rocky mountain school of photography

What rocky mountain school of photography does

Rocky Mountain School of Photography (RMSP) was a Missoula, Montana-based photography education institution founded in 1989 that closed in 2024. Its former Director Forest Chaput de Saintonge and Assistant Director Sarah Chaput de Saintonge now operate the business as Everlight Education (Everlight, LLC), an online photography education platform focused narrowly on digital asset management and Adobe Lightroom workflow training.

Everlight's product surface is small and tightly defined: two paid self-paced online courses — Adobe Lightroom Organization ($195 one-time, lifetime access) and Adobe Lightroom Classic Organization ($395 one-time, 11 hours of content, lifetime updates) — plus two free downloadable workflow blueprints used as email lead magnets, and one announced but unreleased course in astrophotography. The underlying technology is course delivery through a self-hosted community platform (community.everlighteducation.com) layered on a standard content management system; no proprietary software, mobile applications, or public APIs are present. The courses teach organization, catalog management, metadata, culling, backup, and export procedures inside Adobe's Lightroom and Lightroom Classic products rather than building competing tooling.

Revenue mechanics are one-time perpetual licenses with no subscription tier; supplementary income comes from YouTube ad monetization on a 128K+-subscriber channel and from sponsored content partnerships with hardware and software brands including Adobe, B&H Photo, Synology, Ugreen, Insta360, and QNAP. The customer base consists of individual and SMB photographers worldwide, acquired through a product-led and community-led motion in which free YouTube content and blueprint downloads serve as top-of-funnel assets funneling learners into paid courses.

Name

rocky mountain school of photography

Legal name

Everlight, LLC

Website

https://rmsp.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Closed

Short description

Everlight Education, successor to Rocky Mountain School of Photography, is a founder-led online education company selling one-time Adobe Lightroom and Lightroom Classic workflow courses to individual and SMB photographers worldwide, supported by a 128K+ YouTube channel and 40K-subscriber newsletter.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Photography Education

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710)

akta.pro primary industry

Accessibility, Universal Design for Learning (UDL) & Inclusive Content Services (EDAGAKAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Special Education & Accessibility-Optimized Media (UDL, AAC, Captioning) (EDAGALAH)

Keywords

• Photography education
• Online photo courses
• Lightroom training
• Photo workflow courses
• Digital asset management

Headquarters

HQ city

Missoula

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Lightroom Classic Course Sales: One-time fee of $395 for lifetime access to Adobe Lightroom Classic Organization course. Course includes 11 hours of content with lifetime updates.
2. Lightroom Course Sales: One-time fee of $195 for lifetime access to Adobe Lightroom Organization course. Lifetime updates included with purchase.
3. YouTube Ad Revenue: YouTube channel with 128K+ subscribers generates ad revenue from educational photography workflow videos. 122K+ subscribers mentioned on course page.
4. Sponsored Content & Partnerships: Sponsored videos and product partnerships with technology companies including Adobe, Ugreen, B&H Photo Video, Synology, Insta360, QNAP, and others for educational content creation.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Rocky Mountain School of Photography (RMSP) was a private photography school founded in 1989 in Missoula, Montana; it closed in 2024 and is now maintained as an online education brand operated by Everlight, LLC (Everlight Education). The company sells self-paced online courses and free resources focused on teaching photographers how to organize and manage digital image libraries using Adobe Lightroom and Adobe Lightroom Classic.

Product overview

Everlight Education operates as an online photography education platform offering courses and free resources focused on digital asset management and Adobe Lightroom workflows. The company succeeded Rocky Mountain School of Photography (RMSP), which closed in 2024, and is run by former RMSP Director Forest Chaput de Saintonge and Sarah Chaput de Saintonge. The product portfolio consists of two paid online courses (Adobe Lightroom Organization and Adobe Lightroom Classic Organization, priced at $195 and $395 respectively), one announced upcoming course (Getting into Astrophotography), and two free workflow blueprint guides delivered via email opt-in. Courses are self-paced, provide lifetime access, and are accessible on multiple devices. The company also maintains a YouTube channel with over 128,000 subscribers offering free tutorials and a community forum for students.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Adobe Lightroom Organization Course
• Adobe Lightroom Classic Organization Course An 11-hour self-paced online course covering image organization and workflow management in Adobe Lightroom Classic's computer-based catalog system. Covers catalog setup, folder hierarchy, file management, metadata, keywords, collections, culling, backup strategies (3-2-1 standard), and export procedures. Sold as a one-time purchase with lifetime access and free future updates.
• Lightroom Workflow Blueprint (Free) A free downloadable workflow guide providing photographers with a three-step framework for securing files, editing offline, and preventing image loss in Adobe Lightroom. Includes guidance on memory card formatting, preference setup, and the 3-2-1 storage method. Delivered via email opt-in as a lead magnet for the paid course offering.
• Lightroom Classic Workflow Blueprint (Free) A free downloadable organization guide teaching photographers the folder hierarchy and backup standards required to organize their Lightroom Classic catalog and protect images from hard drive failure. Covers the 'Golden Rule' for missing files and the 3-2-1 Backup Standard. Delivered via email opt-in as a lead magnet for the paid Lightroom Classic course.

Quantifiable outcome

• 150,000+ creators helped to move from digital chaos to confident library management
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• AdobecoreTechnology or IntegrationForest works with Adobe through sponsored videos and educational content. As a 2024 Adobe Lightroom Advisory Board member and Adobe Community Expert, Forest provides strategic guidance to the Adobe design team, including the Firefly and Premiere Pro teams. He creates in-app tutorial content and reviews upcoming features.
• B&H Photo VideominorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership through sponsored videos and product partnerships for educational content featuring B&H Photo Video equipment.
• SynologyminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership through sponsored videos and product partnerships featuring Synology NAS and storage solutions for photography workflows.
• UgreenminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership through sponsored videos and product partnerships featuring Ugreen technology accessories.
• Insta360minorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership through sponsored videos and product partnerships featuring Insta360 cameras and technology.
• QNAPminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership through sponsored videos and product partnerships featuring QNAP NAS and storage solutions.
• NightscaperminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership through sponsored videos and product partnerships related to astrophotography education.
• NPS (National Parks Service)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership through sponsored videos and educational content featuring NPS-related photography.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• KelbyOne: KelbyOne is a subscription-based online education platform focused on Photoshop, Lightroom, and photography workflows, taught by Scott Kelby and other working pros. It directly competes with Everlight for the same Lightroom-organization training dollars among enthusiast and professional photographers.
• Phlearn: Phlearn is an online education company teaching Photoshop and Lightroom editing techniques to photographers and creatives, with both free YouTube content and paid tutorials. It mirrors Everlight's exact combination of free YouTube top-of-funnel plus premium Lightroom/Photoshop courses.
• Cole's Classroom: Cole's Classroom produces in-depth Lightroom Classic and Photoshop training videos for working photographers, sold as standalone courses and bundles. It competes with Everlight for the same organization-and-editing instructional niche within the Lightroom Classic user base.
• Digital Photography School: Digital Photography School is a long-running photography education site offering articles, tutorials, and paid courses aimed at hobbyist to enthusiast photographers. It overlaps with Everlight in the workflow-and-organization training segment and shares the photography-education lead-magnet funnel.
• Cambridge in Colour: Cambridge in Colour is a long-standing photography tutorial site that teaches camera technique, editing, and image-management concepts with deep technical content. It overlaps with Everlight's educational mission and serves the same enthusiast photographer audience seeking workflow mastery.

Broad incumbents

• CreativeLive: CreativeLive is an established online platform offering live and on-demand courses across photography, video, design, and business. It is a broader incumbent that competes for the same photography learner budget with a much larger course catalog and category breadth.
• Skillshare: Skillshare is a large online learning marketplace with thousands of creative courses including photography and editing, sold on a subscription basis. It competes more broadly with Everlight as a destination for self-directed creative education rather than going head-to-head on Lightroom organization.
• MasterClass: MasterClass is a premium subscription education platform producing high-production courses taught by recognized experts across creative and professional categories. It is an adjacent premium incumbent that competes for the same discretionary learning spend from creators without specializing in Lightroom workflows.
• LinkedIn Learning: LinkedIn Learning (formerly Lynda.com) is a broad professional development subscription offering courses across software, creative tools, and business skills. It overlaps Everlight at the educational delivery layer and includes photography software training, though its positioning is general professional development rather than specialist Lightroom training.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@forestchaput
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/in/forest-chaput-de-saintonge-301b34137
• Instagraminstagram.com/everlighteducation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

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