HDR photography

In order to create an HDR image, you will need to change the exposure levels of your camera. You will need to take several photos of the same thing at different shades of light and the compile them into one.

A camera with an AEB setting is recommended for HDR photos but not completely necessary. You will also need a tripod and HDR photo-blending software.

Someone might take an HDR photograph if they wish to capture all of the different shades of light and dark as well as possible with a camera.

When merging the images taken into a single photo, you can expect to see a much more true-to-life and beautiful photo than can be shown with a photo not made of several layers.

Photo Illustrations

at-home

Merger Photo

*I don't actually talk to myself

My HDR photo

The Big Day

What I made of the video: A man is anxious because he is running late to his former lover's wedding. The bride and father-in-law are excited. The bride seems to be expecting somebody. The man drives as fast as he can in his Volkswagen in an attempt to reach the church on time to interject. When he arrives, his former lover is getting married to another man…

Who- Heinrich, Helga, Helga's father, Helga's soon-to-be (?) husband.
What- Heinrich wants to get to the wedding before Helga gets married so that he can try and stop it.
Where- On a road and then at a church, presumably in Germany.
When- Helga's wedding day. October 11, 2015.
Why- In order to reach the church on time to NOT hold his peace!
How- By weaving his way around slow cars and probably breaking some laws in his Volkswagen.



A new spin:
A young man named Heinrich is anxious because he is running late to his own wedding. The bride, Helga, and Heinrich's soon-to-be father-in-law are excited but worried. The lonely bride wonders why her groom was not there yet. "Maybe he ditched me like the last one," said Helga. The man drives as fast as he can through the rain in his Volkswagen in an attempt to reach the church on time to marry her."Can't this car go any faster?" said Heinrich. "I should have gotten a Volvo." When he arrives at the church, his lover is getting married to another man. "Helga," said Heinrich. "What have you done?"

Graffiti and Found Objects

graffiti

found object

Final Exam Preview Assignment

The two websites I used were MindBites and MediaCommons. On MindBites, I watched an 8-minute video explaining the basics of iMovie. The video explained to me how to get started, import video from a video camera, add effects, and many more tricks essential to making a good video. Before watching the video, I didn't even know the layout of iMovie, but now I know where many things are and what I need to be able to do to make a basic video.

              By reading through the article on MediaCommons, I learned how to do a lot of the same things as in the video, but on a different version of iMovie. There are many differences between the two versions, including the layout. I learned that in MediaCommon's version of iMovie, the viewing screen is in the upper-right corner, and many of the buttons needed to complete a movie are in different places.

                  In conclusion, watching MindBites' movie and reading MediaCommons' article helped give me a better understanding of iMovie.

I did not know anything about iMovie prior to looking at the websites.

One new thing about iMovie that I learned today is how to split a video clip.

The only thing I am concerned about for my final project is making it so that my photos tell an understandable story for the viewers.

I am confident that I can have my photographs ready early so that I can get started on the composition of my slideshow.

 

For my final project, I am planning on following my friend throughout the day as she wakes up, makes breakfast, and starts on a hiking trip down to a secluded part of Barton Creek.

Baltimore Riots

If I were a photojournalist in Baltimore right now, I think I would find a lot of photo opportunities, whether they are happy ones or not. There is so much emotion involved in the death of a friend, and even more when riots break out over it. The photos I saw online were so powerful because I think that all of the rioters felt as though Freddy could have been their son, father, or brother. Being a photojournalist at a time like this can be very dangerous and emotional because you are in the middle of all of the action and the photographs you take may not completely capture that. I feel that this photo captures what is going on in Baltimore right now as well as one could. The look on the boy's face gives the viewer a feeling of innocence, but also of wisdom. It seems that this boy has seen a lot the past few days. The police officers in the background make the boy seem alone.

Portfolio Analysis

Alyssa Schukar
The general focus of these photographs is a woman's struggle with an eating disorder.
3 things the judges disliked:
- The 3rd photo was unoriginal, has been done better by other photographers.
- The photos are distanced, no emotions are immediately felt when looking at them.
- Each picture is very similar.
2 things the judges like:
- The photo of the Haitian man sweeping.
- The photo of the girl on the ground after falling over a hurdle.

I did not particularly like these photographs. To me, they felt very staged and unnatural.


Sam Adams
The general focus of these photographs is BMX biking.
3 things the judges disliked:
- The position of the helicopter in the silhouette photograph.
- Several photos did nothing artistically for the judges.
- The tilt of the photo of the far-away biker hanging in the air.
2 things the judges like:
- The B&W photograph of the boy on the bike coming down a tunnel.
- The photo of the priest hurrying through a hall.

I didn't like these photos much either. Many of them were the same, just bikers standing in an empty pool or something. Also, a lot of them were just random photos that did not follow any rules of photography.


Justin Mott
The general focus of these photos is a few different groups of people and their lives.
3 things the judges disliked:
- On the photograph looking down a line of soldiers towards another one, their eyes were led to nothing interesting.
- There was a major lack of focus in many photos.
- There were unsuccessful tries at graphics.
2 things the judges like:
- The photograph of the starving boy in the beginning.
- The photograph of the dead pig.

I really liked these photographs. On some of the photos, the unfocused-ness was very beautiful. The photos told stories and I love that they were in B&W.



Dustin Snipes
 The judges noted that he was good at capturing movement, getting in with the action, and finding/photographing emotion.
Some of his strengths that I see are the interesting angles and colors he had in his photographs. A weakness I saw was that sometimes there were little things that could have been changed in the position of the photo that would have made it better.

In deciding the winner, the judges:

- Noted what they did and did not like
- Found strengths and weaknesses in each photographer
- Came to a general agreement on who the winner should be

PART 2

One photo I agree with the judges on is the photo of boxing. I agree with them on the topic of distraction, the light on the man's shoulder threw me off a bit.

One photo I don't agree with the judges on is the photo of the girl jumping in the air. I thought it was a pretty fun looking shot.

Student of the Month Story

Who- Christina Foradory, Student of the Month
What- Student of the Month
When- April of 2015
Where- James Bowie High School
Why- To encourage other students to strive for the title of Student of the Month.
How- By participating in extracurricular activities and getting high grades.

        On April 1, 2015, Christina Foradory was shocked to find that she had won the title of Student of the Month at Bowie High School. Trying hard can get you to great places, just as it did Christina. She encourages other students to achieve what she did; be it by participating in extracurricular activities, charity fundraisers, or plain good grades.

                      Foradory was one student in a pool of 50, all of them wanting the same that she did: to be chosen as Student of the Month by Principal Kane. It took the whole week before April for Principal Kane and the Aps to choose one student; a student who was different from the rest in the best ways. They found this special student by interviewing each of the hopeful candidates and recording their responses. Foradory’s answers were just right.

                          “I am so shocked that I won this title. There were so many other great people there that deserved it just as much as I did." Said Foradory. Many of her friends participated in the running for the same title.

                     "If I had to choose one of my friends to take the title, I would look for someone that tries to excel at everything they do." Foradory said. In order to become Student of the Month, Foradory stayed after school most days for clubs and other extracurricular activities .

                   “I just love participating in clubs and having fun with other students.” Foradory said. Foradory is proud of herself for achieving this title and encourages others to aim for it too.

                   "I feel proud that I achieved everything I did and I'm glad it took me to where I am now. I hope other students try their best and get to great places because it feels pretty good." Said Foradory.                

           
         

My First Interview

Christina Foradory

1. Why do you believe you were chosen as Student of the Month?
     Good grades, lots of activities outside of school  
2. What advice do you have for others who want to be Student of the Month?
      Be really involved in school and and have good grades
3. Who chose you to have this title?
      Principal Kane
4. What did you do to get to this point?
      (Same as first two)
5. How has being chosen as Student of the Month affected you?
      People see me as a better student, it looks good on college applications
6. How might this title affect you in the future?
      Better chance of getting into a great college
7. Do you think you deserve to be Student of the Month? Why/Why not?
       "I think I do because I try my best. I think all my hard work payed off."
8. If you had to choose another student to take your position, what would you look for?
        "I would look for someone that tries to excel at everything they do."
9. What is your GPA?
          4.1
10. What negative feedback, if any, have you received since gaining this title?
         No negative feedback.
11. What extracurricular activities do you participate in?
         FFA, PALS, Key Club, NHS.
12. What other titles/awards do you strive for?
         Student of the year, a medal in NHS.
13. Which class are you the best at?
         English.
14. Which class are you the worst at?
         Science.
15. What do you plan to do in your future?
         "I plan to be an engineer"
16. How do you plan on getting there?
           Lots of engineering electives, working towards an engineering degree.
17. What obstacles stand in the way of you and your goals?
          Moving out of state.
18. How do you plan on overcoming these obstacles?
            N/A
19. Who do you look up to in life?
        "Alexander Graham Bell. He was just a very important figure
          in the history of engineering."
20. How does it feel to be the Student of the Month?
        "I feel proud that I achieved everything I did and I'm glad it took me to where I am now. I hope other students try their best and get to great places because it feels pretty good."
 

Nut Graf

A nut graf is the part of the story that basically tells the reader why they should be reading it. It is what brings the story together and explains the importance of it. The nut graf often contains information important to the story.
                The nut graf does not have to be a specific length. The size of the nut graf can vary from a sentence to a whole paragraph. As for the location of this paragraph/sentence, most of the time it follows the opening 5 W's. Without the nut graf, the point of the story would be pretty unclear.

Inverted Pyramid

Student of the Month Interview

1. Why do you believe you were chosen as Student of the Month?
2. What advice do you have for others who want to be Student of the Month?
3. Who chose you to have this title?
4. What did you do to get to this point?
5. How has being chosen as Student of the Month affected you?
6. How might this title affect you in the future?
7. Do you think you deserve to be Student of the Month? Why/Why not?
8. If you had to choose another student to take your position, what would you look for?
9. What is your GPA?
10. What negative feedback, if any, have you received since gaining this title?
11. What extracurricular activities do you participate in?
12. What other titles/awards do you strive for?
13. Which class are you the best at?
14. Which class are you the worst at?
15. What do you plan to do in your future?
16. How do you plan on getting there?
17. What obstacles stand in the way of you and your goals?
18. How do you plan on overcoming these obstacles?
19. Who do you look up to in life?
20. How does it feel to be the Student of the Month?

School Uniform Interview Questions

Topic- School Uniforms

Possible Sources: Principle Kane, Vicente Trevino, Karina Reyna

1. What brought about the idea of enforcing school uniforms?
2. In what way(s) might it be a good decision to enforce school uniforms?
3. What are some possible downsides to school uniforms (if any)?
4. When will the switch to uniforms be made?
5. How will these reactions be handled?
6. How will uniforms be provided?
7. How will the dress code change if uniforms are brought into Bowie?
8. Why might school uniforms be enforced instead of normal clothing?
9.  How will uniforms be provided?
10. What will the uniforms be for girls?
11. What will the uniforms be for boys?
12. How is Bowie expected to change if the use of uniforms is enforced?
13. If uniforms are not provided, how much might a full outfit cost?
14. What will happen if a student cannot afford a uniform?
15. In what ways will students be able to express themselves without breaking dress code?
16. Will teachers be affected by this change? How?
17. How will the new dress code be enforced among students?
18. Will dress code be more strict with uniforms, or more flexible because the students do no choose what they wear?
19. Which uniform company will the uniforms come from?
20. If the uniforms are provided by the school, where will the money to buy them be made?

Architecture Shoot

Shapes

Light

Angles

Pattern

Detail

Surrounding

Architecture Shoot Preview 2

Eden Project, U.K.

Detail

This photograph fits the prompt of Detail because, well, there
is a lot of detail in this close-up shot. I couldn't have seen the
amount of detail on the building if a photographer had not zoomed in.

Light

This photo fits the category of Light because it captures how
the building interacts with the light of stars. The way the stars
shine through the clear panels makes for a dramatic look.

Pattern

This photo shows a lot of pattern. There is pattern all over this
building, but the photographer managed to frame it in this photo
by getting the dark shapes in the background.

Shape

All of the building in the Eden Project are circular, but the
photographer managed to capture that shape in a unique way.
Instead of taking a photo from the outside, they took it from
the inside.

Surrounding

Every building has a surrounding, and this photo captures the Eden
Project's surrounding beautifully. The landscape frames the circular
buildings by almost letting them rest on the curving side of the
hill.

Action Shoot

Photo #1

Photo #2

Photo #3

Photo #4

Action Preview Assignment Questions

This photograph is part of a winning sports photography portfolio because it shows the exact moment before the coach notices he is being dunked with whatever is inside the cooler. This is a traditional celebration when a sports team wins a big game.

The shutter speed is high because all motion is stopped.

Shutter speed is how long of a pause there is between each shutter closing. A faster shutter speed means that motion is captured better.

This could be a key photo, but it also could definitely be set up.

An advanced technique used in this photograph is the use of high shutter speed and also leading lines.

Weebler Newspaper (not finished, absent)

Newspaper Spread

News Values

Timeliness- This article falls under the category of timeliness because it is something that has just happened. It would not be a relevant article if it didn't happen recently.

Ex-President Mohamed Nasheed Is Arrested in Maldives link



Proximity- This article falls under the category of proximity because it is about something happening close to me. I want to know what is going on in my town, and this article helps me with that.

Lineups for SXSW parties coming together link



Prominence-  This article is very prominent because it is about the evacuation of soldiers in Syria. They had been guarding the tomb of Suleyman Shah, a relative of the founder of the Ottoman Empire.

Turkish Military Evacuates Soldiers Guarding Tomb in Syria link



Impact- This article falls in the category of impact because what the article is about will have an impact on the Yemeni people. Their president is taking steps to resume duties after fleeing house arrest.

Yemeni President Is Taking Steps to Resume Duties link



Conflict- This article falls under the category of conflict because it is about China's protest about an Indian leader. Most of the time, when an article's headline includes the words "protests" and "disputed" there is conflict involved.

China Protests India Leader’s Visit to Disputed Border Area link

Human Interest- This article is in the category of human interest because it is about an emotional thing. Two conjoined twins were successfully separated. 

Conjoined twins separated at Texas Children's Hospital link

Novelty- This article is definitely a novelty article. People are attracted to this article because it is about an odd spin on memorable Oscar moments.

We live-designed the most meme-worthy oscar moments link

My Yearbook Spread

5 Websites

First website
http://www.rachelsussman.com/oltw/

On this website I looked at a variety of photos, all of what are said to be the oldest things in the world. They were all naturally-made things like trees and plants. From this website I learned just how old certain trees can be and how they often don't look like it from the outside.
Favorite photo from site:

I picked this photograph because it shows something unlike anything I've ever seen before. There aren't any obvious rules of photography seen here. The photo was taken by a woman named Rachel Sussman.

Second website

http://petapixel.com/2015/01/01/projector-brought-forest-turns-nature-glowing-wonderland/

On this website, I watched a video. In the video, there were several shots of different things in the forest with photographs projected on to them. This beautiful project was done by Tarek Mawad and Friedrich van Schoor. They wanted to  try 3D projections on non-orderly canvasses. From this video, I learned that there are certain ways to look outside of the box and take wonderful, almost dreamy photographs, you just need to think.

Third website
https://iso.500px.com/45-images-of-life-on-earth-ordinary-moments-extraordinary-photos/

On this website I looked at photographs of things going on at different parts of the earth. I picked this photograph because it reminds me of when I hatched chicks in kindergarten. In a way, there is framing happening in this photo. The shell is framing the baby chick, and everything else to look at is basically just the person's hand. It was taken by David Pereira.

Fourth Website (from extra websites)
http://petapixel.com/2015/02/18/a-photo-booth-with-a-240mph-leaf-blower-pointed-at-peoples-faces/

I found this article very interesting. Most of the couple portraits I see have people with completely normal faces, not ones that are being blown with a leafblower. It is interesting to see what our faces can look like. I chose this photo as my favorite because the woman decided to stick out her tongue really far. There aren't really any obvious uses of the rules of photography in this photo but it is great nonetheless. The photographer is Martin Szabo.

Fifth Website

http://petapixel.com/2014/12/19/disorienting-beauty-spiral-staircases-old-abandoned-buildings/

On this website, I looked at photographs of staircases from a bird's eye view. I picked this photograph as my favorite because I like the little colored window panes. One rule of photography I see in this photo is viewpoint, or perspective. If the photographer took this photo from a different angle than above, it would not be as interesting of a photo. Christian Richter is the photographer.

Front Pages of the World

My favorite newspaper front was The Wall Street Journal from N.Y.C. because i love the layout and sophistication of it all.
My favorite headline from this paper is "After Crisis, Goldman Goes It Alone", because it sounds like the journalist is narrating a movie or a book.
There are 5 stories on this newspaper front.
Almost all of the newspapers I saw had one main photograph and story, a barcode, and a couple large bolded headlines.
I noticed that the style of the largest photo on each cover tends to vary. Some newspapers have very serious photos, while another one may have some sort of American flag shopped into the background. this is the same thing with the headlines, the sizes vary depending on importance.

King Pica Spread

Welcome Back!! (forgot to finish earlier)

This photograph is one of my favorites because it was taken at
the perfect moment. The injured girl is making eye contact with
the camera, allowing you to look into her eyes. It seems as though
time is frozen.

I loved this photograph because it is not of something you see
every day. A dead body laying in the earth with a bright rose
on top, an attempt to bring some sort of dignity back to the
woman who was killed unexpectedly. The clear wrapping
reminds me of Laura Palmer.

I found this photo very interesting because if there were no
blood splatters or glass shards the table would look normal.
It would probably be a happy scene of people at a table, a
bowl of peaches, and a cup of coffee.


1. My favorite song of 2014 was most likely "Adult Diversion" by Alvvays, even though I'm not
entirely sure if it came out in 2014. I chose this song because I have listened to it over and over
and I'm still not tired of it. It is the epitome of my style of music.

                2. I did not watch as many movies in 2014 as I would have liked to. I still haven't seen Big Eyes
                      or  Interstellar, but out of the movies I did watch I have to say I enjoyed Nightcrawler the most.
                       It was very dark and I liked the psychological-type feel it had. The man Jake Gyllenhaal played 
                       had some pretty disturbing quirks but he played it very well. He was very dedicated to the character
                       and he even lost weight for the role in order to look more gaunt.

                      3. I think that the most important news story of  2014 was the death of Michael Brown. This sparked
                        outrage pretty much everywhere and I think that the news stories that touch people are the most powerful.
                         I have not taken a side on the story but I still think it is important because a boy was killed and it caused 
                         quite a stir.

                    4. In my opinion, the most important person of  2014 was Malala Yousafzai. This past year she continued 
                        to fight for women's education and she even won a Nobel Peace Prize, setting the record for the youngest
                       person to ever receive it. I find her bravery and determination very admirable.

                   5. I feel that Beyonce was the most popular (not exactly important) person in entertainment this year. Lots of
                       people talked about her this year. I feel that the media really took to her daughter's cuteness, drawing people to
                        the subject of Beyonce.

                       One memorable thing that happened this holiday was Christmas, of course. It felt really great to see my family.
                        My resolutions for this new year are to wear the clothes I like more often and to make time to read more.
                        I am looking forward to the summertime this year!

Yearbook Intro

Every yearbook should have:
- a theme
- recurring colors throughout the book
- interesting features that attract attention
- nice photos
- no spelling errors
- a neat layout
- a dominant photo on most spreads
- a story going with the dominant photo
- reference pages
- the year
- an index
- secondary coverage
- page numbers
- captions
- advertising
- school photo pages
- proper identification of people in photos
- staff photographs
- organized order of pages
- name of school
- location
- readable fonts
- correct grammar
- student photos in order by last name
- photos of clubs/organizations
- different sections for different grades

1. Echo5 Orenda
2. M.B. Lamar High School
3. There are almost always words at the top of the page that relate to the content on it. There are colors that are specific to different pages.
4. There are about 10 different sections.
5. My favorite spread is the senior superlatives.
6. Yes, there is an index in the book.
7. No, I did not see any group photos.
8. There is no table of contents.
9. There are ABOUT 3,000 students.
10. This book is from Texas.

Prompt Shoot

Footprints

Connected

The End

Pause

Magazine Cover Peer Review

Link: http://avysphotojournalism.blogspot.com


The name of the Magazine I looked at was Simplistic by Avy F. One thing I really liked about her first cover was that the colors of the words were pastel and really went with the colors of the photograph. I also like how the captions are focused mostly around happiness. The only thing that could be improved in this magazine cover is the girl could have been just a little closer so you could see her better. I picked this cover because the colors went very well with the photograph and it looked very clean and unique. There is a bar code on this cover, making it seem more magazine-like. The photograph was not a self portrait, but a portrait of another person. I know this because I know what Avy looks like.

Prompt Shoot Peer Review

Prompt Shoot Review

http://kaitlynsphotojournalisblog.blogspot.com

Out of Kaitlyn's photographs I liked the one for "connected" the best because I never thought of that prompt in the way she did. My least favorite photo is the one for "yummy" because I think she should have captured the word yummy in a different way than food. One thing I really like overall about her photos is that I wouldn't have thought of taking photos of a few of the things she did. I also like that she chose the "connected" photo to be black and white because it brings out the emotion. One thing I think she could improve on is utilizing the rules of photography a little more. I think she did the best portraying the "connected" prompt, and did the least best on the "yummy" prompt.