Assignment: Object Series

One of the mistakes that I find many new photographers making is that they find they need to put every possible element of a story or scene into each photograph that they take. This leads to photos that can be quite cluttered, that have too many focal points and that confuse the viewer of them.

Your assignment this week, is to bring in objects and photograph a series of nine of the same (you may also photograph at home). This can be ANY type of series. For example, maybe you’ll shoot 9 pairs of shoes, maybe 9 piles of dirt, 9 cups of coffee…etc.etc.etc. Remember as always, creativity is key. Try and shoot all of them during the same time period so that your photos are closely related. Make sure nothing is in frame that could be distracting, have a solid background and good lighting. Below is an example of how to achieve the look of professional lighting at home.

 

IMAGES DUE FRIDAY 5/3, FINAL COMPOSITION SAVED AND POSTED TUESDAY 5/7
LAST_FIRST_OBJSeries in MAJOR FOLDER

You may also shoot this assignment at home, if you do not wish to bring your objects into class. If you are bringing in objects, however, do so ASAP since you'll have to take turns photographing.

And for those of you with an SLR, some F-stop tips:

An example of my work, shot with a flash, using black construction paper behind and underneath object. Obviously, I shot more then nine, so I could pick and choose which ones I liked best. I also thought 20 made the image more interesting.

© R. Friedman Photography

What is a "series" in Photography?

Cristina Otero’s Tutti Frutti Photography Series



A photography series is a group of photographs sharing a subject or a theme. The photographs should look unified as a group; they should (usually) all be either color or black and white, printed at the same size and format, shot with the same or similar cameras and mounted and framed the same way. Following these guidelines, there are many ways to create a photography series.

One Process
One way to make a photography series look unified is to use the same process to print all of the photos. There are limitless ways to print photographs from digital and film cameras besides the well-known inkjet and Fuji Crystal Archive prints done at home and in labs. A film camera gives you more options; use your negatives to make wet darkroom prints on different kinds of papers and tone them differently. Use 19th century photographic processes such as cyanotype or platinum/palladium. Digital files can also be used to create digital negatives for contact printing, if you use one of the older processes. These prints will look unified as a series even if the subject matter varies.

One Genre

make your images go together by sticking to one of the classic genres of photography: portraits, still-life, nudes, landscapes, street photography or architectural photography. Look through photographic monographs at a library to view other possibilities. Ansel Adams was known for his landscape series about Yosemite. Walker Evans did a series of unforgettable portraits of sharecroppers in Alabama in the 1930s. Alfred Stieglitz photographed his wife, Georgia O'Keefe, repeatedly over the years. It doesn't take years to create a photographic series; memorable series have been created in a few minutes, such as Robert Capa's series about the landing on Normandy Beach in World War II.

One Place

One of the surest ways to make a series of photographs work as a group is to photograph one place as exhaustively as you can. A  "place" can be as small or expansive as you wish. It could be your childhood home, a neighbor's farm or one room in a house. Some of the best series of photos about a place include the people living there. The photos show the relationship between the place and the people, as in Shelby Lee Adams' series about Appalachia and its people.

One Theme

A more difficult assignment for a photographic series is to take a group of photos revolving around a theme. The theme could be purely visual, such as "light" or "shadows," narrative such as "dreams" or a concept as nebulous as "freedom." The group will go together better if you use one camera, format, printing process and if you frame the photos the same way.

YOUR TASK: Research some of the photography series and photographers mentioned above. Find a favorite series ON YOUR OWN.

-Create a POST about the photographer- about the series, about the process, etc. .

-link or upload some of his/her images (be sure to caption with a copyright!)

-explain briefly what it is that attracted you to their work

In your research, be thinking about what you might consider doing for a photography series (say, about 9 images- hint!)

Shagun Ray, Vintage Camera Series

Project Graduation T-Shirt Design

As I will not be in class today, please read the following and begin working on your own. You may continue to work on this in the following days and can even do this via drawing on paper if you'd prefer. All of you however, must submit at least ONE t-shirt idea by next Friday (May 3rd). We will of course, be working on a Major assignment in the meantime which I will introduce when I get back...

T-Shirt Design Contest!

 

 

 

What: T-Shirt Design for YOUR graduating class to rock at project graduation this June!

 

Who: You! The senior class members

 

How: There are a few ways you may do this. You could use one of those lame design websites that offer random clip art and don't give you a lot of control OR you can use Photoshop to create a supercalifragilisticexpialidocious design that gets everyone's attention! *I put t-shirt outline images in your sample images folder for your convienence.

 

When: Due By                    Save As last_first_ProjGrad in Minor Assignments folder. Make sure it's at least 300 resolution so printer can enlarge the design without a problem.

 

Entries will be submitted to Mr. Cilento and he and your class officers will decide on a winning design. That design will then get sent to the printer and on June 26th, your classmates could be sporting your fabulous tee!

 

The Fine Print: T-shirt designs must be in school colors (green, white, black & gray) and the base tee-shirt must be white (it is too expensive to print on blck tee's). The design must include "project graduation" and "2013" in some respect. Other then that you have a lot of freedom so get to designing!!! A t-shirt template can be found in your Assignments folder.

PLEASE POST YOUR DESIGN TO YOUR BLOG AS WELL SO WE CAN SEE ONE ANOTHER'S DESIGNS

 

Some tee's from the past....

 

 

Photowalk: Outdoor Portraits

Grab a camers! It's PHOTO WALK FRIDAY! You'll be looking for PEOPLE in scenery. You may pose classmates somewher outside, or you may take candids of people in the places we visit. Think about what makes a good pose, how busy or distracting is your backgound, and most importantly... ANGLES! Up, Down, Side, don't just shoot straight on!

1) Never select all of the focus points for portraits, pick one.

When you pick the autofocus option that allows the camera to select focus points, you are doing your portraits a terrible disservice. This feature of a camera is usually designed to pick whatever is closest to the lens and focus there. In some cases, like with my 1DS Mark III, the camera will choose a cluster of focus points and make a “best guess” based on averaging the distance between all of the chosen points. Using one focus point gives you, the photographer, ultimate control.

2) Always focus on the eyes.

The eyes are the windows to the soul, and should be the focal point of any good portrait. Not only are the eyes the most important part of a good portrait, but they are the sharpest element on the face and should be left that way. When you are shooting with a wide aperture value focused on the eyes, the lens’s bokeh will aid in softening the skin as well.

Image by Geomangio

3) Shoot wide open for shallow depth of field.

There are quite a few reasons to invest in a fast lens capable of wide aperture values; the most common is for shallow depth of field. Now that you can shoot at ƒ2.8 or ƒ4 you should use it. Most fantastic natural light portraits are from wide aperture values and it is all because of the wonderful smooth background blur we call “bokeh”.

7) Shoot in the shade (Avoid direct sunlight)

Direct sunlight is harsh, makes your subject squint, and creates hard directional shadows and unpredictable white balance conditions. When shooting in the shade, there are no more harsh shadows, only smooth milky shadows created by your subject’s natural features. With proper exposure and white balance, you can make these shots look amazing.

8) Shooting carefully on an overcast day.

Natures softbox is a giant blanket of clouds. A good heavy blanket of cloud cover can help you enrich your colors, and make some very smooth and pleasing shadows.

 

Image by Meredith Farmer

13) Keep the power-lines and signs out!

We have already discussed keeping your camera focused on the eyes; keep your mind focused on the image as a whole. Power lines, signs, long single blades of grass, single pieces of garbage, sometimes even trees can be serious distractions from the overall focus of the image… The person you are photographing.

Last, and most important, have a great time shooting, enjoy what you’re doing and it will show in your work, and the expression of your subject.

Read more: http://digital-photography-school.com/13-tips-for-improving-outdoor-portraits#ixzz2QuFRAVsc

Barron Arts Center

You are all cordially invited to join us this evening at the Barron Arts Center for the student works exhibition! Work will be on display from students at JFK, CHS and WHS. Information can be found on facebook.

 

 

The closing is THIS evening, Wednesday April 17, from 7:00-9:00pm, not Thursday as the flyer states.

Assignment: Surrealistic Photomontage

Due: April 23rd 2013

Cassy Siena

Surrealistic Photomontage:The actual image

HOW to COMPLETE PROJECT:

Shagufta Zareen

1. You will need to decide on a theme for your photomontage project. I would like you to write a paragraph based on a theme idea that you have. Some examples of themes could be a memory, dream, social issue, self portrait, and or traveling.

2.Describe the types of images that you are thinking of using and how you are going to manipulate them to support your theme. Bring in 3 original images, one scanned image and one image from a website.

 

This final project will require TWO posts. The first will be an explanation of your plan for the image.

(Example of POST #1)

Title: Surrealistic Theme For my surreal photomontage I would like to do a self portrait. I really liked the art and portraits of Oleg, the artist i did for my surreal artist. In order to meet the number of images i need in this project Im going to do the self portrait in a mirror, using one image of the back of my head and another of my face in a mirror. That's what i know of that part....as for the next part with the other pictures were I have two idea and Im not sure which I prefer yet.

1) The mirror will be partially cracked, each little section of the cracked mirror will have another image of something nice and warm and outside partially see through so that my image is still visible through it. The other side of the mirror will be fine, no cracks or anything. This will represent me in that the half that is intact will be reality, this is me now and what i look like. The cracked half is broken and shows where I want to be and I what I want but cant necessarily get or have so a 'broken' thought I guess.

2) The same idea but this one the image of me and the mirror will have a hand up, one finger out touching. The part were the fingers are touching in the mirror will be rippled like water, distorting the reflection. I will use pictures of water and stuff to make the mirror look watery and reflective.

(Example of POST #2)

Title: "Mirror to the other Side"

And of course, as always, an artist statement. Use this area to explain describe, analyze and interpret your image in comparison with what you had planned, problems you ran into, etc. .

 

 

 

SAVE YOUR FINAL IMAGE IN MAJOR FOLDER AS

LAST_FIRST_SURREAL

Assignment: Surrealistic Artist Inspiration

Surrealistic Artists Research: Due Tuesday April 16th 2013

Part #1-For your surrealistic photomontage project you are going to need to choose 2 surrealistic artists to review. Write a brief biography (one paragraph minimum) on each of your artists. ONE must be a painter, sculptor, etc. and ONE must be a photographer, however, both need to be SURREALISTS.

Part #2 Describe their work by including the art critique method we used in class. Include the pictures of each of the art work that you choose.

Artist Review                                  

Artist’s Name  ___________________________________

Title of Artwork ______  Date of Work ______________

Description: The Facts Identify everything in the art work: (Objects, Lines, Shapes, Textures, Values)

Analysis:The Design Determine how the artwork is organized or composed. (Balance, Lights/Darks, Focal Point, Rhythm, use of Layers, Color enhancements, special effects)

Interpretation:The Meaning Explain what you think the artwork means or what the artist is trying to communicate:

Judgment:Make a personal decision about the artworks degree of success and an example of why you feel the way you do.

Part #3 -Compare and contrast each of the artists in terms of subject matter, techniques, style, or life background.

Please see Surrealistic Photo Montage Project in your MAJOR assignments folder, for an example of what this POST should look like when complete.

(Image Source: WALEE)

 

Spring Break Photo Journal

Spring Break Assignment: Photo Book via Blurb.com

• You will be uploading your photos from Spring Break week, please create a folder titled "Journal" so that you get credit for shooting the 50 images over break. (20 points of final grade: Due Today, 3-4-13)
• Have your journal out so I can see what you've been writing and keeping track of all week. (20 pts of final grade: Due Today, 3-4-13)

• When finished uploading, please click on the following link to BLURB and create your user name and password. Click on JOIN TODAY in top right hand corner. Use the email address you created for THIS CLASS.
• EMAIL ME IMMEDIATELY WITH YOUR USERNAME & PASSWORD. Email message should look like this:

To: Rachael.friedman@woodbridge.k12.nj.us

Subject: LastName, Block #

Message: Nicole Vignola  

                          <nicolekvignola@gmail.com>
                           Username: nicolevig
                           Password: cartel1005

• Explore the book making options. Keep in mind- creativity is key! You can photograph your writing from the week off, you can photograph your text even if you prefer that over typing, just be sure it's readable, and do not do that for the entire book.(60 pts of final grade)

• you do not have to use every single image
• your book SHOULD have a theme, and not just “spring break”.
• creativity is key!
• spelling errors will NOT be tolerated! spell check!
• Yes, you need a title page.
• yes, you SHOULD use Photoshop to edit your images, before simply inserting any image into your book. Try layering, color correcting, etc.
• Your book needs to be at least 20 pages long, not including the title page and does not have to use every photo you took. Select only the best for the book.

FINISHED BOOKS DUE Thursday April11th 2013

Open the document titled SPRING BREAK ASSIGNMENT in Major Folder on H: Drive for Blurb.com instructions