Day in the Life

Four Websites

The Disorienting Beauty of Spiral Staircases in Old Abandoned Buildings

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

This website is about how Christian Richter goes to abandoned buildings in Germany and takes pictures of the spiral staircases. He photographs them at the very top, looking down. Many of the shots he has done are in five frame HDR photos. This collection is called "Abandoned Staircases".

a. Why did you pick this photo? I love the decals on the railing, besides aesthetic, it draws the eye of the viewer down the staircase. The railing also helps to do that. I like the way that the viewers eye is drawn around the photography.
b. What rules of photography do you see in the photo? The staircase fills up the frame and there are leading lines that draw the viewer's eyes across and around the photograph. It is a very simple photograph and the way that the photograph is taken forces a change in perspective.
c. Who took the photo? Christian Richter

Projector Brought Into the Forest Turns Nature Into a Glowing Wonderland

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

a. Describe what you saw in the video. I thought that it was really cool. It showed the forest and places they were photographing during the daytime, then showed what it looked like when it was darker and animated.
b. Try to figure out who made the video. If it was a photographer look them up on google and see if you can learn more about them. Photographer Tarek Mawad and animator Friedrich van Schoor made the video. Both of the artists are German.
c. If there is a story about the video on the website, paraphrase it in 2-3 sentences. The project helped to show the opposites of technology and nature. This was shown in how they used a projector to project colors and designs onto plants.
d. What did you learn new? I learned the behind the scenes for a project like this. 

The Oldest Living Things in the World

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

This website is the photographer's website. She travels with biologists to photographs living organisms that are 2,000 years older or older. She approaches taking the photos of the plants as individuals and wants to facilitate a connection with the environment. 

a. Why did you pick this photo? I picked this photo because I liked how desolate it looks, but has lot of living organisms. It reminds me of the Wizard of Oz. I like how the staircase draws my eye up the photograph.
b. What rules of photography do you see in the photo? There is simplicity in the amount of colors presents. Besides the organized chaos of the tree branches and roots, it is a very simple photo. The staircase acts as a leading line, drawing the viewers eye up the photograph.
c. Who took the photo? Rachel Sussman

What makes a killer time lapse, with Joe Capra

https://blog.ted.com/how-to-create-a-killer-timelapse-with-joe-capra/

a. Describe what you saw in the video. There were multiple time lapses, many of which were of cities, beaches or beautiful natural areas. They helped to show the changes that happen over a longer period of time in a shorter period of time.
b. Try to figure out who made the video. If it was a photographer look them up on google and see if you can learn more about them. Joe Capra made the video. He has been hired by multiple groups to make time lapses and travels to the places he wants to document. He shoots in very high definition.
c. If there is a story about the video on the website, paraphrase it in 2-3 sentences. He helps to elaborate on how time passes and what happens during that time. It looks very beautiful, which he captures.
d. What did you learn new? I learned that for about 10 seconds of video, you need 240 individual photos, which sounds extreme.

Prompt Shoot #3

Pose

 Connected

 The End

 Yummy

Magazines Part II (Part 4)

Cover Types

1. Image Based- Image based covers are the most common approach to cover designs. There is usually a person, or multiple people, on the cover. The person on the cover ends up selling the issue, so the person is usually a celebrity. The usual way that a person is portrayed on a cover is looking at the camera and smiling. Some magazine covers are different in the way that the person or celebrity is not looking at the camera, is not smiling, or both. The images does not have to be a person, for example,  a travel magazine could use a landscape photo for their cover.

2. Illustration Based- Illustration based covers were the only way to design a cover at the very beginning of publishing until the mid 1930's. Today, the illustrations are used to portray something in a funny way, or something in a not ordinary way. Not a lot of the magazines still use illustrated covers, although those that are illustrated are most likely computer generated. Those who do are not reliant on newspaper stand sales and are free standing magazine companies.

3. Type Based- Type based covers are rare, but are more common than an illustrated cover. Type based covers are used to communicate something striking and leaves more of an impact on the reader. Sometimes it is easier to get a point across using just words, not relying on a picture to help communicate an entire story. The type based cover has started to gain popularity as modern calligraphy gains popularity.

4. Concept Based- This can be a mix of image based, illustration based and type based covers. It is best used to convey something striking or shocking. This is a rare cover type, but is used for business magazines and independent magazines. The problem with this type is that it might not be discernible or understandable by anyone. 

The saying that an image speaks a thousand words is true in this regard. An image helps to communicate the idea and the topic. Words help to communicate details that an image cannot. Words can also be art, such as in the type based covers with calligraphy. The importance of the relationship between words and images on a cover is important because they help to balance each other out while still giving enough information to draw attention.

My Favorite Cover (Part 3)

Best Cover Winner

Marie Claire
Emma Stone, September 2017

Wanyi Jiang, Designer
Greg Kadel, Photographer

"We turned the iconic September cover—the main event in fashion magazines—on its head to highlight Hollywood’s highest-paid actress of 2017: Oscar winner Emma Stone, captured by legendary photographer Greg Kadel in his Marie Claire debut. The tight shot and red wash brings an intense, subversive edge. With head cocked and hand covering her mouth, Emma meets the reader’s gaze with her direct stare. Black lace, tousled hair, and smoky eyes—the result is unexpected: a haunting high-fashion cover that stands out in a sea of standard Septembers."

I like how the red wash helps to communicate to the reader that Emma Stone is strong, which is also communicated in the caption. The fierceness of Emma Stone is shown through the connotation of the red. The all red cover helps to make it stand out and makes it unique. I think that there could be more highlights, the red wash took some of the highlights away, while accentuating the shadows. I think that most noticeable with the highlights are her eyes and hair, because there isn't much dimension in them without highlights. The photo is just of her, drawing attention to her expression and her hand over her mouth.

Best Magazine Covers 2018 (Part 2)

Best Entertainment and Celebrity

1. Formal

2. formal

3. informal

4. formal

5. formal

6. formal

Best Service and Lifestyle
7. Formal
8. environmental
9. environmental
10. formal

11. informal

Best Sports and Fitness

12. formal

13. environmental

14. environmental

15. formal

16. environmental

17. formal

Best Fashion and Beauty

18. formal

19. formal

20. formal

21. formal

22. environmental

Reader's Choice Awards

23. formal

24. formal

25. environmental

26. environmental

27. environmental

Magazine Tips (Part 1)

1. Causes curiousity, makes someone want to know more about the issue.
2. Have a cover that stands out, something about it is unique.
3. Decide which element on the cover is the attention drawer.
4. Experiment with different formats and designs.
5. Have a cover that's easy and efficent to read.

Self Portrait & Portrait Intro

Tips:

8. Focus Upon One Body Part – Get Close Up

Get a lens with a long focal length attached to your camera – or get right in close so that you can just photograph a part of your subject. Photographing a person’s hands, eyes, mouth or even just their lower body… can leave a lot to the imagination of the viewer of an image.
Sometimes it’s what is left out of an image that says more than what is included.

(https://digital-photography-school.com/10-ways-to-take-stunning-portraits/)

15. Hold Your Camera on an Angle

Horizontal and Vertical framings are not the only options when it comes to shooting portraits. While getting your images straight can be important in when shooting in these formats holding your camera on a more diagonal angle can also inject a little fun into your images.
This type of framing can add a sense of fun and energy into your shots. Just don’t ‘slightly’ do it or you’ll have people asking themselves if you might have mistakenly held your camera crooked.

(https://digital-photography-school.com/tips-portrait-photography/)

Use your imagination! A self-portrait can reveal a lot about you, by including props and even other people that are meaningful in your life. If you've never attempted to shoot a self-portrait, expand your creative horizons and give it a try.

(https://www.shutterbug.com/content/point-shoot-how-shoot-self-portraits)

Environmental Portraits

I really liked the way that the fire looked and reflected. The man in the front look content with what is happening and everything seems peaceful and celebratory. I like the way that the light reflects on all of the marble and glass.

I like this photo because the man stands out since he's the only thing with color. I like the way that the picture is dark, with a bunch of dark wood, but has a lot of highlights. 

Photography Self Portrait

I like this photo because of the oldness feel that it has. That is because of the type of camera and that the photo is in black and white. I also like the fact that the woman is so serious. 

I like how the woman directly took this picture of herself, but made it look like it was indirect. This helps to better illustrate how a person can use mirrors to take self portraits.

Casual Portrait

I like the nature part of the photograph. I like how it's pretty monochromatic, it takes down the sensory overload of the background.

I like the mosaics in the background. I also like the way that this picture can be used formally and informally. 

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I want to shoot my friend Elizabeth and my friend Autumn, depending on schedules and if they're busy or not. I want to shoot at the Circle C Park, the Wildflower Center and/or the Nature and Science Center. I will make sure that I have a lot of time to get it done and to get the right settings on the camera.

I want to get a broken mirror and piece it together so that my self portrait image is fractured. I'll probably have something painted/spray painted because that's my favorite art medium. I might also paint my face or do some crazy show makeup.