Photography Assignment

“Photography is more than a medium for factual communication of ideas “Photography is more than a medium for factual communication of ideas. It is a creative art.” Ansel Adams

“A good photograph is knowing where to stand.” Ansel Adams

“You don't take a photograph, you make it.” Ansel Adams

“A mad, keen photographer needs to get out into the world and work and make mistakes.” Sam Abell

“Photography, alone of the arts, seems perfected to serve the desire humans have for a moment - this very moment - to stay.” Sam Abell

“What is right? Simply put, it is any assignment in which the photographer has a significant spiritual stake... spiritually driven work constitutes the core of a photographer's contribution to culture.” William Albert Allard

“You've got to push yourself harder “You've got to push yourself harder. You've got to start looking for pictures nobody else could take.” William Albert Allard

Now it’s time to talk about your assignment Now it’s time to talk about your assignment. Refer to your Yearbook Staff Manual for more details. You have seven days to complete this assignment. Be sure to bring the camera with you every day to class. This will be a daily grade. The final photographs will be printed, labeled, and graded as your first major assignment.

The following types of photos will be required for your portfolio of work for the week:

1. Large group (up close of up to 10 people) Photos from kodak.com

2. Small group (up to 4 people) Photos and hints from kodak.com

3. Overall shot (a stand-back shot of a large group) Blend in You want to be as invisible as possible when you’re taking photos in a crowd, which means being aware of your surroundings. If it’s an event, everyone’s probably trying to see the same thing, so be considerate of other people’s views and move locations if you’re blocking them. Photos and text from kodak.com

4. Close-up of an individual Place your subject off-center Placing your subject to one side of the frame can make the composition more interesting and dynamic. But if your camera is an auto-focus model, the picture may turn out blurry because those cameras focus on whatever is in the center of the viewfinder. Usually you can fix this by pressing the shutter button halfway down and then recomposing the picture while still holding the button halfway down. Photos and hints from kodak.com Get close Fill the camera's viewfinder or LCD display with your subject to create pictures with greater impact. Step in close or use your camera's zoom to emphasize what is important and exclude the rest. Check the manual for your camera's closest focusing distance.

5. Strong dominant element (must have something very powerful in it to catch the attention on the page, an action/reaction shot or emotion-filled shot works well for this one) Photos and hints from kodak.com

6. Bird’s eye view (above the subject) A “bird’s eye view” can be just as effective in producing unusual images. Climb up on a chair, the roof of a building, or even a hill. Taking the high ground can be visually rewarding. Shoot down on the umbrellas, the restaurant tables, or the heads in a crowd. This technique often results in great “pattern” shots.

7. Worm’s eye view (below the subject, shooting up) Most photographs are made at eye level, so images of the same location often look the same. A fresh approach often yields completely different pictures. So, get down on your stomach, and see how the world looks from there! "Get down on your belly,” instructed my artist wife, Allison, "...and shoot up the lines of the bridge!". So I did as instructed, as a good husband should, and used this worm's eye view to photograph the Marshal Point Light on the coast of Maine. The horizon is broken, there's no shortage of leading lines, and the great depth of field of a 24mm lens made it all sharp! • Michael Goldstein

7. Worm’s eye view (below the subject, shooting up)

8. Vertical shot Photos and hints from kodak.com

9. Horizontal shot Photos and hints from kodak.com

Candid emotion (the subject is not looking at the camera and is otherwise engaged in another activity and shows an emotional reaction to it) Have fun! Don't work too hard to position your subject. The goal is for him or her to relax and fall into a natural pose. Try shooting in your subject's favorite place or at least a comfortable place. Meaningful props, like a trophy, a musical instrument, or even a fish, can add interest. Photos and hints from kodak.com

Don’t forget that you can use a series of photos to tell a story.

Don’t forget to discuss this assignment in advance with your teachers Don’t forget to discuss this assignment in advance with your teachers. Learn how to turn off the automatic flash. Turn off the date feature and leave it off. Learn how to use the camera. For example, how far do you need to stand away from a person to fill the frame? If people in your classes get used to you having the camera, they are more likely to act naturally around you and the camera.

Good luck! You can do this!