Summer break for a teacher is a great time to learn new things. Amongst a number of new interests and skills I have been exploring, I have been taking time to engage with some new software.
I have been using Lynda.com for over 10 years. They are an awesome video tutorial website that has engaging software classes that cover everything from Photoshop, to Final Cut Pro, to Microsoft Word. The list of apps you can learn is huge. I have learned most of the creative professional software I know from Lynda.
What I like about Lynda.com is that they provide downloadable exercise files to use with the class, and there is a transcript of every word the presenter says that you can search by text. Earlier this week, I was trying to brush up on slip editing in Logic Pro. I typed “slip editing” into the search of the Logic Pro X: Essential Training course and it took me straight to the video that discusses the feature.
Lynda classes don’t just include big creative apps. I have found entire classes on single plugins for digital audio workstations. When I was learning photography, not only did they have a class for Adobe Lightroom, they had a class on the fundamentals of exposure, and a class specific to navigating the operating system of my exact model of Canon camera (the EOS 60D).
Lynda.com is completely free with a library card in my area. It’s worth looking into if you want to use the service.
This summer, I have been learning Photoshop and Affinity Photo. These two apps do the same kind of work, but I have appreciated learning the underlying concepts from the industry standard (Photoshop), and then learning the tools and features in Affinity, which is way more intuitive. My goal is to feel less limited manipulating the graphics on my computer. My dream is to be able to create any document imaginable for my band program.
I can’t recommend Lynda enough. After Affinity Photo for Mac and iPad, I am off to learn Affinity Designer. Did I mention that you can also learn computer programing on Lynda? A brief list of classes I have taken there, off of the top of my head, includes:
Pro Tools
Sibelius
Logic Pro X
Final Cut Pro X
Google Docs
Waves Audio Plugins
Funamdnetals of Reverb
Fundamentals of EQ
Fundamentals of Dynamics Processing
Fundamentals of Exposure
Fundamentals of Lens
Adobe Lightroom
OmniFocus
OmniGraffle
