Week 1: Assignment 8| Panorama
Objectives:
In this assignment you’ll learn…
Identify the types of subjects covered by the term outdoor photography.
Describe the importance to photographers of the lighting conditions surrounding sunrise and sunset.
Understand the reasons for using a tripod when photographing landscapes.
Explain why manual exposure, focus, and white balance controls should be used when shooting a panorama with a digital camera.
Describe the environmental precautions to be observed when photographing plants and animals.
Compare the effects of different shutter speeds on the appearance of water in motion.
Compare the various types of close-up equipment and identify the most suitable use for each type.
Student Activities (online work): Read, Watch Video & Practice
1. Read the textbook: Chapter 14- Complete: Technical Terms, Review Questions & Workbook
2. Watch this Video: Panorama photography
3. Practice– Landscape Photography
Panoramic photography, also known as wide format photography, is a special technique that stitches multiple images from the same camera together to form a single, wide photograph (vertical or horizontal).
Here’s how you should define panoramic images:
Wide angle panoramas – anything that looks like a wide angle photograph, which covers less than 180 degrees, whether horizontal or vertical. Wide angle panoramas can even look like regular images, except they are stitched from several photographs and therefore would have more resolution.
-180 degree panoramas – panoramas that cover 180 degrees from left to right. These types of panoramas look very wide, covering a large area.
-360 degree panoramas – panoramas that cover up to 360 degrees. These panoramas look extremely wide and they cover the whole scene in a single, super wide image.
There are two ways to capture panoramic images:
Taking horizontal shots – an easy method for quick panoramas, where resolution is not important. Take two horizontal images that overlap then stitch them together.
Taking vertical shots – a preferred way to capture panoramas. Vertical images capture more of the sky and ground and yield higher resolution panoramas compared to horizontal ones. Take four vertical images that overlap then stitch them together.
Camera Settings: Before you start taking panoramic images, you have to change some of the settings on your camera. Here is what I recommend to set in your camera:
- Shoot in “Manual” mode –Why would you shoot on anything else!!!!
- Set your lens to Manual Focus – if you have a DSLR, focus your lens on a distant object (infinity or near infinity), then switch to manual focus. You do not want your camera to change focus every time you take a picture.
- ISO – make sure that “Auto ISO” is turned off and set your ISO to ISO 100
- Aperture and Shutter Speed – for panoramic images, you want to have everything in focus. Therefore, make sure that your aperture is set to a good number that will put everything, including any foreground elements, into perfect focus. Depending on your lens focal length, you should set your aperture to at least f/8, preferably f/10 and higher. Once you set the right aperture, set your shutter speed based on the meter reading.
- Metering –TTL in terms of metering, do not meter off the brightest or darkest areas of the scene, but rather try to find a “ middle” and set your shutter speed based on that area for the entire panorama. Take a couple of pictures and make sure that the images are not too overexposed or underexposed for the brightest and darkest parts of the scene.
- Lens Focal Length – think wide and use a wide-angle lens.
- Shoot in RAW – I always recommend shooting in RAW for best results.
- White Balance – set your White Balance to “Auto” when shooting in RAW and change later, if necessary
Photo Assignment: Take 8-10 photos of a landscape aim for an overlap of about one-third or about 30%.The photo merging software requires you to have a generous overlap of each photo you take. It needs this to make it possible to match up and align the photos.
Finally: Using Adobe Photoshop CC
>Open Photoshop CC and then go to “File”->”Automate”->Photomerge…A dialog box will come up simply click “Browse” and select the images to be merged into a panorama. Make sure that “Blend Images Together” and “Geometric Distortion Correction” are checked, then click OK. This will start the stitching process, which can sometimes take a long time, depending on the number of images and their size. Once the process is completed, all you have to do is crop the image and you are all set!
Week 5: Assignment 9| Window Light
Objectives:
In this assignment you’ll learn…
Discuss the significance of photography in our visual society.
Describe the various methods of entering the field of commercial photography.
Identify the major photographic career fields.
Describe the basic skills important to succeeding as a commercial photographer.
Demonstrate a variety of ways to photograph a given subject.
Create a portfolio for use as a career tool.
Student Activities (online work): Read, Watch Video & Practice
1. Read the textbook: Chapter 1- Complete: Technical Terms, Review Questions & Workbook
2. Practice– Window Lighting pictures
3. Watch this Video: Window Light Studio Portrait Photoshoot Behind the Scene
4. Watch this Video: Food Photography with Indoor Natural Lighting
What is Window lighting? So basically window light is the soft light, which comes in through your windows when the sky is slightly on the overcast side. If you use direct sunlight through the windo
w it would be harsh and will produce sharp shadows which may not be pleasant for portraits, but try it and let me know what you think. The Diffused light usually produces less contrast compared to normal light. One of the best things about window light is that you can find it almost anywhere. Think of the window as a large, flattering light source. Position your subject beside a window. Move around if you don’t like what you see, try a different position or even a different window. And as always if you need to bounce some of that beautiful light on the other side, place a reflector or two.
Window lighting can be challenging if you don’t know what you are doing, but by now you (yes you) should know what to do! If not, let’s review: When working indoors you will generally need a high ISO but make sure you don’t bump up the ISO beyond its limits (meaning you should know what the max ISO you can set your camera to) Second, is the aperture, OPEN IT (meaning f/1.8 or f/2.8) Last is the focusing, focusing in low light situations with a large aperture can be tricky so be careful. Other than that, have fun and take some beautiful pictures!!!*You must photograph 4-6 different subjects with Window Light with a person and product.
Photo Assignment:
Research Window lighting pictures.
Take photos 4-6 different subjects demonstrating Window Light.You must shoot 12-24 images and make a contact sheet of your work.
Week 6: Assignment 10| Lifestyle Portraits
Objectives:
In this assignment you’ll learn…
• Take an outdoor lifestyle photograph of a person that includes enough of the background to tell a story about your subject.
Student Activities (online work): Read, Watch Video & Practice
1. Read the textbook: Chapter 14 – Complete: Technical Terms, Review Questions & Workbook
2. Practice– Lifestyle Portraits
3. Watch the Video: Lifestyle Portrait Photography Tips
Research: Lifestyle portraits. Put your subject in their natural environment, including elements of the background to tell the viewer something about the subject. This is the approach taken by photojournalists, documentary photographers, travel photographers and also some fine art photographers.
Photo Assignment:Take 12-24 photos of a Lifestyle Portrait. Lifestyle photography is a kind of photography mainly aimed to capture portraits/people in situations, real-life events or milestones in an artistic manner and the art of the everyday. The primary goal is to tell stories about people’s lives or to inspire people in different times.
- Plan every step of the photograph including subject, location, lighting, props and clothing.
- Find a Location – Find an area to set up your photograph. Look for good lighting and an appropriate background. How will you control the background (in focus or out of focus, lighter or darker than your subject)
- Choose the correct lens to achieve the look you want for your photograph.
- Choose a subject of subjects, an appropriate pose and any props needed.
- Who would buy this photograph and don’t say your mother!
Week 7: Assignment 11|Natural Light Portraits
Objectives:
In this assignment you’ll learn…
Learn how to pose people and use natural light for portraits
Student Activities (online work): Read, Watch Video & Practice
1. Read the textbook: Chapter 18- Complete: Technical Terms, Review Questions & Workbook
2. Watch this Video: Mastering Natural Light Portraits
3. Research: Natural Light Portraits. Google and/or Pinterest to seek our posing inspiration for family/kids/high school seniors. Try new things, experiment and make mistakes and learn from them.
Natural light is beautiful! There are different qualities about it that you can use to your advantage with portraits. Direct light (in the sun!) is harsh and can be used for an edgy, high contrast look. Indirect light (shade or overcast) is soft and gives a more even look and feel to portraits. What time of day should you take portraits? In reality, you can use any time! Just use your surroundings to work with the light you have. The golden hour is the hour before the sun sets and the hour after the sun rises, which is a great time for portraits because the direction of light is great, color is warm, and light is a little softer.
Photo Assignment: You have been hired to take a family/kids/high school senior portrait. Your job is to take 20-24 different photos because a client wouldn’t want to see 20-24 photos that look the same (i.e. same pose, same type of shot, same clothing, same pose, same location, etc.). Make sure you switch up all the photos by shooting full body, 3/4 body, headshot, vertical, horizontal, changing poses, changing location, changing outfits, etc. Take 12-24 photos of a person in natural light.
Week 8: Assignment 12|Painting with Light
Objectives:
In this assignment you’ll learn…
A technique that uses a moving light source to add light to an under-illuminated subject while taking a long-exposure photograph
Student Activities (online work): Read, Watch Video & Practice
1. Read the textbook: Chapter 19- Complete: Technical Terms, Review Questions & Workbook
2. Watch this video: Light Painting Tutorial
Research: Light Painting Photography is the Art Form of using hand he
ld lights to paint and/or draw in a scene while the shutter of a camera is left open during a long exposure photograph. Basically set the camera to a slow shutter 1/10th of a sec or slower and set the aperture to f/11 and walk into the scene and start lighting an object or objects in the camera’s view. Exposure times can range from just a few seconds up to an hour or more. Your goal is to try and create the most creative/impressive painting with light image or images.
Photo Assignment: Take 12-24 photos of you Painting with Light
Week 9: Assignment 13| Self-Portrait
Objectives:
In this assignment you’ll learn…
How to take several photos demonstrating self-portraiture, be creative!
Selfie (also selfy): sel·fie \ selfē\ n. (plural selfies): A photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically one taken with a smartphone or webcam and uploaded to a social media website. Self-portraiture is one of the oldest genres in Western European art.
Almost, if not all, great artists have turned their eye on themselves—perhaps out of curiosity; perhaps for immortality. Photographers are no less interested in portraying themselves through their medium.For this you will submit three photos you have taken of yourself. The challenge for you, the artist, is to find ways to use your camera to portray yourself as YOU. Please be very aware of the background in the photos. You should also be sure the photo is composed correctly, and that you present this as a true portrait of yourself! Try to keep your “camera arm” out of the photo, and that this is a pleasing and well-composed portrait of yourself.
Student Activities (online work): Read, Watch Video & Practice
1. Read the textbook: Chapter 2- Complete: Technical Terms, Review Questions & Workbook
2. Watch this Video: 10 Ideas for Cheap Self Portraits | Photography Tips
Photo Assignment: Take 12 Selfie/ Self-Portraits