Final Exam

What photo have you taken this school year that changed how you viewed photography? What is your decisive photo? Why? The one photo that completely changed my perspective towards photography was this photo that I took for the Masters of Photography project. This project that photography is much more than just pressing a button, as well as taught me how to communicate with the subject of the photo. This photo initially showed me how much fun I can have with this class and that the limits of creativity are endless.  

What is the difference between shape and form?

The difference between the two is that Shapes have two dimensions (height and width) and are usually defined by lines, whereas Forms have three dimensions (height, width, and depth).

What is the difference between pattern and repetition?

The difference between the two is that repetition refers to the same object or shape being repeated consecutively, whereas pattern is a combination of different elements and shapes repeated in a recurring arrangement. 

Define movement using one of your photos and an explanation. You may also link to your earlier explanation when we defined principles of design. 

I think that movement is best represented by this photo of mine, because it shows the movement of everything around the cows. This photo defines movement through the blurry motion lines around the cows. 

Of the last three projects, what was your best work? Include the link to your best work and explain why you believe this is your best work. How did this project change you? How did you learn to see differently?
Of the last three projects, I think that my Stuffed Animal Photoshoot was my best work, because I think that I managed to keep the subject in focus better than I did in some other projects as well as struggle to get in the right position to take these photos. This project definitely changed me for the better as my confidence in photography grew and I also learned a few things about what to do and what not to do. I learned to see photography differently throughout the year as I learned multiple lessons and learned that photography is more than just the press of a button; it takes real time, effort, and creativity. 

Pink Baby Photoshoot

Photo Weebly Favorites

Period 3
Jason Stiltz Photography
Favorite Post  by Jason Stiltz

Although the rest of Jason's photos are all intriguing, I liked this photo in particular, because the quality is beyond good and his photography shows great detail on the fish's face as well as on it's scales. The background also balances out perfectly with the vibrant colors of the seaweed against the grey-colored fish, making the photo exceptionally appealing.

Period 4
Tulika Mohanti's Blog
Favorite Post  by Tulika Mohanti

I liked this picture because it shows good movement through her hair and represents her true passion for dance.

Period 4
Jason Yu's Blog
Favorite Post  by Jason Yu

I chose this picture, because it shows a lot of movement as well as symbolizes "hard work" which is the theme of the gallery.

Stuffed Animal Photoshoot

                                     

    http://kgphotos.weebly.com

Coca Cola Project

Tie Dye Photoshoot

(original)

(edited in camera raw)

(edited  in photoshop)

My Best Picture

Favorite Photography Blogs

http://www.blogpolito.com/
http://www.jasminestarblog.com/
http://taiwan-photography-blog.com/
http://www.scobeyphotography.com/blog/
http://www.laurenfairphotographyblog.com/

MC Week Story

This picture shows the bundt cake stand run by the Gay Straight Alliance club. Today is the last day that different food will be served in the horseshoe in celebration of multicultural week and tomorrow will be the last day of Multicultural week all together. I think that this whole experience has brought the students and teachers of the school much closer.

Multicultural Week

Multicultural week at MSJ has been my one of my favorite school events since freshman year. There are delicious foods from multiple different ethnicities lined across the horseshoe. This comes as a benefit to the students at MSJ who can't drive yet and can never go out to lunch as it provides us with diverse food options. Another thing that makes multicultural week even better is that the stands are run by our very own students and I think that this is a good way to influence leadership and independence. Despite the delicious (yet overpriced) food, I generally enjoy the company of my fellow classmates as a majority of the school gathers in the horseshoe to celebrate MC week.

Shutter Speed and Everything After

Lens Blog Photo

1. Fast or slow - why? Fast, because the truck that is moving is not blurry. 
2. One rule of composition per person 
Komal's rule: Leading lines 
Riddhima's rule: balancing elements 
3. Element of Art - list with an explanation Lines, because the picture has multiple lines moving in a parallel direction including the lines of the ladder and the white lines on the road. 
4. Principle of Design - list with an explanation Movement, because the viewer's eyes move along the lines and move around the picture seeing the truck on the ground and then the moving trucks to the side. 

shutter speed: 1/160

Principles of Design - Variety

Principles of Design - Unity

edits: increased contrast, decreased saturation, increased shadows, increased highlights

Lens Blog Picture Comments

Documenting the Blues in the Mississippi Delta

This photo shows the mutual connection that they shared through music back then. It also shows the unity between the two individuals and how they share a bond. Another thing I noticed is a show of similar interests as they are both playing electrical guitars.

Principles of Design - Rythm

Edits: increased exposure, increased contrast, decreased blacks, increased sharpness/luminance.

Movie Monday - Half Past Autumn Part 3 and 4

1. What is your definition of successful? Being happy and earning a living doing what I love.
2. What have you given up to become successful? I have lost multiple opportunities in order to do what I have to do in order to become successful and reach my goal.
3. What did Parks give up to become successful? He gave up his family and wife.
4. Who was Genevieve Young's father? He was UN.
5. How much was Parks advanced to write his first book (and eventual best-selling autobiography)? $10,000
6. How much money did Elijah Muhammad offer Parks to do a story on The Nation of Islam? $500,00
7. Why did Parks refuse the money? he thought that Elijah was going to try to influence him and didn't want to represent something he didn't believe in. 
8. What was significant about the movie The Learning Tree? it was the first major movie production 
9. What was significant about the character Shaft? Shaft was a black superhero. 
10. What was Gordon Parks' choice of weapons? 35mm camera 
11. What reason did Genevieve Young give for the divorce? They divorced due to the turmoil that he was in.
12. In 1984, Parks directed Solomon Northrup's Odyssey. What recent feature film told the same story? 12 years a slave
13. Who was Gordon Parks jr? Gordon Parks Jr. was his son.
14. What is your favorite Gordon Parks photo? American Gothic 
15. What will you remember about Gordon Parks in ten years? His dedication to achieve his idea of success

Principles of Design - Proportion

edits: increased saturation, increased sharpness, increased contrast, decreased exposure

Principles of Design - Pattern & Repetition

Edits: increased exposure, decreased saturation, increased contrast, increased shadows

Principles of Design - Movement

Principles of Design - Emphasis

Principles of Design - Balance

Elements of Art - Texture

Elements of Art - Color

Elements of Art - Shape

Elements of Art - Line

Elements of Art - Form

Half Past Autumn - Gordon Parks pt 1

1. On the day Gordon Parks was born, how did the doctor save Gordon's life? He put Gordon in a tub of ice. 
2. Where was Gordon born? (what state?) Kansas
3. What did Gordon's college adviser, Ms. McClintock tell him about college? She told him that very few Negroes make it to college.
4. How old was Gordon when his mother died? 15
5. Where did Gordon move after his mother died? Minnesota
6. Did Gordon graduate from college? yes
7. How did Gordon begin his fashion photography career? Began his career by going to Frank Murphy's and telling them that he wanted to shoot fashion.
8. What is a "double exposure?" the repeated exposure of a photographic plate or film to light (often producing ghost images.)
9. Who was boxer Joe Louis? an American Professional Boxer
10. What instrument did Gordon play? piano
11. What was the purpose of the Farm Security Agency? an effort during the Great Depression to combat rural poverty in America.
12. When Roy Stryker hired Gordon for the FSA, what was Stryker's first assignment for Gordon in Washington, D.C.? Stryker told Gordon to get a topcoat 
13. Who was Ella Watson? a pioneer of Wyoming who became known as Cattle Kate.
14. What was the inspiration for Grant Wood's American Gothic?
15. What did Gordon learn from Stryker about photography? 

Elements of Art - Space

Lens Photo Order Assignment

1) 3
2) 9
3) 6
4) 19
5) 22

Slideshow: An Embedded Photographer Empowers the poor

Multimedia Festival Poster 2

This poster is better than the first one that we made, because we used a different and more organized color arrangement and it is generally more appealing.

Multimedia Festival Poster

Concert Poster Project

Period 1 - Semester Final

1. My favorite photo from this slideshow is #9. This picture is my favorite because it shows a perfect silhouette of the deer and bird. To me, this seems like something that you would only see in a movie, something so perfectly set up and so beautiful. I find it amazing that the photographer was able to capture such an intimate moment with nature so perfectly.

2. I think that #9 would be the best picture as well. The reason for this is because it's amazing how the photographer captured such a perfect scene of nature at the perfect angle and with the perfect setting. Another reason that this is the best picture is, because the photographer was remarkably able to capture this silhouette through all the mist and fog that day in Richmond Park. The photographer was also able to capture the different layers of shrubs starting on level with the deer as well as the shrubs behind the deer, and another faint layer beyond that.

3. My best work of the semester was the "Masters of Photography" project. I was able to capture multiple different rules and properties of photography through this project. I probably learned more from this project than I did the entire year, as I got to use my camera, I learned how to use photoshop, and I built a closer connection with my family through just the few pictures that I took. This project gave me the opportunity to explore my abilities and get to know myself as a photographer.

http://komalgillphotography.blogspot.com/2014/12/masters-of-photography-bill-brandt.html 

4. My three rules of composition were leaving space, backgrounds, and rule of thirds.

5.  Rules: leaving space and backgrounds

6. Depth of Field

7. Benefits of working with a group:

• opportunity for social interaction
• ability to help each other 
• using communication to build skills as a photographer
• building a connection beyond pictures
• making tough decisions as a whole 

8. Difficulties of working with a group:

•  no independent decisions
•  different capabilities 
•  conflict between team members 
•  ideas not thoroughly discussed as a team
• different opinions and arguments 

9. I loved Aileen's work for the Masters of Photography project.

http://aileenhhsu.blogspot.com/2014/12/inspired-by-master-irving-penn.html

10. The photographer that my group and I reproduced the work of was Bill Brandt. He was a very well-known and great photographer during the 1900s. Bill Brandt contributed a new perspective to the field of photography. He was was not the first photographer to take nude photos of their subjects, but he did bring attention and acceptance to this unique style of photography. Another way he contributed was how he so genuinely portrayed the sadness and despair that the people were going through during the depression in England at the time.

11. Dorothea Lange's most popular photo was called Migrant Mother. The photo was taken at Nipomo, California in Feb-March of 1936. Dorothea was employed at Farm Security Administration (FSA).

12. Life magazine began publishing in 1936.

13. Elvis was born on January 8, 1935.

14. Robert Capa co-founded Magnum Photos in Paris, which started in 1947

Masters of Photography Project Reflection

1. How do you think your project represents your work as a student? It represents how much time and effort I am willing to put into photography in general.

2. How has your understanding of photography changed during this school year? I've learned that photography is much more than simply pressing a button on a camera.

3. What are some of the benefits of working in a group? It allows us to work together, help each other, and perfect our projects.

4. What are some of the disadvantages of working in a group? You need to be able to keep up with everyone else in your group. 

5. Now that you have had more time to reflect, is there anything that you would have done differently with your recent project? I would have spent more time to embellish the first picture in my blog post.

6. Is there anything else that you want to include? No