Photo Doctor 5

Before
The diagnosis for this photo is mainly artistic and it needs to be a little more in focus. The treatment would be to get clsoer to the bird, well try, and cut out the sidewalk portion. The shutter speed would need to be at its fastest to try and caprute the bird before it flies away. Nature can be tricky but getting closer would capture the detailed feathers and colors of the bird.
After

Photo Doctor 4

Before
The diagnosis for this treatment is too blurry and underexposed. The shutter speed was too slow. It is also a dimly lit picture. The treatment is to make the shutter speed a little faster and get in a naturally light area. Using the sunlight would be best because then the dirt specs on the bottom half can be seen more clearly. The flash might throw that off or bounce off of another part of the flower.
After

Photo Doctor 3

Before
The diagnosis with the photo is over exposure and too much light. The flash bounced off and created this circular ball of light in the bottom right hand corner of the picture. Treatment for this photo is the flash isnt needed, especially since there appeared to be enough light in the room. Artistically it is a controversial picture dealing with the Bible and a Party flyer, a better set-up cuold have been used. Possibly, people could have got involved, one person holding the Bible and one holding the flyer.
After

Photo Doctor 2

 
The diagnosis for this picture is mainly artistic issues. This was poorly composed. The rose should not have been leaning on a full bottle of Sprite. The treatment is to choose a better background, maybe a nature background would have been better. Another suggestion is to back up and straighten out the camera. The shadow effect and idea of the rose dying is good, but it wasnt carried out very well. The photo is a little dark but if the shadow is to be kept then this exposure is alright. On the other hand, if i had a lamp, I would place it off to the side, out of the photo to create more light and eliminate that shadow. I would take the flash off and use the light from the lamp only. Another suggestion is to take the lampshade off to get more light and if the lampshade cant be removed then tilt it up toward the subject. The area and props for the rose are not the best though.

Photo Doctor 1

The main diagnosis with this picture is the blurriness. The wind was blowing very hard, causing my hand to be unsteady. The shutter speed was too slow and the focus was off, causing the blur. The treatment is to make the shutter speed faster and try to keep the hand steady to focus on the tree and the sun coming up in the background, the lightpole should be eliminated from this shot for a better composed photo.

Essay With Pictures

Over these past couple of weeks I have learned very much. The key phrase that I like especially is that "we don’t take photos, we make them". I always had an idea about how the camera worked but going in depth helped me to understand how the pictures I was taking were being captured. Lighting can be very important and although I didn’t get the low-light concept the first time, I plan to try again. I also like the different types of photographic styles. I played with black and white a little bit and also tried to capture people and portraits, but I never really thought of creating the picture. I just tried to capture things in their raw state for the most part without having to ask or move certain things around, but I did learn that it is alright especially when you are trying to get the best photo possible and as long as no rules are being broken. I also need to work on my focus. Getting that blurriness out of the picture can make a good shot an even better one. Sometimes when I am trying to concentrate my hand shakes and the shot gets messed up. This forces me to take the shot repeatedly until I get the best one. There could also be an adjustment that I need to make on the camera because I do have a Nikon and it should have some vibration resistance. I did find a photo shop tool for free via Google and it helped a little, but because it was free, it didn’t have the absolute best features. Getting the picture as clear as possible and then taking the steps to make it unique are key elements that I need to continue to work on. I learned a lot through the readings, lectures, and power points. Open discussion in class and especially the critiques and picking best photos added a competitive spirit. The D.I.E.T method has to be one of the easiest things I have ever had to remember and also is very helpful when it is time to do the actual critiquing. It helps in a way that no one’s feelings get hurt and the photographer can also speak if they choose. I would also like to capture more pictures dealing with emotion. I didn’t think I would be drawn to nature the way I was, but I found that to be the predominate photographic style on my flickr page. I like nature’s natural beauty and the colors it emanates so effortlessly. I am drawn to the fact that it is all around and can be seen by everyone yet people walk past the same flowers, birds, and trees and never think to acknowledge how much potential and beauty exists within the nature atmosphere alone. I would have liked to go to the beach and get some more shots and maybe I can in the near future. I liked other styles and I wanted to play more with abstract but I guess once we learn how to work with photo shop, I can get craftier. Here are some of nature photos that I enjoyed the most:

Project Photo 9

I dont capture too many people so I kind of wanted to get a simple potrait shot of my teammate. She chose her pose. There are lines in the way her arms and fingers are tilted. There is a pattern on the carpet floor in the hotel and she is a little off centered. I captured some of her emotion and jus asked that she pretend to be taking a photo for a new profile pictureon her facebook page.

Project Photo 8

I was actually on the inside of our team bus when I took this picture. I used the huge window as a way to get partial framing. I liked this one because it is almost as if the cloud is in the process of moving across the sun and the sun looks so pretty, bright, and big. I also like the formation of the surrounding clouds. There are diagonal lines from the suns rays shining all across the photo. I like the aspect of nature.

Project Photo 7

In this photo, I was trying to capture the movement of the leaves, as it was very windy that day. The nature was my choice of style. I liked the positioning of the sun as it was still in its rising phase. It helped with the lighting I needed to accent the background. The color of the leaves are brown and a little burnt orange and I foudn it quite odd that the tree behind it is completely bare.

Project Photo 6

I caught this P.E. class in the act of stretching. I chose this picture because originally the guy in the middle was facing forward, once he glanced over and saw the camera he decided to strike a pose and smile for the picture. The emotion on his face was priceless. I was going for the people, action feel but  I captured emotion as well. Their shoes are also in a diagonal alignment.

Project Photo 5

I chose to do the photographic style of  black and white. I was at Ruby Tuesdays and I liked the simplicity in the glass of water with the lemon wedged on the outside of the glass. The straw is leaning horizontally in the cup and becomes distorted through the water and ice cubes. The ice cubes definitely cooled the drink and and the cube shape can be seen in the picture. There is also a little reflection of the chair through the glass.

Project Photo 3

I chose this picture because I was trying to capture the texture of the rose. The rose was not completely alive but it was not completely dead either so in the middle the leaves are still kind of fresh but on the outskirts the leaves are starting to bend out and fade a little in color. I like and red the color and the slight shadow reflecting off the back wall and dresser. The different shades of green enhance the photo. I used the nature, garden, flower photographic style. The leaves are in a curved shape and the stem is vertical.

Project Photo3

In this picture I capture the photographic style of Nature. The red berries add a nice pop of color. The branch shows an upward curve, The leaves are also curving out in a downward position, partly due to the weight of the snow peacefully resting on it. There is also some simplicity in this photo and the light of the sun shining through from the background adds a tasteful touch. 

Project Photo2

 
In this picture I tried to capture the idea of Low Light. In the photo, there is a guy and the back of his jacket says Detroit in white lettering. There is also the security booth and a car is making an entrance. I chose this picutre because I wanted to see how well I could capture an image in the dark. There is a possible rule of thirds displayed, as the subject is located in the lower bottom left hand portion of the photo.

Project Photo1

In this picture I tried to capture layers. In the foreground is the black railing. In the middle ground is the truck and concrete pole. In the background is the Shakeys concession stand. I wanted to see how well I could caputre a moving object.

Online Examples of the 4 Rules of Composition

Lines
http://www.whp.ucsf.edu/

Simplicity
http://www.smashandpeas.com/the-five-basic-rules-of-shot-composition/

http://jemblog.com/jemblog-quote-keep-it-simple/

Rule of Thirds
http://allnarfedup.com/2008/08/14/five-ways-to-create-better-photos-without-a-dslr-camera/

Framing
http://www.trustedreviews.com/digital-cameras/review/2006/09/27/Digital-Camera-Tutorial-Composition-Part-1-/p3

In Class Activity-Practice4

This is an example of framing. The person is framed by the window, window seal, and brick. There is also some reflection.

In Class Activity-Practice3

This is an example of the Rule of Thirds. I attempted to capture the flag in the upper left hand cross-section of the tic-tac toe format. I am a little off and the picture would be better if a person stood where the flag is.

 

 

In Class Activity-Practice2

 

This is an example of simplicity. This is a photo of the sprinkler that goes off in the middle of a fire. If you look closely you can see the circular lines that were made by the paint brush. The white background also helps with the simplicity effect.

In Class Activity-Practice

This is an example of lines. I specifically targeted the curved lines that I saw in this nature setting. The branches in the background and the the stem curving across. The berries also add a nice splash of color.

Odd Nature

• 
  

This is a picture I captured when we were assigned to leave the classroom and take 10 pictures. This is a practice run as well to make sure I know how to upload images.