a little research

Often this course lends itself to a hair of down time as the darkroom only fits 13 of you. Thus, our first research project is upon us!

Please choose a photographer from the list below (or elsewhere), find one you like, that interests you, and you would have fun researching and later emulating. Each student will be choosing a different photographer.

You will be writing a 1 pg paper about your chosen photog. In no LESS than one page (double spaces 12pt font) please explain:

• Who you selected and who they are (i.e. when, where, what etc)

• Describe their photography (what is unique about her/his style and technique), what do the photograph, how, why?

• Explain how he/she (or something they did, used, invented or created) has impacted or changed the world of photography.

• Why did you choose this photographer? What do you like about their work/style?


• Abbott, Berenice
• Adams, Ansel
• Adams, Robert
• Alvarez Bravo
• Arbus, Diane
• Atget, Eugene
• Bellocq, E.J.
• Blossfeldt, Karl
• Brandt, Bill
• Brassai
• Callahan, Harry
• Cameron, Julia M.
• Coburn, Alvin L.
• Cunningham,Imogen
• DeCarava, Roy
• Doisneau, Robert
• Eggleston, William
• Evans, Walker
• Friedlander, Lee
• Gutmann, John
• Hine, Lewis
• Kertesz, Andre
• Klein, William
• Koudelka, Josef
• Lange, Dorothea
• Lartigue,Jacques H.
• Laughlin,Clarence J.
• Levitt, Helen
• Mapplethorpe,Robert
• Modotti, Tina
• Muybridge,Eadweard
• Nadar, Felix
• O'Sullivan, Timothy
• Outerbridge, Paul
• Porter,Eliot
• Riis, Jacob
• Rodchenko,Alexander
• Salgado,Sebastio
• Sherman, Cindy
• Smith, W. Eugene
• Sommer, Frederick
• Steichen, Edward
• Stieglitz, Alfred
• Strand, Paul
• Talbot,William H. Fox
• Uelsmann, Jerry
• Weegeehttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif
• Weston, Edward
• White, Minor
• Winogrand, Garry
Guy Bourdin
Cartier Bresson
Andreas Gursky
Annie Leibowitz

make a NeoOffice Document for your image exposures...

going digital:

First set the camera to MANUAL mode (M) on the top dial:

To adjust the shutter speed you will be using the thumb click wheel:


To adjust the aperture you will need to hold down the "AV" button while using the same click wheel:


Tips: try and repeat the same action (speed, focus etc).

You will be finding a different scene/object/subject. You will photograph this 3 times using a different combination of aperture and shutter settings.

example:
photograph a flower at f8 & 1/60, f11 & 1/25, and f5.6 and 1/125. All should have the same end result in exposure but will have differing depths of field and or motion/blur.

You will need to WRITE DOWN THE CAMERA SETTINGS YOU USE FOR EACH SHOT!!!! lastly make a document in NeoOffice with your 3 images and exposure values.

Roll #3

For this roll of film we will be taking images for the PTSA Reflections contest. The theme this year is “Together we can…”

This is the only rule for this roll of film, the rest is up to you. Though, I encourage you to consider your composition of each image:

Good Composition is a key element of good photographs yet is something that is hard to define.

Instead of looking at composition as a set of ‘rules’ to follow – I view it as a set of ingredients that can be taken out of the pantry at any point and used to make a great ‘meal’ (photograph). Alternatively I’ve often described it as a set of ‘tools’ that can be taken out of one’s compositional tool belt at any given time in the construction of a great image.

The key is to remember that in the same way as a chef rarely uses all the ingredients at their disposal in any dish – that a photographer rarely uses all of the ingredients of composition in the making of an image.

Today I’d like to look at five of the ingredients (or tools, or elements) of composition that I draw on in my photography. They’re not ‘rules’ – just things that I consider when setting up a shot.

Pattern

Image by actionlovr

There are patterns all around us if we only learn to see them. Emphasizing and highlighting these patterns can lead to striking shots – as can high lighting when patterns are broken.

Read more on using repetition and patterns in photography.

Symmetry

Image by straightfinder

Depending upon the scene – symmetry can be something to go for – or to avoid completely.

A symmetrical shot with strong composition and a good point of interest can lead to a striking image – but without the strong point of interest it can be a little predictable. I prefer to experiment with both in the one shoot to see which works best.

Read more on symmetry in photography.

Texture

Image by Grant McDonald

Images a two dimensional thing yet with the clever use of ‘texture’ they can come alive and become almost three dimensional.

Texture particularly comes into play when light hits objects at interesting angles.

Read more on using light to create texture in your photography.

Depth of Field

Image by orangeacid

The depth of field that you select when taking an image will drastically impact the composition of an image.

It can isolate a subject from its background and foreground (when using a shallow depth of field) or it can put the same subject in context by revealing it’s surrounds with a larger depth of field.

Read more on getting shallow depth of field and also this video tutorial on depth of field.

Lines

Image by stevacek

Lines can be powerful elements in an image.

They have the power to draw the eye to key focal points in a shot and to impact the ‘feel’ of an image greatly.

Diagonal, Horizontal, Vertical and Converging lines all impact images differently and should be spotted while framing a shot and then utilized to strengthen it.

These are just some of the elements of composition that I consider in my photography. They reflect my own style and personality but there are plenty more.

Read more: http://www.digital-photography-school.com/5-elements-of-composition-in-photography#ixzz12RIikJla

Printing your landscapes

You must print:

• a contact sheet
• an image (your best)
• the same image printed using a variable contrast filter (higher #(2+) adds contrast, lower (2-)decreases contrast). If you negatives are dark use a low filter, if your negatives are thin/light use a high filter. If negs are normal try a #3.

filter #00

filter #3

filter #5