Aperture, Shutter, and ISO

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Aperture is much like the pupil in our eye. Just like the pupil, the amount of light that can enter our retina depends on the size of the pupil. The smaller the aperture, the higher the aperture number will be. The aperture affects the depth of field by being able to focus on one object and then blur out the background. For example, a picture taken by a F 2.8 aperture will have one object very sharp and clear while the background of the photo will be blurred out. In a photo taken by a F 16, however, the whole photo will be visible and not blurred out. 

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If I had been assigned to take pictures at Bulldogs and Hotdogs, I would've had to take pictures with high and low shutter. In good lighting, I would've used high shutter to take pictures of the Stars performing, people going in and out of the doors, students shooting hoops, and students dancing. I would've used low shutter speed to take pictures of the stand under the tree and a food booth. However, if it was dark outside, I'd have to take all the pictures in low shutter speed.

The three settings to know for shutter speed are shutter priority, manual, and auto. Shutter priority allows you to set the shutter speed and camera automatically selects the aperture. Manual allows you to select the shutter speed and aperture yourself. Auto is where the camera selects the aperture and shutter speed for you.

Shooting at a high ISO would be useful at a football game because the camera would be able to capture the action easily. You should use a low ISO when there is dim or dark lighting. You should use a high ISO when there is not enough light or you need to capture a super fast motion.

The aperture settings available on this camera are 2.8, 4, 5.6, 8, 11, 16, and 22. The shutter settings are 1 sec, 1/60 sec, and 1/4000 sec. The ISO settings are 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400, 12800, and 25600.

Abandoned Theme Parks

Although I find abandoned theme parks creepy on so many levels, if I had to visit one I would probably visit Nara Dreamland in Nara, Japan. It's still amazingly creepy, but there are some great photo opportunities there.

The entrance to the park would be a good place to shoot, as well as the princess castle. The former pride and joy of the park, The Aska, would also be great. The main thing I'd want to take pictures of, however, would be examples of nature growing over the rides. Other places that would be interesting to take pictures of could be abandoned asylums, very old graveyards, abandoned water parks, abandoned cities, and maybe even abandoned schools.

Matthew Christopher is a photographer who did a photo shoot called, "Abandoned America".

In his photo shoot, he went all over America taking pictures of abandoned hospitals, government facilities, graveyards etc. I think it would be fun to go take pictures of abandoned places like Christopher did. I find it interesting because I love to explore and in these places you get to discover all sorts of things from the past. I would get to take all sorts of photos that have some relation to the past. I could get photos of nature taking over a building or a crumbling building. I'd need a camera 

Love and Loss

http://www.upworthy.com/a-husband-took-these-photos-of-his-wife-and-captured-love-and-loss-beautifully?g=2&c=upw1

At the beginning of the photos, I felt the like this was a very happy couple. They supported each other and had a lot of love. When the woman got diagnosed with cancer, the emotions started to change drastically. The emotions of love and support were still there, but they were overwhelmed by the feeling of fear and loss. When the photographer said, "These photos do not define us, but they are us" I think he was trying to say that they aren't just what you see in the photos, but they show them together. If I was in this situation, I don't think I would be able to take these photos. It would hurt too much. If I could write Angelo a letter, I'd tell him that his photo shoot was beautiful and so was his wife. I can't imagine all the emotions he felt when he went through this, but I got an idea of it because of his pictures.

Africa

I loved Nick Brandt's topic for these photos. Going out to Africa and seeing wild animals up close just seems so surreal. He says he finds himself moved when he sees these animals, and I can relate to that. I love animals, and African animals, especially in their natural state, just have a sense of power and majesty to them.

This picture by Nick Brandt really caught my eye. It's very simple; the only interesting thing in the picture is the leopard. The intensity in the cat's eyes, however, is just so intimidating and beautiful. This is also a wonderful example of simplicity.






Brandt uses a Pentax 6711 with two fixed lenses. When asked why he doesn't use a telephoto lens, he says that, "You wouldn't take a portrait of a human being from a hundred feet away and expect to capture their spirit; you'd move in close." The main purpose to this shoot is to encourage people to help conserve this wildlife and make sure it continues to thrive for years to come. 
"There is something profoundly iconic, mythological even, about the animals of East and southern Africa. There is also something deeply, emotionally stirring and affecting about the plains of Africa—those vast, green rolling plains punctuated by graphically perfect acacia trees under the huge skies."

Funny Captions

Surrounded by his "children", Willie Jode smiles for a family
photo. The zoo recently started a program for orphaned primates
that allows people to adopt them. The parents may come and spend
time with their new children, feeding them and grooming them.
When asked for a comment on the program, all Mr.Jode could do was continue to smile at the ground. 

               

                 World famous accordion player, Gregory Widnam, plays a concert
                  at Little Rock Cafe in Arkansas. Even though Widnam has
                been playing since age 3 with the aid of the Suzuki accordion method, this was his first
                   concert other than school talent shows and nursery home jam sessions.

Maura Potter celebrates her 103rd birthday at her favorite restaurant.
 Potter's secret to living 103 years? "Cabbage. And lots of it."

Great Black and White Photographers: Part 3

This photo caught my eye because of how it feels. It looks like something out of a fairytale drawing, it doesn't look real at all. I just love the sense of fantasy it creates.









This photo is interesting to look at just because of all the stuff that's going on. It's a very sad picture, and it also creates a lot of emotion in the viewer.














I liked this photo because it's just so interesting. It's very mystical and odd and I just love the overall feel of it.














I see a young woman wondering about something.
I smell the scent of flowers and old perfume. I hear the bustle of the city around us. I taste the bittersweet taste of dark chocolate. I feel wonder and curiosity.
 






I see a mongolia flower blossoming. I smell the fresh scent of rain. I hear the wind rushing through the trees. I taste the clean taste of water. I feel happiness and life.









There should defiantly be a blog devoted to Imogen Cunningham, and I would love to make one for her. I love her work and I find her life to be so interesting. Cunningham is probably one of my favorite photographer.

Photo Mural Project

1. What theme that we could take here at school could we do a series of these panels to place around the school?
We could do a sports one or maybe fine arts. 

2. Should we use phones only, or should we open it up to our regular cameras for those people that don't have camera phones?
Phone pictures won't look as good as a picture taken with a regular camera, so we should defiantly use cameras. 
3. Where would you want to put the mural on campus?
We should put the mural outside the photojournalism, or somewhere else where people would see it everyday.

Academic Shoot reflection and critique

1. What challenges did you encounter while trying to get the photos following the rules I set out for you? 

I had trouble finding some of the rules, such as simplicity and lines. That was only the real problem I had. 

2. What technical aspects of photography or the assignment in general (focus, framing, holding the camera, etc.) did you find yourself thinking about the most? Provide a specific example of what you did to do this correctly.

I found myself thinking about focus and zooming a lot. I kept trying to figure out if it would look better from this distance or up close. With my merger photo, I figured blurring out the background would give it a good look.
3. If you could do the assignment again, what would you do differently now that you know some basic rules of photography?

I would try to find some better subjects.

4. What things would you do the same?

I would use the camera the same way. Meaning, I would use focus, zoom, and hold the camera the same way.

5. When you go out with your next set of prompts, which rule do you think will be the easiest to achieve?

I think framing will be the easiest to capture.

6. Which rule do you think will be the hardest to capture?

I think simplicity or lines, depending on the prompt. 

7. What rule are you still not totally clear on and what can you do to figure out what that rule is?

I guess I'm not exactly sure about simplicity, but I can go on google and maybe search up, "Rule of simplicity examples".

Critique

Academic Shoot and Reflection

Framing
In this photo, I believe I followed the rule of framing pretty well. The subject of this photo is the two students sitting at two different tables. I think the subject is pretty clear, but it could've been more pronounced. 

Merger
This photo was an example of a merger, but not a very "good" one.  The subject of this photo is the computer, and I think that is very clear. 

Balance
This photo isn't a very good example of balance, but I think it still shows it. The subject of this photo is the girl in the right corner. I think the subject is very clear in this picture. I could've made the person in the background more visible to make the rule clearer. 

Lines
This is probably my least favorite photo. The rule of lines is there, but it doesn't really lead your eye anywhere. This picture is very boring to me. The subject is just the stairs, but that might not be obvious to most people. I could've made this a better picture if the rails were leading to something at the top of the stairs. 

Rule of Thirds
This photo was supposed to show rule of thirds, and I think it shows the rule well. The subject is the girl sitting  in the desk, and I think people will not have a problem figuring that out. I could've made this a better picture by maybe changing the angle, because there's so much distractions in the left half of the picture.

Simplicity
I didn't know I was going to have such a hard time getting simplicity. This picture doesn't show it very well because of everything that's going on around it. The subject was supposed to be the flame, but it's hard to tell because of all the people around it. I could've made this a better picture if I had zoomed in more on the flame and the hands around it.