Photo Assignment #2: STILL LIFE!

For our second photo assignment, I chose to capture still life photos.  Choosing still life, I never imagined the planning and set up that would go into achieving a great picture.  I originally had a black skirt covering my calendar and then black paper on my desk to create an entirely black background for the photograph.  And although the black provided great contrast to the items I was capturing, there was still something missing...light. Taking the pictures in ordinary light from my room was boring and just kind of "normal looking."  I wanted some light that would make the objects pop and really produce more quality pictures.  I ended up using a desk lap that I could easily move around and create shadows and interesting effects with.  In the end, I was extremely pleased.  

Through this photo assignment, I learned to modify the lighting and and set up a background that works with a picture.  I've never had to plan to take pictures as much as I had to for these.  I moved around, turned lights on, turned lights off, etc. and eventually achieved the looks I really wanted.  One challenge I had to work with was digital noise in my pictures, especially in the black backgrounds.  To deal with this grain in my pictures, I edited all my pictures in Gimp, a tool I am becoming increasingly familiar with.  Doing a levels adjustment in each of my pictures, and using the clone tool in the background every so often, really enhanced the quality of my photographs.

My best photo was shot was of my gladiator shoe.  I shot this picture multiple times, but I just couldn't get the effect I was going for.  I love these shoes, the sparkle and gold in them, and I wanted to capture a quality image of them.  I finally moved my desk lap to create a little bit of shadow in the picture which I really liked.  I did a little bit of a levels adjustment to create a bigger contrast between the shoe and the black background and loved what I ended up with.

My Best Photo:

Technical Info:
-ISO 200
-Aperture: f/6.3
-Shutter Speed: 1/10

Gimp Assignment Two: CAR MAKEOVER!

In our second Gimp editing assignment, we were worked on a photograph taken by Noelle Jacobs at the auto show a couple years ago. Although the original picture was quite lovely, it still had more potential. Using tools such as cropping/ straightening, the Clone tool, Dodging and Burning, and Levels in Gimp, we were able to take this picture from average to fantastic. We were given a demo image that we were to model with our editing. It's truly amazing how much editing can be done and the effects you can achieve. I was unfamiliar with any of the tools we used in this assignment, but my favorite was definitely the clone tool...that poor man in the background didn't know what he was in for! But eventually, we were able to use the clone tool for "good" and remove the lights going across the hood of the car, just one of the steps in developing our new and improved photograph.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Photo Assignment 1: NATURE

For our first photo assignment, I chose to capture pictures of nature.  We were asked to take pictures that reflected the atmosphere we live in.  It was bitter cold over the weekend while taking my pictures, but I couldn't resist the sun reflecting on the snow and the brilliant clear blue sky.  It was absolutely breath taking.  I enjoyed venturing out into my back woods where I haven't been since I was a kid.  Although my fingers were frozen by the end, my experience outdoors opened my eyes to how beautiful winter really can be.

I really learned to use the natural light of the out doors to enhance the quality of my pictures, and adjust  the settings of the camera to develop the best pictures.  It was awesome to finally be able to apply the knowledge we gained in class...and actually see the differences in the pictures!  When I shot my first pictures, all of them were white.  I was able to turn the ISO to the lowest setting on our cameras and started getting more quality pictures.

My best photo was shot from my deck.  I spotted a forgotten wind chime dangling in the cold with part of the woods in the background.  I shot using a large aperture, so the depth of field was small which put the wind chime in focus and slightly blurred the tress in the background.  The sunshine reflecting off the metal of the chime and the amazing blue sky really helps this photo stand out.

Technical Info:
-ISO 80
-Aperture: f/2.6
-Shutter Speed: 1/320

Gimp Assignment One: POP ART!

In our first Gimp editing assignment, we worked on creating our own pop art image.  This was my first time working with Gimp, and I found it very fun and pretty easy to work with.  I feel like, with time, this tool will become very helpful in helping me become a successful photographer.  I took an image of myself and copied it four times, each time "colorfying" the image to a different color (red, green, blue, and yellow.)  The final effect was a unique picture that catches the eye.

Composition Assignment

Assignment Description:


For this first assignment, we learned about eleven elements of photographic composition: Rule of Thirds, Depth of Field, Texture, Pattern, Color, Space, Balance, Lines, Framing, Perspective, and Symmetry.  We further investigated these fundamentals  of photography by capturing an image that portrays each.  The new basics helped us develop true photographs rather than simple snapshots.


Photo Descriptions:

• Texture = school bench outside
• Pattern = vending machine with Propel bottles
• Lines = kitchen sink
• Space = do not enter sign
• Depth of Field = bananas on kitchen counter
• Perspective = underside of light in the Hive
• Color = flowers' stems/ leaves
• Balance = sunrise outside of school and dark trees
• Symmetry = gate/ fence gonig around track in the gym
• Rule of Thirds = orange gum ball
• Framing = bagels framed by their basket

Photo Slide Show:






What we learned:


In just our first few weeks in this class, I feel like I have learned more about taking a quality picture than I have in my entire life.  This composition assignment opened my eyes in a new way to things I see everyday.  Ordinary objects and settings have become possibilities for great photographs.  The main component I found fascinating was the Rule of Thirds; I see it all the time now on comercials, ads, etc.  I'm eager to improve my skills even more and be able to capture breath-taking photographs.