Photography Classes

Last week photography class practiced focusing on moving water – both splashes and drops. The set up for capturing water drops had the potential to take up much digital storage space while students learned timing and shifting focal points. We then went outside to toss rocks in the stream.

The light trails lesson came on a day when we had no power at school…some students were on their fourth day without power at home due to an April snow that was heavy and took down trees. In an effort to continue learning and have fun, some fellow staff members donated light sticks to the class and students went to work. I am proud of them for not only their results, but their resilience in learning and having fun under less than ideal conditions.

Last week, before the snow came and power outages happened, students completed a color study. They were to choose one color and then create 10 images that featured that color. Here are the results of the color study:

Students spent the last lesson learning about high and low key. High key involves bright and airy photos with minimal shadows, designed to evoke a happy mood. Low key emphasises high contrast and shadows to evoke moodiness. Enjoy!

Students spend some time working on patterns and textures.

We have moved into Advanced Photography Class as the last marking period has arrived! Students experimented with shutter speed to create motion blur, prisms for kaleidoscope effects, lens balls, and oil, water and food coloring for different types of abstract photos. Each type presented their own challenges to deal with. The students did an amazing job of rising to the challenge – enjoy!

For this assignment students had a table of toys and other props to choose from as subjects. They then had eight cards of different compositional techniques to practice, from lines, leading lines, filling the frame, framing to visual weight. Students submitted their best images for the blog post. Enjoy!

Students practiced creating images involving a reflection. We discussed reflective images, the perils of autofocus on a reflective surface, and remembered what makes a good image.

Students practiced bokeh – the blurring of a background. The purpose in blurring a background is to help your subject stand out more. We discussed three ways to make bokeh happen – focusing with your feet and putting more room between your subject and the background than between you and the subject, portrait mode on a cell phone, and a wide aperture choice in lens settings.
Here’s what students created:

National Geographic photographers use the phrase “dancing around the teacup” to imply that they are spending time with a subject. We spent time with two subjects for this lesson in photography class; the goal: twelve images of one subject, each image unique. The idea is to take time, look at a subject, and find multiple ways to show that subject in unique ways. Students completed this assignment twice and for the blog assignment, they were to put four photos on one google slide so that I could take a screenshot and share it here. Enjoy!