26 cities around the country. During intensive meetings and many friendly meals, we hashed out the curriculum for each skill level, developed detailed ideas for outdoor shoots involving students in the advanced workshops, and decided on the equipment required to enhance their skills at post-capture image manipulation. We knew that if we wanted to build long-term photo communities, the tips and techniques had to be helpful to people who owned all different cameras, no matter who manufactured them.
On April 23rd, 2007, our instructors from around the country traveled to DPA headquarters to launch the school. During a four hour photo-shoot designed to express our collective joy in digital photography, the instructors captured hundreds of beautiful images of flowers, ponds, waterfalls, and the inimitable inhabitants of the big apple, which comprise much of the photos on the the school homepage. Shortly thereafter, all the instructors return to their cities, and began running classes throughout the country.
All of the DPA instructors have brought their cameras back to their cities, to assist in teaching the DPA workshops hands on. You can bring any make or model of digital camera manufacturer to your workshop, as our instructors have knowledge and experience with all different kinds of cameras.
Reviews of Digital Photo Academy
(4.7-star rating across
163 reviews)
Private Holiday Photography Workshop (NYC)
Anonymous
• July 8, 2025
Alina Oswald is an excellent,patient instructor.. The lesson was methodical and well-paced.
She provided helpful printed material during the lesson and the next day emailed me extensive follow-up information relevant to the lesson.
I recommend her highly!
All Day Private Digital Photography for 1-6 People (New York)
Randal f. • July 8, 2025
Great teacher! She was very patient and was able to pivot. Loved it.
Cell Phone Photography Masterclass for 1-6 People (NYC)
Anonymous
• July 7, 2025
Master Your Digital Camera Controls (Chicago)
Mary Jane T. • May 4, 2025
The teacher was quite good, considering that one of us students had an older camera and I have an odd one that is not easily tracked to the menus in others. I learned quite a bit about what the controls do, considering that I have never had a *real* camera before. And the Driehaus Museum was a splendid place to wander about in and take pictures afterward.
I think more attention should be given to where to meet for this location, though, as there is no seating for a teaching session in the Driehaus Museum, and the "cafe" suggested as a meeting place is an actual restaurant that expects people to order food, and we had to hustle up another place to sit.
I would definitely take another class with this instructor, but would perhaps look for one given in a better-planned venue.
Master Your Digital Camera Controls (Chicago)
Derek B. • April 9, 2025
Digital Photography Live In-the-Field @ Chrystie & Rivington Intersection
Katherine S. • March 16, 2025
Wonderful class concentrating on aspects of composition and storytelling through photography
Half Day Private Digital Photography for 1-6 People (New York)
Ellen W. • February 12, 2025
Master Your Digital Camera Controls (Chicago)
Dan H. • January 13, 2025
Master Your Digital Camera Controls (Chicago)
Darwin B. • January 13, 2025
Rob Hale was attentive to our individual needs. His answers were very responsive to the questions raised. I especially appreciated how he worked through some of the quirky camera confusion that arose and stayed with the issue till we got true resolution. As example, who knew my 24-105 RF lens had a third ring allowing exposure compensation to be dialed in while partially depressing the shutter? A classmate with a very similar kit did not have that ring on her lens. The nuances!
Master Your Digital Camera Controls (Chicago)
Spyridoula B. • October 22, 2024
Master Your Digital Camera Controls (Chicago)
Roy S. • October 22, 2024
Digital Photography Live In-the-Field @ Houston Arboretum and Nature Center
Carolyn G. • October 14, 2024
Jim Caldwell was a terrific instructor. He gave me several easy to understand tips on using manual camera settings. I was disappointed however with the venue. Houston Arboretum offered NO opportunities to take pictures to try out my new found skills. It was full of nothing but dead fallen trees & weeds. No flowers. No color. Very little wildlife. Houston Botanic Garden is a much better manicured nature environment.
Half Day Private Digital Photography for 1-6 People (New York)
Christopher A. • October 13, 2024
Alina was thorough in her preparation and the materials that she provided to teach me how to use my Nikon D3300. She was patient and clear in her explanations, and always encouraging as we experimented with different techniques. And she pointed out composition issues with my photos that I didn't notice, raising my awareness of ways to isolate the subject and take better-looking pictures. I'm a beginner in digital photography, and feel much more comfortable talking about and taking photos after my session with Alina.
Master Your Digital Camera Controls (Chicago)
Anonymous
• September 14, 2024
Master Your Digital Camera Controls (Seattle)
Sara C. • August 27, 2024
Jeff the teacher was great and did a fabulous job of balancing different participants different skills and cameras. The other participants were lovely.
All Day Private Digital Photography for 1-6 People (New York)
Amin A. • June 21, 2024
All Day Private Digital Photography for 1-6 People (Chicago)
Anonymous
• March 16, 2024
Great workshop with the guidance and expertise of Ron !
Ron is very experienced in all aspects of photography… makes it clear and accessible.
Learning a new way to approach street photography and depth of field!
Thank you
Digital Photography Live In-the-Field @ Gold Coast
Mark D. • February 12, 2024
Half Day Private Digital Photography for 1-6 People (Los Angeles)
Stacy I. • January 16, 2024
Ming is a terrific teacher; I got exactly what I wanted from this class and enjoyed every minute.
Half Day Private Digital Photography for 1-6 People (New York)
Mike W. • December 15, 2023
Alina was great. I really enjoyed the course and can't wait to try some of the things I learned. The school's communication pre and post course were stellar.
Students who have taken classes at Digital Photo Academy have generally had positive experiences and felt that they learned valuable skills. Many students praised the instructors for their knowledge and ability to explain concepts clearly. They mentioned learning about many technical aspects of photography. Some students appreciated that the instructors provided specific examples. Overall, students felt that the classes were worth their time and helped them improve their photography skills.
Quotes:
1. "I learned so much from Scott about composition and technicals, like how to best use shutter priority or aperture priority, exposure compensation, etc. Really had such an amazing set of moments."
2. "Ron is an excellent instructor! He was very friendly and patient with all of the students and covered all of the important features on my digital camera. Ron provided and explained each concept with specific examples that were easy to understand and see. He also provided many tips about using the camera settings."
3. "Jim Caldwell was very knowledgeable and willing to share his expert experience. He provided many basics for we beginners, but also practical tips that even experienced photographers would find useful."
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