Photography as art is an introduction to the digital camera as an art-making tool designed for students at the beginning level. The course will use digital photography to help students learn and apply the basic elements of art and the principles of design. This course will also provide students with opportunities to extend their knowledge and skills in the field of photography and the use of Adobe Photoshop. Digital Photography will familiarize the student with digital photographic equipment, materials, methods, and processes. Visual problem-solving skills are explored through the use of the computer as the main tool for creative expression and communication. Cellphone photography and editing with a variety of phone applications will be infused into the curriculum.
Living life as an artist is a practice.
You are either engaging in the practice or you’re not.
It makes no sense to say you’re not good at it.
It's like saying, I m not good at being a monk.
You are either living as a monk or you’re not.
We tend to think of the artist’s work as the output.
The real work of the artist is a way of being in the world.May 27
WEB PORTFOLIO
Portfolios are an important aspect of being a photographer. A portfolio displays best recent works of a photographer. There are different types of portfolios. Digital portfolios are displayed on a computer. Web portfolios are displayed on the internet (usually in the form of a website or blog). Paper portfolios are a collection of photographs in printed form.
Your final portfolio will be a collection of 6-8 of your very BEST and most interesting images. Basically anything you took THIS SEMESTER inside or outside of class. Your portfolio should show a viewer what you have accomplished in recent months.
PHOTOGRAPHER / ARTIST STATEMENT
Write an artist statement to go along with your portfolio. Your artist's statement can be a testament to your creativity and integrity as a photographer. It is a paragraph or two that tells about YOU as a photographer.
Answer questions like:
Who and what inspires you?
What is your favorite tool?
What kind of pictures do you like to take? (landscape, portrait, black & white etc.)
Why do/did you take these?
Is there a pattern or theme to your work?
Is there a predominant color?
Describe your Style and what you look for in subject matter.
Save your images and statement on a page called Portfolio by Friday.
Use the rest of your time to make up any assignments you missed from this term only.
May 16
WARHOL/POP ART
Andy Warhol is known for his bright, colourful paintings and prints of subjects ranging from celebrities including Marilyn Monroe and Mohammed Ali, to everyday products such as cans of soup and Brillo pads. But behind these iconic images are some surprising approaches and ideas.
You are to make 5 Warhol-style images. Post them on a page called Warhol. If you use an image from the Internet, show the original along side your work. This is due Friday.
May 12
Infrared
The original image
Step 1: Duplicate The Background Layer
With my photo open in Photoshop, I currently have one layer in my Layers palette, the "Background" layer, which contains my original image:
Photoshop's Layers palette showing the Background layer containing my original image.The first thing I need to do in creating this effect is to duplicate this layer, and I'll do that with the keyboard shortcut, Ctrl+J (Win) / Command+J (Mac), which tells Photoshop to give me a copy of this layer directly above it:
Photoshop's Layers palette now showing the copy of my Background layer directly above it, which Photoshop has named "Layer 1".Photoshop automatically names the layer "Layer 1", which tells me nothing about it, so I'm going to double-click directly on the name of the layer and rename it to "infrared":
Double-click on the name "Layer 1" and change it to "infrared".Step 2: Select The Green Channel In The Channels Palette
Go to your Channels palette (it's grouped in beside the Layers palette) and click on the Green channel to select it:
Click on the Green channel in the Channels palette to select it.This will turn your image temporarily black and white:
The image turns black and white temporarily.If you don't understand yet how channels in Photoshop work, it may seem odd that when you selected the green color channel in the Channels palette, the image turned black and white instead of, well, green. We won't get into the details here of how channels work, since that would take an entire tutorial on its own, but what you're seeing here is in fact the green color information in the image, not as you and I see it but as Photoshop sees it, since Photoshop sees everything as either black, white, or some shade of gray in between. If that makes little sense to you, don't worry, you don't need to understand it to create this effect. Simply knowing to click on the green channel in the Channels palette to select it is enough.
We're going to blur this green channel next.
Step 3: Apply The Gaussian Blur Filter To The Green Channel
With the Green channel selected in the Channels palette, go up to the Filter menu at the top of the screen, select Blur, and then select Gaussian Blur to bring up Photoshop's Gaussian Blur dialog box:
Go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur to bring up the Gaussian Blur dialog box.Drag the slider bar at the bottom of the Gaussian Blur dialog box left or right to increase or decrease the amount of blur you'll be applying. I'm using a low-resolution image for this tutorial since it's for the web, and for me, a Radius value of about 4.5 pixels gives me a nice soft blur effect. Your image will most likely be much higher resolution, especially if it came from a fairly recent digital camera, so you'll need to use a higher Radius value. Add a good amount of blurring while still being able to make out the basic details of the image, as I've done here:
The image after applying Gaussian Blur to the Green channel.Click OK when you're done to exit out of the Gaussian Blur filter.
Step 4: Change The Blend Mode Of The Infrared Layer To "Screen"
Now that we've applied the Gaussian Blur filter to the Green channel, switch back to the Layers palette and, with the "infrared" layer still selected, change the blend mode of the layer from Normal to Screen. To do that, go up to the top of the Layers palette and click on the down-pointing arrow directly to the right of the word "Normal", which brings up a list of available layer blend modes. Click on "Screen" to select it:
Change the blend mode of the "infrared" layer from "Normal" to "Screen".Here's my image after changing the "infrared" layer blend mode to "Screen":
The image after changing the blend mode of the "infrared" layer to "Screen".Already at this stage, the image is looking pretty cool, but we're not quite done yet. We're going to be using a Channel Mixer adjustment layer next.
Step 5: Add A Channel Mixer Adjustment Layer
We need to bring up a Channel Mixer adjustment layer at this point, and we can do that by clicking on the New Adjustment Layer icon at the bottom of the Layers palette and selecting Channel Mixer from the list:
Click the "New Adjustment Layer" icon at the bottom of the Layers palette and select "Channel Mixer".This brings up the Channel Mixer dialog box:
The Channel Mixer adjustment layer's dialog box.I've circled in red the options we need to change. In the "Source Channels" section, set Red to -50%, Green to 200%, and Blue to the same as red, -50%. The general rule with these values in the Channel Mixer is that you want to keep the total value of all three channels at 100%, otherwise you'll either be losing contrast in the image or losing detail in the highlights, which is why, in order to set the Green value to 200%, we lowered both the Red and Blue values to -50%, giving us our 100%. Again, not something you need to know. I just like to toss these things out there.
Finally, click the Monochrome checkbox in the bottom left corner of the dialog box to keep the image in grayscale mode. Click OK when you're done.
Here's my image with the Channel Mixer adjustment layer applied:
The image after applying the Channel Mixer.Step 6: Lower The Opacity Of The "Infrared" Layer
At this point, the infrared effect is too intense. Let's reduce it by lowering the opacity of the "infrared" layer. First, click on the "infrared" layer in the Layers palette to select it, then go up to the Opacity option in the top right corner of the Layers palette, hover your mouse directly over the word "Opacity" to turn your mouse cursor into the "scrubby slider" icon, then click and drag to the left to lower the opacity value:
Lower the opacity value of the "infrared" layer to reduce the effect.You'll probably have to reduce the opacity quite a bit. I've reduced mine to 35% in the screenshot above.
Here's my result:
The image after reducing the infrared effect.The effect is pretty much complete at this point, but it's too clean. Infrared photos typically have a lot of grain in them, so to finish off the effect, we're going to add some noise.
Step 7: Add A New Layer Above The Channel Mixer Adjustment Layer
Click on the Channel Mixer adjustment layer in the Layers palette to select it, then use the keyboard shortcut Shift+Ctrl+N (Win) / Shift+Command+N (Mac) to bring up Photoshop's New Layer dialog box:
Use the keyboard shortcut to bring up the New Layer dialog box.Name the new layer "grain" as I've done in the screenshot above, and then click OK. Photoshop will add a new blank layer named "grain" above the Channel Mixer in the Layers palette:
The Layers palette showing the new "grain" layer at the top.Step 8: Fill The "Grain" Layer With White
Press the letter D on your keyboard to reset Photoshop's foreground and background colors to their defaults of black and white, respectively. Then, with the "grain" layer selected in the Layers palette, use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Backspace (Win) / Command+Delete (Mac) to quickly fill this layer with solid white. The image in the document window will temporarily be hidden from view:
Filling the "grain" layer with white temporarily hides the image from view.Step 9: Add Noise To This Layer
With the "grain" layer still selected, go up to the Filter menu at the top of the screen, select Noise, and then select Add Noise to bring up the "Add Noise" filter dialog box:
Select Filter > Noise > Add Noise to bring up the "Add Noise" filter's dialog box.As circled in red above, set the Amount to 20%, set Distribution to Uniform, and make sure Monochromatic at the bottom is checked.
This adds our grain to the image, but problem is, we still can't see the image below the grain. We'll fix that next:
The solid white layer is now filled with noise to create the "grain" effect, but it's still blocking the image below from view.Step 10: Change The Blend Mode Of The "Grain" Layer To "Multiply"
Just as we did for the "infrared" layer, we're going to change the blend mode of this "grain" layer, except this time, instead of changing it to "Screen", we're going to change it to "Multiply". With the "grain" layer selected, go back up to the blend mode options at the top of the Layers palette and this time choose Multiply from the list:
Change the "grain" layer's blend mode from "Normal" to "Multiply"As soon as we change the blend mode to Multiply, the image becomes visible once again through the grain, giving us our final effect:
Setting the blend mode of the "grain" layer to "Multiply" gives us our final infrared effect.If you find you've added too much grain to the image, simply lower the opacity of the grain layer to reduce the amount.
There's one more thing we could do here with our image, and that's to bring back some of the original color. You can of course leave it as is if you want, but if you want to bring back some color, here's how.
Step 11: Duplicate The Background Layer Once Again
Click on the Background layer in the Layers palette to select it, then once again use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+J (Win) / Command+J (Mac) to duplicate it. Since you should always be in the habit of naming your layers, I'll rename this layer to "colorize":
With the Background layer selected, press "Ctrl+J" (Win) / "Command+J" (Mac) to duplicate the Background layer once again, then rename it to "colorize".Step 12: Drag The "Colorize" Layer Up Between The Channel Mixer and Grain Layers
Next, click on the "colorize" layer and drag it up between the Channel Mixer adjustment layer and the "grain" layer. You'll see the line dividing the two layers highlight as you get close to it. Release your mouse at that point to drop the layer into place:
Click and drag the "colorize" layer between the Channel Mixer adjustment layer and the "grain" layer.Step 13: Change The Blend Mode To "Overlay" And Lower The Opacity To 50%
Finally, change the blend mode of the "colorize" layer from Normal to Overlay and then lower the opacity of the layer to 50%:
Set the "colorize" layer's blend mode to "Overlay" and lower the opacity to 50%.And we're done! We've brought some of the original color back into the effect. Here's the image as it was back before we started:
The original image once again for comparison.And here's the final result:
Put the original and the infrared version on page called Infrared by Friday.
May 6
‘Where We Are’: A Photo Essay Contest for Exploring Community
The Challenge
Using The New York Times’s Where We Are series and the work of last year’s teen winners as a guide, create a photo essay that documents an interesting local, offline community.
Whether your grandmother’s Mah Jong club, the preteens who hang out at a nearby basketball court, or the intergenerational volunteers who walk the dogs for your neighborhood animal shelter, this community can feature people of any age, as long as it gathers in person and offers meaningful social connection of some kind.
Your photo essay MUST include:
Between six and eight images, on a page called Photo Essay by Friday.
Short captions, or descriptions, of no more than 75 words for each image that help explain what the image illustrates and why that is important to the story.
A short introduction of up to 300 words that offers important background or context that complements and adds to the information in the photos and captions.
You might consider the introduction the beginning of your essay, which the photos and descriptions will then continue. Together they will answer questions like who this community is, how it came to be, and why it matters. (Our How-To guide offers more detail about this.)
At least one quote — embedded in either the introduction or one of the captions — from a member of the community about what makes it meaningful.
This assignment is worth double what our other assignments have been, so hard work and care are in order.
If you want to enter your photo essay in the New York Tmes contest, click here
Here are a couple of famous photo essays by W. Eugene Smith.
Country Doctor
Nurse Midwife
May 1
Exquisite Corpse
Exquisite Corpse is a collaborative art and writing game where participants take turns adding to a collective creation, such as a poem or a drawing, without seeing the previous contributions. This technique, originating from the Surrealist movement, aims to create unexpected and often absurd results.
Initial contribution: The first person photographs a part of an image (like a head).
Passing the creation: The second person photographs a part of an image (like a body).
Repeating the process: The third person photographs a part of an image (like feet).
Put the images together in Photoshop. Flatten the image and give it a logical name.
Working alone or with partners, create three different Exquisite Corpse images. Upload them to a page called Exquisite Corpse by Monday.
Apr 30
From Where I Stand
Explore perspective and composition in photography with this idea. You will photograph a series of pictures from only one spot. You can turn around and shoot at various angles but not leave your place. This forces you to get creative with unique vantage points as you lean, crouch, and bend.
Take 24 shots from a single place. Use the Contact Sheet function in Photoshop to get them all on a single image. Upload it to a page called Where I Stand by Friday.
Apr 28
What is Shape in Terms of Art?
A shape is created when a line is enclosed. Shape is one of the seven elements of art and it has a variety of uses in the creation of art.
We typically think of a shape as a closed contour. So, if you take a line and enclose it, then you will have created a shape. Shapes can play important roles in the creation of drawings and paintings. Shape can help to create complex drawings and paintings, affect composition, and contribute to the balance within a work.
Shape can also be defined as a two-dimensional area that is defined by a change in value or some other form of contrast.
Types of ShapesAll shapes will fall into one of two categories. Shapes are either geometric or organic.
Geometric (or Regular) Shapes
Geometric shapes or regular shapes are easy to recognize. Usually, math can be used to find information about these shapes. Geometric shapes generally have a specific name associated with them. Examples include: circle, triangle, square, and trapezoid.
Many man-made objects are made in the form of geometric shapes. Cell phones, buildings, and wheels are all examples of man-made forms that resemble geometric shapes.
Below, you'll find several examples of geometric shapes...
Organic (or Freeform) Shapes
Organic or freeform shapes are shapes that seem to follow no rules. Organic shapes generally do not have a name associated with them and are typically not man-made. Organic shapes can resemble things that we find in nature.
Below, you'll find several examples of organic shapes...
Choose a shape and create images that interestingly use that shape.
It could be architectural features, artwork, organic, or a juxtaposition of multiple shapes.
Squares are relatively easy. Start there, and then search out triangles, circles,
or shape combinations. Again, look for the most interesting composition to highlight that shape in your image.
Make 5 images of a particular shape and upload them to a page called Shapes. This is due Wednesday.
Apr 21
Explore the Ways We Move
Can you see beauty in the ways that people move, even when there is no music?
Can you find dance in people’s everyday rituals and routines? To answer this question you might go somewhere crowded — your school’s hallway, a park, a basketball game — and spend a few minutes just observing people. Do any gestures look like dance to you? What is it about these movements that resemble those that dancers might make?
For this assignment, you can take your camera around with you for a day or two and snap a photo anytime you see a movement, posture or gesture that looks like dance to you. Or, you can go to a specific place.
You are to make at least five images that represent The Way We Move, and upload them to a page called The Way We Move by Thursday.
Apr 14
David Hockney
You will use layers in photoshop to combine multiple viewpoints of a single image, similar to Hockney's "Joiners".
David Hockney
REQUIREMENTS FOR SHOOTING:
- Choose whatever subject you like- person, place, object, etc...
- Shoot 2 different scenes, with a MINIMUM OF 40+ PHOTOS FOR EACH. (80 TOTAL) More is always better.
- ZOOM IN and shoot CLOSE UP shots of different fragments of your subject.
- Shoot the entire scene, try shooting a whole row across the top of your subject, then shoot a whole row below that, then below that, etc until you know you've covered you're whole subject.
- Each shot should OVERLAP the next, so that you don't have any gaps in your final piece.
- Don't move from where you are standing during the entire time you are shooting. Keep your zoom the same as well.
- Try tilting your camera left or right as you shoot to get interesting angles.
A simple "still-life" of objects you have on you or around you in the classroom... something as simple as your phone on a desk, or a pile of books and papers. A group of your friends, posed creatively. They can stay still during the shoot or you can allow slight movement between shots for a more "fragmented" look. A sweeping panoramic view of the inside of a building, an outdoors landscape, the front of the school, etc. Your computer desk or workspace. Try to have your hands or feet sneak into one or two of the photos to show your presence, just as Hockney did in many of his photos. A large panoramic view of the classroom, lunchroom, gymnasium, auditorium, etc. Or your messy bedroom if you are shooting at home.
Make two "Joiners" and post them on a page called Hockney by Friday.
Apr 3
Find Art Wherever You Go
How do you know when you see something that is art? What elements make it so? What does it do to you, the viewer?
Look around the space you are in right now. Is there anything that strikes you as art? Perhaps itʼs the way your jacket is draped over a chair, how light is coming in through a window, the interesting pattens created by a shadow on your desk or the shape someoneʼs face makes when they smile or frown. What about this thing makes it seem artistic to you?
Photograph candid moments and images that look like art to you.
Where can you find art in the world around you? You might take your camera out for a day and start shooting anything that strikes you as art. Or you might shoot with a particular vision in mind. Challenge yourself to capture candid moments, rather than trying to stage images.
You are to make at least five images that represent Art All Around Us, and upload them to a page called Art All Around Us by Friday.
Apr 1
Capture the Sounds of a Place
Photography might seem like it’s all about sight, but it can evoke other senses, too. How can you show what the place you live sounds like?
Study the photographs above closely. What might you hear if you were in the scene? Which elements of the image help convey those sounds? What senses or emotions do the photographs evoke in you? What story do they tell?
For this assignment, you might travel around your city or town and photograph the sounds you find. Or you might focus on a more contained space, such as your school, the skate park, your neighborhood or any other place where you spend time. You might try to capture many disparate sounds — quiet ones, loud ones, harsh ones, pleasant ones.
You are to make three to five images that represent Capture The Sounds, and upload them to a page called Capture The Sounds by Thursday.
Mar 31
Look up
Most of us spend our days looking down: at our phones, computers, homework, meals. What would you see if you looked up instead? For this assignment, I invite you to photograph what you see when you turn your gaze to the sky.
Spend some time studying the images, shapes, patterns, colors, lines, light, shadows, angles or movements above you. What catches your attention? What have you never noticed before? How is this angle different from looking at something straight on, straight down or from the side? Is there anything you see that strikes you as artistic, that might make for an interesting photograph? How often do you look up? What does this quick exercise tell you about what might happen when you do?
You might approach this assignment in two ways: 1) You can carry your camera around with you for a day or several days and photograph anything interesting you see when you look up. 2) Or you might start with a specific place and idea in mind that you want to photograph.
You are to make at least five images that represent Look Up, and upload them to a page called Look Up by Wednesday.
Mar 26
Levitation
Make a levitation photo!
How it's done...
A photo is first taken of a plain background. Then, without moving the camera, you will take a second picture with your model in it. Your model will sit/lay/stand on a prop like a stool, ladder or chair. Then, in Photoshop, we will create 2 layers from the photographs and use layer masks to mask out or hide the stool from the photo of the model.
Use Manual, Av or Tv exposure modes.
Set your drive mode to your 2 second or 10 second timer.
Use a tripod!
Do not move camera in between shots.
Make sure whatever you/your model stands on can be REMOVED so it is not in the background shot.
If standing on a stool/ladder, try to point your toes down to make it look like you are floating. Flat feet will be a give away that you are standing on something.
If you are laying down on a chair/stool, have your shirt/clothing drape loosely over the edge, not bunched up under your body, again to hide the fact that you are actually laying on something.
Make your shot INTERESTING and CREATIVE. Think about your composition, your background, your lighting, your depth of field, etc.
1. open background photo
2. place model photo
3. align layers
4. quick select your model
5. refine your edge
6. add layer mask
7. adjust mask (if you have mistakes)
Paint with BLACK PAINT to hide part of your top layer.
Paint with WHITE PAINT to reveal part of your top layer.
If you need to BLEND OUT AN EDGE, use 50% Opacity and a SOFT EDGE brush.
8. Make any additional edits you like!
Create 1 levitation image and save it to a page called Levitation. This is due Friday.
Mar 24
HDR
High Dynamic Range, or HDR, is a digital photography technique whereby multiple exposures of the same scene are layered and merged using image editing software to create a more realistic image, or a dramatic effect. The combined exposures can display a wider range of tonal values than what the digital camera is capable of recording in a single image.
In the image below, you can see how 3 exposures where taken of the same scene (one underexposure, one normal exposure, and one overexposure) and then merged into one image. The final HDR image takes the best or most detailed part from each picture so that the final image has the greatest range of value and the most detail possible.
How to Do it...
Step 1: Set up your camera
step 2: Putting it together in Photoshop
Open up Adobe Photoshop File > Automate > Merge to HDR Pro...
Find your first 3 photographs. Click "Browse"
Find your 3 photographs in "Pictures" Highlight all 3 images and click ok.
Save your photo as a .png
Create 3 HDR images and save them to a page called HDR. This is due Wednesday.
Mar 17
WHATS IN YOUR HEAD
Take a self portrait or a portrait of a friend or family member and digitally open up their head to reveal what they are thinking about.
Make one great image and put it on a page called What's In Your Head. This is due Wednesday.Mar 12
Me & Myself
Find an old photo of yourself, then take a new photo of yourself and put them together.
Put all three on a page called Me & Myself. This is due Friday.
Mar 10
Funny Photoshop Collages
If you learn how to make a collage in Photoshop or any other program it will allow you to create interesting photography projects even if you are stuck at home, or are limited in your resources and props.
Tripods are necessary to make shooting easier.
Start by making several photographs of a person in different places in the same scene.
Download the images to your computer, then open Photoshop and choose File→Scripts→Load Files Into Stack.
You'll see only one image. It is the top layer. Using the object selection tool, click on the person.
Click on the mask icon at the bottom of the layers pallette. Move down to the next layer and repeat the process with the next image. Do all but the bottom layer.
You only need to make 1 image, but make it great! Post it on a page called Funny Collage. This is due Wednesday.
Mar 5
Today you are going to combine two images using a layer mask. Below are the two parts, make a page called Masking by the end of the period on Friday.
Feb 28
Color
Everyone has the ability to create and interpret images. You do not need to be practiced in the skills of photography in order to visually share your point of view.
In this lesson, you will create four photographs that implement specific color components to enhance the aesthetic elements of an image. You will also digitally enhance photographs of your choosing and think about how to select a series of your best/favorite work.
Complementary Colors Cool Colors Hard Light Warm Colors Soft Light Atmospheric Perspective Located opposite of one another on the color wheel, these colors create the strongest contrast, for example, red and green, yellow and purple, and orange and blue. Greens, blues, and violets. Cool colors are more subdued and gentle, and are more likely to be soothing or calm. Though these colors are quieter, this doesn’t make them less powerful. Often when used with warm colors, cool colors can provide an interesting balance in a photograph. A type of bright light in photography that casts harsh, sharply defined shadows, and typically draws the viewer's attention to a specific area. Reds, oranges, and yellows. Warm colors tend to be more active and emotionally charged. These colors tend to jump out at the viewer, attracting attention, and drawing the viewer’s eye. A type of light in photography that creates minimal hard shadows. Soft lighting typically has more of a fuzzy gradience, with no defined lines, and much smoother transitions than light variations from hard light. A method of creating the illusion of depth in a painting, drawing, or photograph. This effect influences how we see objects as they disappear into the distance often by controlling color to simulate changes affected by the atmosphere. For example, objects closer to the viewer's eyes often appear brighter, but objects further away are lighter or dimmer in color. Apply your knowledge of color and create four photographs that implement thoughtful color and lighting components. It is important to remember that photography is all about the process.
You’ll create:
A photograph that uses warm colors
A photograph that uses cool colors
A photograph that uses complementary colors
A photograph that is black and white
Watch: Look at a few videos that experiment with color in different ways. Colored Light, Traditional Portrait and Environmental Portrait.
Put 4 images on your site on a page called Color by Wednesday.
This is interesting...
Feb 26
Composition
There are many ways to make a photograph interesting. Photographers use various techniques to draw your attention to certain aspects of an image. One of those techniques is called the rule of thirds. The rule of thirds describes a basic compositional structure of a photograph. You can take any image and split it into 9 sections by using 2 vertical and 2 horizontal lines.
The rule of thirds helps you consider the composition of a photograph and is used by photographers at any level to assist in creating an interesting composition for their image.
Using the rule of thirds also helps create a point of interest in your image. This is typically where the two lines intersect (one horizontal and one vertical). The point where the lines intersect is often referred to as the “point of interest.”
Examine Artworks: Look at one of the two student photographs shown here. Pause for 30 seconds to simply observe the image. What do you notice about the photograph?
What do you notice first about this image?
What stands out to you the most about the way the artist composed this photograph?
How is the photo framed?
What is going on in the foreground and background?
Describe the visual cohesion in the photograph. What patterns do you notice?
Apply your knowledge of the rule of thirds and elements of art to create four photographs with intentional compositional elements. It is important to remember that photography is all about the process. Today you’ll begin experimenting with four photography examples.
You’ll make:
One portrait photograph (either a portrait of someone else or a self-portrait)
One landscape photograph
One still life photograph
One photography that documents things happening on the street, often called “candid” photography
Put 4 images on your site on a page called Composition by Friday.
Feb 21
Photomerge
You are going to create some panoramas using photomerge in Photoshop. Take a series of photos, at least 4 but 5 is better. Make sure that they overlap a little, maybe 25%. Open them in Photoshop using File → Automate → Photomerge.
Save the image as a photoshop file (psd). Make sure you give it a logical name. Then flatten it and save it as a png.
Make 5 of these and put them on a page called Panoramas by Wednesday.,
Feb 18
I want to introduce you to Google Sites. Every week you'll post your assignment photos on a site that you will build and maintain. You need to publish the site every time you make a change to it. Today you will publish your site and send me the url of the home page.
All About The Details
Create a collection of shots (5) with unique subjects that focus on the details. Whether the photos are for an engagement, graduation or everyday occasion, you can take portraits of smaller details, like wisps of hair, relaxed hands and prominent features. Making your subjects feel comfortable and confident in front of the camera is the first priority. Plan a single shoot for various angles to help capture what looks best on a given day or moment.
Put 5 images on your site on a page called Details by Thursday.
Feb 10
Today we consider shadows. Light is the basis of all photography, but darkness is often overlooked. I want you to play with shadow. Shadows can add contrast and depth to a photograph, heightening the drama and feeling. Try capturing a shadow with crisp edges, then a blurry one. How does the emotion change in your composition? Shoot six examples and upload them to a page called Shadows by tomorrow.
Your Shadows assignment is due Wednesday. You need six examples and upload them to a page called Shadows.
Feb 6
Today you will use your camera. Choose a color. Make six images featuring that color as the dominant element. Find as many different ways as possible. Upload the images to a page called Color. This is due by tomorrow.
Photographing Color
Feb 3
MAGAZINE COVER
Look online and find 3 magazine covers you like and post to your blog with a sentence or two explaining why you like them. Then, create a magazine cover using your own photographic image. Include a cover title and a list of articles, which would be within the magazine. Make your cover 9×12 @ 300 resolution.
Post your images on your site on a page called Magazine Cover by Thursday.
Jan 29
POETRY AND PHOTOGRAPHY
Take a new photograph for this assignment, and edit it to perfection. Make a new document 11×14 or 14×11 @ 200 resolution. Move your photo into your new document and size to fit. Add a quote, poetry, song lyrics or your own words to your edited image. Format the text with the perfect font, color, and stroke or other layer style. Post to your site.
Post your image with the poem that inspired it on your site on a page called Poetry by Friday.
Jan 27
BLACK & WHITE & SHADES OF GRAY
Photograph for these elements of composition: leading line, texture, abstraction, repeated patterns, rule of thirds and contrast. Photograph your images and convert them to black and white. Edit in PS or LR and post your top 3-5 images on your site.
Post your top 3-5 images on your site on a page called Shades of Gray by Wednesday.
Jan 21
DIGITAL COLLAGE BASED ON A THEME
Create a digital collage based on a theme. What are some good themes you can explore for your collage? In Photoshop, Start with a photo of you, then make your document 12×9 or 9×12 inches with 200 resolution, and include images from the Internet, or images you took with a DSLR or cell phone, to visually convey your theme and your feelings regarding it. Under your collage when you post it, write a short reflection on how you visually conveyed the message you are intending to communicate to the viewer.
Post at least 5 images on a page called Digital Collage by Friday.
Jan 15
Today we're going to explore the pen tool. I want you to replicate the patterns on the samples below. Create 3 new documents, name them pentool1, pentool2, & pentool3. Save them as png files. Put them on a page called Pen Tool.
Post at 3 images on on a page called Pen Tool by Friday.
Jan 14
Today we will make some test images and begin to learn how to edit them. Then we will upload them to your site and publish. Lastly. I want you to email me the url of your home page.
Right click on each image and choose Save Image as. Navigate to your Pictures folder and click save. Open each image in Photoshop. We will manipulate them a little. Save them as .png files and go to your site. Go to the Pages tab and click the "+" at the bottom of the panel. Name your page first Images and click save. Go to the Insert page and choose Images. Select upload and navigate to your saved photos. When all the photos are on the page, click Publish.
Jan 13
I want to introduce you to Google Sites. Every week you'll post your assignment photos on a site that you will build and maintain. You need to publish the site every time you make a change to it. Today you will publish your site and send me the url of the home page.
Next, we will go over the operation of our cameras. Most of your assignments must be shot with a camera. Sometimes we'll use your phone, but rarely. You check them out on the camera sign-out sheet.
Photography terms you should know
Click here for the course syllabus. Save it in your Documents folder.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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