What is this page?

It is written on the label. Made at first for those who love photography and need the technical knowledge to get the job done with their images, this page offers the basic theory and practice for fast and effective Digital Image Editing.

Straight to the point. No bells and whistles. Fast and effective means:

1. You want to get the work done with free software and open source, nobody checking you for rights or fees.
2. You have no time to lose, so you want to be productive.
3. You want the tools to work in full power, being configurable, reliable, usable anywhere, anytime, anyway. To work on all kinds of image data, and offer the freedom to exchange data between applications that you and your partners use and on different platforms (Windows, Linux, MacOS).
4. You can carry your tools as portable and use them with no installation on any Windows computer, regardless of what software it has or not, with your own configuration as if working on your own machine.

The learning scheme

The School consists of theory (1 lesson) and practice (19 lessons). First the theory makes the basis to understand concepts and possibilities and then you watch the tasks in action.

The lessons in a-b-c

1. The theory of Digital Image.
2. Getting to know The GIMP and its working environment.
3. Photography: the basic workflow.
4. The first tasks of tonal manipulation.
5. Working with color.
6. Removing color and decomposing.
7. Refining color - casts and overlays.
8. Selections and the Quick Mask.
9. Selection tools and options.
10. Canvas tools (grid, guides, measuring).
11. Reusing and transfering image data.
12. Layers.
13. Layer masks, a powerful tool for non-destructive editing.
14. Real HDR in Digital Photography.
15. Working with vector data. Paths.
16. Channels.
17. Working with text.
18. Color tools.
19. Images from scratch: digital art, drawing (free or linear), painting.
20. Photography: tools for transformations, retouching, noise reduction.

Time needed to attend

This School respects the fact that every person has his/her own learning pace -- actually this should be a strong point of any eLearning process. Just to get an idea though, the estimated time should be something like one month with "some" everyday attention.

Technical requirements

You need a contemporary device with a contemporary browser. Just that.

Important: Due to the nature of the subject, a desktop environment -or to be precise a convenient large monitor- is highly preferable. If still on a small device, try the "web version" of this webpage. The screencasts were made at a size of 1920X1200.

The learning philosophy and how to benefit the most

This School focuses on the technical basis of Digital Image Editing. DIE uses technologies powerful in both use and results, but in order to do your job basically you do not have to enter in advanced fields.

This is not a "tips and tricks" approach with advice about "how to do this or how to do that". It is meant to be a learning system to guide you into integrated understanding of the subject matter called Digital Image. The job to be done is important rather than the tools themselves.

Please take it from A to Z. Attend all lessons from the beginning one after the other. The 20 lessons constitute a learning process. It may happen that you already know something but you see it done "in a strange way": this is a learning system in which everything comes in context.

Exercising with your own images will help progress greatly. You can have lessons in your browser's tabs, you can stop a video or scroll in or skip to another lesson. You can attend as you see fit, having all the material at hand.

By entering the School you engage in a learning process. Digital image engages various skills so your progress will depend on your interests and persistence. Try to receive what is offered. You don't have to be a genius, think simple, ready to learn the basic skills to get your job done.

Science states it clearly: after completing this little school you will be having a better brain. Keep learning! Happy learning!