Hi Diane,

So good to have you "in class", lol!

It is very common to have a hard time making those first chords sound clear. Keep at it, and I promise they will improve! It takes time and plenty of repetition to develop the strength and stretch in your fingers. 

In some of my Fundamentals lessons, I talk about ways to check on your tone, and make adjustments and improvements as needed. Make sure your chord-hand fingernails are good and short, for starters. And then just continue to experiment with micro-adjustments of how you are placing your ifngers on the strings, until you find the sweet spot with the best tone.

Meanwhile, getting th chords down is ALSO about getting TO the chord, from wherever you came from (the previous chord in the song). So be sure and practice the choreography of those moves, EVEN IF the tone is not yet spot on.

It is two issues: Tone, and Choreography. They can easily be worked on separately, and ultimately will come together with you getting to the chord ON TIME, and with nice tone. 

Have fun! It's all a process and you are on the path!

Be well - Lisa