You might be surprised to learn that you don’t need to know how to hand letters and draw to create rad custom typography. In fact, Brandon Rike – whose star-studded client list includes everyone from Pharrell to Madonna – creates his unique lettering almost exclusively in Illustrator. He’ll show you how it's done in Simple Methods for Custom Lettering. 

Working with type is a huge part of graphic design and custom letterforms can be applied to just about every project you’ll work on. In this class, you’ll take an in-depth look at the type and learn Brandon’s methods for customizing it to fit the project. 

You’ll learn about:

- Matching the typeface to the mood of your project

- Working with color, shape, and form

- Customizing letterforms based on existing fonts

- Improving your workflow

You’ll learn three methods for creating custom typography and how to differentiate between high and low-quality letterforms. Brandon will also teach his super-efficient workflow, so your projects aren’t bogged down during the lettering process.

Both beginners and professionals will learn new ways of working in Adobe Illustrator to produce rockstar-quality custom type.

Don’t rely on Photoshop tricks to make your portraits pop – learn how to use light to capture the moment in a camera. In Picture Perfect Lighting, Roberto Valenzuela will teach you how to make the magic happen with on-camera, off-camera, and natural light.

Roberto is a photographer and educator committed to helping other photographers overcome roadblocks and produce their best work. In this class, he’ll teach you how to achieve perfect lighting in your portraits without always relying on bulky and expensive modifiers. 

You’ll learn:

- How to handle Speedlites

- The best way to use natural light

- Studio lighting techniques

Roberto will demystify lighting and help you become a more confident practitioner of your craft. You’ll learn to embrace lighting as a source of creativity and expression, rather than a source of fear.

In Picture Perfect Lighting, Roberto will help you reduce the time you spend retouching in Photoshop so you can focus on what is really fun about photography: taking pictures. You’ll develop a better understanding of the principles behind photography lighting and learn about the gear that will make your work more beautiful – without weighing you down.

If your unedited images could use a little boost, don’t miss your chance to learn how to create Picture Perfect Lighting with Roberto Valenzuela.

Not only does Facebook have more users than any other social media site, but it also earns the lion’s share of online advertising dollars. So if you want to be where the paid advertising action is, it’s a good idea to focus on Facebook.

But keep in mind, that advertising on Facebook can be complicated. With so many types of ads available and so many different ways of targeting audiences, novice social media marketers can feel overwhelmed.

Billy Gene, CEO of Billy Gene Is Marketing and one of the top online marketing influencers, educators and practitioners in the world, will show you his tips and tricks for ensuring your Facebook ads help you reach your business goals.

In this class, you’ll learn how to:

- Use advanced Facebook targeting to find customers.

- Manufacture fame by staying in front of your audience.

- Create information capture ads, lead ads, and messenger ads.

- Figure out which ads are best for certain scenarios.

- Emulate the success of some of Billy’s clients.

What’s behind a powerful documentary portrait? Professional photographer Dan Milnor will break it down for you in just 90 minutes.

Dan will explore the motivations behind great documentary work, as well as share his techniques and philosophies regarding how to work quickly, collaborate with strangers and recognize optimal light. Plus, Dan will teach you how you go beyond your current comfort level and build a deeper relationship with your subjects as you photograph them.

The most memorable videos, tell a story. Developing interview skills that are both technical and personal, can greatly increase your storytelling ability. Abba Shapiro joins Creative Live to break down all the components of producing and piecing together an interview. Abba will cover every step to get you comfortable with capturing an interview from set-up through sharing.

You’ll learn: 

- How to use and be confident with the gear you have and gear you may need 

- Lighting techniques and camera angles that will ease your time in post 

- How to get your subject comfortable on camera 

- How to ask questions to get your subject to speak in a way that edits clearly/smoothly 

- Audio guides for mic’ing your subject and backup options 

- Successful workflow tips on ingesting and organizing your media 

- Editing your piece together in Adobe Premiere Pro CC 

As you grow your video client list, you’ll need to be confident in capturing interviews by yourself or with a crew. Join Abba as he breaks down the confusion and gets you to create memorable stories confidently and quickly. 

Pinterest® isn’t just a fun rabbit hole of inspiration; it’s also a powerful way for small business owners to share, sell, and market their goods.

Join Megan Auman for Pinterest Marketing for Makers & Designers and learn how you can use the image-driven social media platform as a marketing tool instead of a time suck.

In this course, you’ll learn a concrete, ready-to-implement three-step Pinterest marketing strategy. 

You’ll learn how to:

- Grab the attention of the right kind of followers

- Create Pinterest® content which guarantees re-pins and clicks

- Convert Pinterest® followers into fans, customers, and buyers

This course will shatter what you think you know aboutPinterest® and equip you with a fun new way to sell your products.

Learn how to DJ with DJ Hapa of Scratch DJ Academy. This class will set you up with everything you need to know to get your start as a DJ.

DJing is more than counting beats and waving your hands in the air, it is about skillfully bringing together songs to create an experience. In DJ Fundamentals you’ll learn about the theory behind music and the basics of manual beatmatching and scratching. Hapa will introduce you to the gear essential to a DJ set including hardware, software and the functions and features to look for. You’ll learn about breaking down music and analyzing arrangement – skills you can use for DJing and producing remixes or original work.

If you are brand new to DJing or you’ve been at it for a while, this course will give you a solid foundation you can build on no matter which genre or style you prefer.

Using aerial views for landscape photography adds a distinguishing flare to your portfolio. But how do you create images that stand out in an industry flooded with beautiful imagery? World-renowned landscape and aerial photographers Peter Eastway and Tony Hewitt are going to show you how to create a stand-out portfolio using the techniques they’ve developed throughout their award-winning careers.

In their class, you will learn:

- How they incorporate aerial shooting into their landscape imagery

- The importance of post-production using Adobe® Lightroom®, Photoshop® and Capture One softwares

- How to incorporate your ideas and emotions into your landscape photography

- What equipment to use to capture your best images

- How to put together a strong, unique portfolio

This is a unique opportunity to learn from two photography masters as they share their industry-specific expertise.

As the saying goes, “Content is king.” And that’s especially true when it comes to marketing your business. You might have fabulous products or top-notch services, but if you don’t have compelling content to help drive sales, you’re probably leaving a whole lot of business on the table.

But don’t make the mistake of slapping together a bunch of worn-out, half-baked ideas and calling it content. It’s critical that your articles, blog posts, reviews and videos are thoughtfully prepared and offer value.

Melissa Cassera, a successful brand and marketing consultant and screenwriter, will show you how to use Hollywood storytelling techniques to create content that entices people to read and watch, excites them to share, and moves them to buy.

In this class, you’ll learn how to:

- Understand your audience and the content they crave.

- Repurpose each piece of content for maximum exposure.

- Avoid creating boring or corporate content.

- Uncover your unique voice and style.

- Create a thriving content-creation process.

- Write sizzling headlines and effective calls to action.

- Leverage user-generated content for added credibility.

Ready to break into the commercial photography business, but unsure of where to start? Rob Grimm and Gary Martin will help you navigate the ins and outs of the industry by delivering expert advice on an entire gamut of subjects –– from marketing, to shooting, to branding, and location scouting.

Rob and Gary’s workshop will be your personal guide to every single aspect of commercial photography. You'll learn how to set a budget, advertise your brand, and build your portfolio and client base. These two seasoned pros will also share invaluable technical tips on shooting and retouching.

This course is a one-stop-shop for all the tools and skills needed to build a commercial photography portfolio and find your niche in the industry!