Photography Recap

This class is a lot of fun. I learned how to use the settings on a camera to my advantage, and was able to go out on my own and apply these settings to the pictures I take. I learned about the rule of thirds, which I had never heard of before, and how it can make a huge impact on the feel of a photo. Personally, I think the best part of the class was learning how to use Gimp to manipulate and change the look of pictures. I got a firsthand experience of how professional photographers edit their photos. I really like Gimp, I think it's pretty straightforward and easy to use once you get the hang of it. I actually downloaded it to my computer to use for the photos I take outside of class because I liked it so much. Overall, I'm glad I decided to take this class. I learned a lot about photography and had fun doing it!

Shadows and Light

For my last photo assignment I chose to take pictures of Shadows and Light. I went around my neighborhood and drove around to find different objects to photograph. I really liked the way the light hit behind the gate in this photo and created a replica of it with it's shadow. This was my best photo and I liked the way it turned out.

Technical Date:

Aperture:f/8
Shutter: 1/100
ISO: 80

Portrait Assignment

This assignment was all about taking pictures of people. We got the experience of taking professional looking photos with actual studio lighting, and we learned how to take good quality photos without the expense of the equipment needed. I really enjoyed getting the feel of how a professional photographer takes pictures. I liked learning how to add frames around pictures in Gimp. This assignment was really fun!

Patterns & Textures

For this assignment, I chose to take pictures of patterns and textures. I went to the Ann Arbor area and found many different buildings with patterns on them. i came across a ton of gravel on top of sand and I really liked the feel it gave off. My best pictures ended up being the pictures I took of the gravel.

Technical Information:

Aperture: f/3.3
Shutter: 1/125
ISO: 80

School Context Assignment

This assignment was all about manipulating the way we look at our school. I decided to make the football field a jungle by adding different animals. I really liked this project, it was a lot of fun. I learned more about Gimp and I want to use the features it has to offer in the photos I take.

Motion Demo

I found it difficult to keep the subject clear while the background was blurry. Most of my pictures were either too blurry or too clear. I need to practice taking motion pictures and adjusting the shutter speed to get a picture with a crisp subject and a lburry background. I like the technique of panning, I'm just going to need more practice on it.

Architecture

I've really wanted to photograph architecture lately. I grew up in Ypsilanti, so I knew where some good picture taking spots were. I went to downtown Ypsi and walked through the small shops. I came across an old looking fence with a key hole on it. I really liked the antique feel it gave off. It turned out that it was my best picture.

Technical Information:

Shutter: 1/125
Aperture: f/8
ISO: 80

Panoramic Photo

I found this assignment very difficult. It was hard to get the colors in the sky to line up correctly since one part was slightly brighter than the other. Overall, I really liked this assignment because it helped me learn useful tricks I can apply to my own photos. I think my picture turned out fairly well.

Nature

I chose to photograph nature for this assignment. I love the fall. I wanted to capture the beauty of fall in my photos. The leaves were really fun to photograph since they have changed colors. My best photo would be of the berries of a tree in my front yard. I really liked the way the red of the berries balanced out with the orange of the leaves.

Technical Information:

Shutter: 1/30
Aperture: f/3.3
ISO: 250

Gimp Assignment 2

In this assignment, we had to take a picture and edit it to look like a given model. The whole process was to learn the basics of photo editing in a program called Gimp. The most frustrating thing about this assignment was that you have to double click the item you want instead of simply clicking just once. I found myself accidentally using the wrong tool because I forgot to double click the new tool I wanted to use. I really liked learning how to use Gimp and I think it's really interesting how we can change pictures so drastically. I can't wait to use Gimp on my own photographs.

Gimp Assignment

I really liked the Gimp Assignment. I think Gimp is pretty straightforward and easy to use. I've always liked the four-block photos each with a different color, so I liked being able to make one myself. I', excited to do our next Gimp assignment.

Event

For this photo assignment I decided to take pictures of an event. Since friday night was our last football game, I thought it would be perfect to take pictures of. I've taken pictures at almost every football game, but my best photos came from our very last game. My best photo was when I tried to capture the sky with the field goal at the side. I was sitting in the marching band stands that are right on the field. I had a great view of the game and I really like the way this photo turned out!

Technical Information
Shutter: 1/40
Aperture: f/3.3
ISO: 640

Portrait

I chose Portrait for my second photo assignment. I spent the day with my younger cousins and they love being photographed. I really liked being able to focus in on their faces and actions during this assignment. My youngest cousin was playing with a chalk board and I snapped a picture of her. It was my favorite one instantly. I think it really shows her age by her standing in a room that has that "little kid" look to it.

Technical Data

Shutter Speed: 1/20
Aperture: f/3.3
ISO: 400

Animal Photos

For my first assignment, I chose to photograph animals. I focused mainly on my dog, which is a chihuahua. I also took a few pictures of my birds.

My best picture is of my dog. She suddenly stopped moving around and took almost an attack stance. I really liked the way this picture turned out. I wanted to capture animals doing what comes naturally and I think I did just that.

Aperture: 4.5
Shutter Speed: 1/8
ISO: 400

Shooting Assignment #1 Inspiration

For this assignment, I would like to focus on animals. I've always loved watching animals, they make funny movements and gestures that I would like to catch on camera. I think this would be a fun first assignment and give me the opportunity to shoot something that won't actually pose for the camera. Animals are beautiful creatures that have very distinct personalities that I want to show through photos.

Photos of Inspiration:

Lady Lula

John Bulla

Dobka

I was inspired by these photos because they capture what the animals do naturally. None of the photos look posed or fixed in any way. I want to capture the personality of the animals just as these photographers did. I'll start with my animals at home. I have a chihuahua and two parakeets. My dog constantly has her tongue sticking out and my birds are always kissing each other. After I take those photos, I'll look outdoors for birds and squirrels to photograph and then take pictures of my family and friends' pets.

Composition Assignment #2

In this assignment, we learned about five more elements in compositional photography. Those elements were color, space, balance, framing, and perspective. Our objective was to take a picture for each element to display the different elements.

For my space picture, I photographed half of a set of headphones against a white wall. For my color photo I took an angled picture of the bottles in the vending machine, I accentuated the color of the riptide bottle in photoshop. I wasn't exactly sure what I was going to do for my framing picture, but when I stepped outside onto my deck I noticed that my trampoline was in the center of two poles from the railing on the deck. I liked the way it focused in on the trampoline. For perspective, I got down on the ground and took an upwards photo of the balcony in the school building. The sky seemed to have a beautiful balance of darks and lights. The darks are represented in the horizon line and the lights are in the sky. I really liked this picture for balance.

The main thing I learned from this assignment was how to take different perspectives of images. I took a ton of photos for that element and had a hard time picking from them the one I liked best. Changes in perspective make a photo more interesting. Even the most ordinary object can look extraordinary with a different view. I really want to incorporate more perspectives into my own photography because it helps to keep the viewers attention and is more pleasing to the eye. I now also know five more elements to use in my own photos. A variety helps to keep your own photos fresh and interesting.

Composition Assignment #1

This assignment we were told to take pictures of people or objects that met certain criteria. The criteria was that we had to have a total of six pictures each representing either pattern, rule of thirds, texture, line, symmetry, and depth of field.

In my photos I tried to find interesting items to be the focus of my picture. My pattern picture is of a brick walkway in my backyard. For rule of thirds I went out to the flag pole on the school grounds and took a picture of the American Flag. For texture, I got an up close picture of a rock. For lines, I took an angled picture of part of the school building. I thought the school commons was a good example for symmetry with light fixtures on either sides of the walls. For depth of field I wanted something interesting so I took and up close picture of a criss-crossed pattern on the bottom of the deck at my house.

From this composition assignment I learned how to take a good picture. I know that if you move your subject to the side (rule of thirds) it makes a more interesting picture. I also learned what to look for to take pictures of. I have six new ideas to look around and photograph. Depth of field, pattern, line, symmetry, rule of thirds, and texture are examples of things I will try to take in my photos from now on.