ASSIGNMENT: Final Portfolio

DUE: Monday, December 15, 5:00:oo p.m. No portfolios will be accepted late.

The Final Portfolio consists of 10 images you've shot this semester and your multimedia story. High resolution JPGs and the multimedia story must be on a CD. Additionally, you need to print out your 10 single images and attach captions.

Place the CD and printouts in a manila envelope with your name and section (morning/afternoon) on it. This will be turned in to either myself or one of the lab assistants. You must turn in your camera kit with your portfolio. We will have sheets with all of your names on them - make sure you and whoever checks in your portfolio initial the sheet.

To print your captions, under File in Photoshop, go to Print with Preview. If your images is a horizontal, check "Scale to Fit Media." If it's a vertical, uncheck that box and set the height to 7 inches. In the lower area, under "Output," check the "Description" box and that will place your caption below your image. If this causes problems, copy and paste your caption into a word processing document, print, then cut and tape it to the laser print.

Lab Hours for the End of the Semester

Lab Hours:

Monday, December 8 - 3:30-6:30
Tuesday, December 9 - 9-5
Wednesday, December 10 - 9-5
Thursday, December 11 - 9-5
Friday, December 12 - 9-5 (3710 deadline)
Monday, December 15 - 9-5 (3610 deadline)

Equipment must be turned in with your portfolio.

Megapixel Mysteries

Former student Tom O'Connor spotted this New York Times piece on the myth of megapixels and thought it would be handy.

It is.

ASSIGNMENT: Reading

For Monday, November 17, please read, Photojournalism, Technology and Ethics PDF. Be prepared to discuss it. 

Lab Hours

A reminder that the lab will only be open on Thursday, October 30, from 1:45-4:30 p.m. On Tuesday, November 4, it will be open from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (Your photo story images are due by 4:30.)

ASSIGNMENT: Stop, Pan & Blur

Due by 4:30 p.m. on Friday, November 7, three photos - one stop action, one pan and one blur - as discussed in class. Complete captions are, as always, required. 

Remember the pan will be the most difficult - practice, practice, practice - and don't trust the screen on the back of the camera. Make sure you can see faces, and no cars or buses ...

ASSIGNMENT: Photo Story, Part 1

By 2 p.m. 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, November 4, you need to upload 3-5 photos from your photo story. This is a first look, an introduction to what will become your multimedia piece. 

Focus on an individual, as that will be easier for you. Preferably someone who does something visual. Make sure they understand that you'll be back, several times, over the course of the next few weeks. 

(The Tuesday deadline is due to the campus being closed on Friday, October 31.)

ASSIGNMENTS: Light Redo and Campus Feature

For Friday, October 17, by 4:30 p.m. please put a second run at the Light assignment on the server. Remember to think about the quality of light, the color of it and the direction of it. Think about shadows and form, how the light is reacting with your subject. If you're shooting at sunrise or sunset, be sure to bump your White Balance to the Sun setting - that will help preserve the golden colors.

For Friday, October 24, by 4:30 p.m., please put a Campus Feature on the server. This is a stand-alone, found photo from the campus area. It should not be part of an event - this needs to be something you couldn't plan for in advance. This is a semi-scavenger hunt, go have some fun. Extra points for humor.

ASSIGNMENT: Light

One photo - show the beauty of light. Find a great subject and put it in great light. Think about shooting early in the morning or late in the afternoon. Content counts, too.

Due on the server by Friday, October 10 at 4:30 p.m.

ASSIGNMENT: Long, Medium and Close-up, Clips

By Friday, October 3 at 4:30 p.m., you need to shoot (and edit, caption and upload) a three photo package from one newsworthy event, situation or story. You need an opening image - a long shot that shows a sense of place and scale. A medium shot that moves in tighter, gives us a sense of who is involved, has good light and a great moment. The third shot is to be a close-up or detail shot - show the reader something the casual viewer might not have seen if they had been there.

For Wednesday, October 1, please bring in three clips from one story that show a long, medium and close-up. 

"Error Mimicking" ... or Lens Compression

One of the things I want you to see in your next assignment is the effect of lens compression and expansion - particularly how using telephoto lenses will appear to compress the world into a smaller, flatter realm. 

Over on Mike Johnston's The Online Photographer blog, he has a great post that talks about the illusion of "error mimicking" - in this case, when lens compression leads people to believe an image has been altered through Photoshop. 

Lab Hours Adjustment

There will be a slight adjustment to lab hours, as the lab is needed between 12:30 and 1:30 on Thursday for a meeting.

The lab will be open from 11:30 to 12:30, then again from 1:30 to 4:30 on Thursday. Lab will open an hour earlier (11:30) on Friday to give another opportunity to work.

Flying Short Course Registration

Somebody broke the interwebs ... but the fine folks at NPPA's headquarters put up an emergency registration page for the Flying Short Course. 

ASSIGNMENT: Environmental Portraits, Reading & Clips

Up next is an environmental portrait. We'll review this in class on Sept. 22, so you'll need to have it on the server by Sept. 19 at 4:30 p.m. (when lab closes). 

You need to choose a news-worthy person and tell us their story in a single image. You get to control everything - location, pose, composition. You're responsible for everything in that frame - make smart choices. Do not be afraid of controlling this image.

Here's what your basic workflow should look like after the shoot:

1. Head to the lab
   
2. Download your cards through Photo Mechanic, renaming them and putting a generic caption on them
   
3. Burn CDs
   
4. Make your selection through Photo Mechanic and send it to Photoshop
   
5. Crop and tone the image. Use layers for control.
   
6. Rewrite/refine the caption
   
7. Save As ... to a Photoshop file, with the layers intact
   
8. Flatten the image
   
9. Resize the image to 10 inches on the long dimension at 200 dpi
   
10. Save As ... to a JPEG file
    
11. Move the JPEG file to the server
    
12. Move the Photoshop (PSD) file to your thumb drive
    
13. Relax and wait to bask in the compliments of your classmates on the 22nd ...
    

For Monday, Sept. 15, please read pages 174-229.

For Wednesday, Sept. 17, please bring in three clips of portraits - a good one, a weak one and one you have a question about.

The OTHER Blog

As a reminder, there's another blog I run for all photojournalists, particularly students - the UGA Photojournalism blog. It has info on industry news, local events, tips and tricks of the trade - including info on Thursday night's speaker.

ASSIGNMENT: 36 Faces

Time to get over being shy ...

For Wednesday, September 3, you need to shoot 36 different people. These need to be shot vertically, with the tops of the shoulders showing to just above their heads. (Examples to the right.) Shoot the first 12 people at 75 mm, the next 12 at 50 mm and the last group at 28 mm. 

Pay attention to your exposure meter - make sure you're getting a proper quantity of light and that your exposure makes sense for what you're shooting. (High enough shutter speed? Enough depth of field or too much?) Shoot several frames of each person so you have a few different expressions. 

Shoot outdoors, paying attention to where the light is coming from and what's in the background. Do not do this indoors - you'll be miserable trying to get things sharp. (Note that you cannot judge sharpness on the screen on the back of the camera. Everything looks sharp, and it might not be.)

For the captions, you need their name, age, home town, major or job title and one piece of contact information (phone number or email address). In your note book, write down their shirt color, as well - this will make confirming names easier. 

I would take some time Tuesday to type up your captions and then email them to yourself - you'll be able to copy and paste them very quickly then.

We'll download your images in class on Wednesday (a whole new set of buttons to push).

Questions? Fire away.

Open Lab Hours

The photojournalism lab will be open for the hours listed below throughout the semester. This lab is set up for your use only - it is not open to non-photojournalism students.

Monday - 3:30-6:30

Tuesday - 12:30-2:00

Thursday - 11:30-4:30

Friday - 12:30-4:30

ASSIGNMENT: More Clips and Re-reading

For Wednesday, August 27, please bring in three clips (mounted and annotated) that show the best news, sports and feature photo you can find. You should be looking to daily newspapers and weekly newsmagazines for these images - please avoid non-news magazines. 

If you struggled with the exposure section of the book, you may want to re-read that before Monday, as well. We'll be going over that in a lot of depth on Monday, so a refresher would be a good idea.

The UGA bookstore has, for some unknown reason, ordered two different books and placed them on the shelf for this class. The book you need is the National Geographic Photography Field Guide, not the "ultimate" guide, I'd never seen that before someone brought it into class.

Not sure what's going on at the bookstore, the ordered the wrong book for my other class, as well. 

ASSIGNMENT: Clips and Reading

For Wednesday, August 20, please bring in three clips from recent newspapers or news magazines that show what you think are a good news photo, a bad news photo and one you have questions about.

Please cut them out and neatly tape them to a sheet of paper with your name and one or two sentences about the image. We'll discuss these in class.

Please read the first 75 pages of the text book, The National Geographic Photography Field Guide, as well. 

One Day Down, One To Go

Two Days to Go

Three Days ... Just Three Days ...

Four Days Left to Your Freedom

Five Days to Touch Down

Six Days to Reentry

Seven Days to Reignition

The Strobist

Mentioned in class, The Strobist is a blog by David Hobby about lighting with flash. Lots of great technical tips and examples, including two "courses" on flash (look for pull down menus along right side on Lighting 101 and Lighting 102).

And, oddly, he's in USA Today today ...

Lab Hours

Lab hours through the end of the semester:

• Wednesday, April 23 - 3:30 to 6:30 p.m.
• Thursday, April 24 - 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., 3:30 to 6:30 p.m.
• Friday, April 25 - 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Monday, April 28 - 3:30 to 6:30 p.m.
• Tuesday, April 29 - 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Wednesday, April 30 - 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Thursday, May 1 - 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Friday, May 2 - 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Deadline is at 5 p.m. on Friday, May 2. No exceptions - if your completed portfolio is not turned in by 5 p.m. on May 2, it will not be accepted. The clock on computer 0 will be the time standard used; time will be counted down throughout the day on Friday. Camera kits need to be returned with the portfolio.

Multimedia Handouts

Have posted the multimedia handouts on the class web site, also available here.

ASSIGNMENTS: Going Forward

To help you schedule ...

Due: Monday, April 7 in class — Audio (morning section only)
Due: Friday, April 11, by 12 noon — Stop, Pan and Blur
Due: Monday, April 14 in class — Audio (afternoon section only)
Due: Friday, April 18, by 5 p.m. — Second round of photo essay photos
Due: Friday, April 25, by 5 p.m. — Multimedia Story
Due: Friday, May 2, by 5 p.m. — Final Portfolio

ASSIGNMENT: Final Portfolio

Due: Friday, May 2, 5 p.m.

The Final Portfolio consists of 10 images you've shot this semester and your multimedia story. High resolution JPGs and the multimedia story must be on a CD. Additionally, you need to print out your 10 single images and attach captions (this will be explained in class).

Place the CD and printouts in a manila envelope with your name and section (morning/afternoon) on it. This will be turned in to either myself or one of the lab assistants. You must turn in your camera kit with your portfolio. We will have sheets with all of your names on them - make sure you and whoever checks in your portfolio initial the sheet.

The lab will be open from 9-5 from Tuesday, April 29 through Friday, May 2. The deadline is 5 p.m. - PORTFOLIOS NOT TURNED IN BY 5 P.M. WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED and you will be given an F for the final portfolio. The time standard being used is the clock on Computer 0 in the lab — this will be displayed on the overhead projector on Friday, May 2.

ASSIGNMENT: Stop, Pan and Blur

Due: Friday, April 11, by 12 noon. (I'll accept work up to 5 p.m., but there is no guarantee you'll be able to access lab computers after 12 noon as we'll have 10 editors and 30 other students in there.)

Three photos:

• Stop - Using a high shutter speed, freeze a body in motion
• Pan - Using a low shutter speed, pan with your subject to keep them sharp while "streaking" the background
• Blur - Using a low shutter speed, keep one portion of your image sharp while letting motion blur another part

The examples used are available for review.

Full captions, no cars or buses for the pans. Ask questions and I'll answer.

Assignment: Multimedia Story, Part 1

Due: Friday, March 28, by 5 p.m.

Think about a story that needs to be told. Make it simple, make it something you can go back to easily (as you'll be going back at least two more times, probably more, before the end of the semester). Finding an individual will work better than an issue or concept as it will give you a voice to use.

For the first part, you need to produce 3-5 photos that introduce us to your story and subject. Think about an establishing (long) shot, maybe a portrait, some detail images and, of course, the ever present medium shot. Show us who this is about.

As you're shooting, listen to the sounds. You'll be going back to do an interview and to collect natural sounds to layer into your piece.

Your final piece will be around 60 seconds in length, and the average time for an image on screen will be six seconds. Think about what you'll be asking to guide you in the types of images you'll need to shoot.

Light Technique

I find myself becoming more and more impressed with The New York Times, and the quality of their photos.

Just out of curiosity, is there a name to this halo effect that wraps around Hilary Clinton's face?
I can't remember if we learned it or not in 3610.



http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/02/us/politics/02cnd-campaign.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin

Assignment: Clips, Light Redo and Portrait

For Wednesday, March 5, please collect five clips, one each of general news, spot news, feature, portrait and sports images. Look for the best examples of each.

For Friday, March 7, have your light redo on the server by 5 p.m.

For Wednesday, March 19, the clips will be on portraits - one great one, one bad one, one you have questions about.

For Friday, March 21, you need to have an environmental portrait on the server by 5 p.m. You choose who this is and you have total control over how this comes together - location, pose, clothing, time, light, etc. Find someone newsworthy and then show us them clearly in their (newsworthy) environment.

How do you define newsworthy? Write the lead graf in your head for the news story, would that play on the front page of the Red and Black?

No Clips for Wednesday, Feb. 27

No need to bring in clips this week, will post requirements for next week's on Wednesday.

Remember to have your Campus Scene photo on the server by 5 p.m. on Friday. Also be sure to bring your camera to all classes this week, we may do some in-class shooting exercises.

ASSIGNMENT: Campus Scene

DUE: Friday, Feb. 29 at 5 p.m. (for review in class on Monday, March 3)

Sometimes called feature photos or enterprise photos, these are stand-alone images that can really get to the heart of a community. They tell smaller stories, slices of life and there are some photographers who are absolute masters at these.

There are two ways of approaching this: wandering and hunting. The former is the more common and less successful way of doing this. You wander around, hoping something interesting just happens to happen right in front of you.

Yeah, it's a very low percentage way of getting good feature photos.

The better way is what David Labelle refers to as hunting (he even wrote two books on it that are amazingly good). It's about planning ahead, knowing where you're going to find great moments, great stories. It involves reading everything and talking to everyone. And leaving your business card with everybody you meet, asking them to call you.

So, your assignment: One amazingly great photo from this campus. Tell me a story, share a piece of someone's life, in just one frame. This is all about moment.


Somethings to look at for more ideas:

The National Press Photographers Association runs an annual Best of Photojournalism competition where there is an Enterprise category.

The University of Missouri runs the Pictures of the Year competition and they have a Feature Picture category you can browse though. (Although that first photo is more of a Spot News image than a Feature, to me.)

ASSIGNMENT: Light

Due on the server by 5 p.m. on Friday, February 22: One photo that shows the beauty of light.

PLEASE NOTE: Set the White Balance to the Sun setting ("WB" button on the back of camera, rotate dial from AWB to the sun icon) - or else all your beautiful color will get wiped out.

Remember we shoot news photos - you need to be thinking about what types of images newspapers run. People and moments are needed.

Clips for Wednesday, February 20, should be one each of hard light, soft light and diffused light.

Assignment: Reading

Please read pages 134-159 and 174-253 in the National Geographic book for Wednesday. (And bring your clips in from last week.)

UPDATED :: Assignment: Four Scenes

Due: Monday, February 4 (Which means you'll have to turn it in by 5 p.m. on Friday, February 1, when the lab closes.) Download your cards, batch captioning and renaming them, burn them to CDs and bring to class on Monday.

Four photos of the same scene. Two should be shot at 28 mm, one at f/2.8 and the other stopped down to at least f/8.0 (preferably more). Then, back up and shoot the same basic composition at 75 mm, again at f/2.8 and stopped down to at least f/8.0 (preferably more).

Be cognizant of your shutter speed when you shoot the stopped-down image, don't let it fall below 1/60 of a second.

Found: Blue Notebook

In the lab after Wednesday's class. If it's yours, let me know. I'll be in my office Thursday morning, in the lab between 11 and noon.

Assignment: Wednesday Clips

For Wednesday, Jan. 30, please bring in seven clips hitting the following things we discussed in class:

• Rule of Thirds
• Leading Lines
• Framing
• Filling the Frame
• Use of Negative Space
• Shallow Depth of Field
• Extensive Depth of Field

Lab Hours

Please note this semester's lab hours:

Monday, 3:30 to 6:30
Tuesday, 8 a.m. to 11 a.m.
Thursday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Assignments are usually due on Mondays, hence the heavy timing at the end of the week.

Assignment: 33 (more) Faces

For Wednesday, Jan. 30: Please shoot 33 more "mug shots." Eleven at 28 mm, eleven at 50 mm and eleven at 75 mm. Same routine as the first three: head and shoulders, pay attention to the backgrounds, need name, age, hometown, major or job title and one piece of contact information.

We will process those images in class on Wednesday, so you won't need to do any lab-time before then.

Lab hours in the next post.

Assignment: 3 (of 36) Faces

For next Wednesday, Jan. 23, you need to shoot "mug shots" of three different people, people you do not know. These should be vertical photos, photos that would be used as half-column inserts into a newspaper or magazine story.

Shoot one with the lens set to 75 mm, one at 50 mm and the last at 28 mm. Think about the aperture you want based on how much depth of field you'll need. (Hint: At 28 mm, any given aperture has more depth of field than at 75 mm.) Then determine what ISO will give you a high enough shutter speed to negate camera shake and not negatively affect image quality.

Fill the frame–move in close enough so you're not wasting pixels.

Control your background–watch what's going on back there.

Wait for moments–look for a good expression, light in their eyes, things like that.

Shoot multiple photos of each person–aim for 10-15 frames per person. (Each person only needs to be shot at one focal length.)

UPDATED: For the caption, you need their name, age, hometown, job or major and one piece of contact information (phone number or email address).

Questions? Post them here or email me. Samples below.

Class Resources

We have, in addition to this blog, a web site that has links to the syllabus and the manual for your camera. Worth bookmarking (or remembering that it's linked from here).