GDES 73 - Digital Photography Online - Weekly Instructions
Summer 2012

Assignment 2 - Location Scout - Main Assignment:
Act as a location scout for a movie and document 1 indoor scene and 1 outdoor scene with 5 quality images each. Pay close attention to framing, composition and exposure. Change your perspective. You can turn around, get low, point up or down, etc. Make sure you get 10 images that you like.
Download examples here.

• Think about the camera settings for each shot(if your camera has manual controls).
  • f-stop(aperture)
  • shutter speed
  • ISO
  • shooting mode(manual, aperture priority, etc.)
  • general focal length(wide angle, normal or telephoto)
• Experiment with the controls you do have on your camera.
• Experiment with different angles, focal lengths, f-stops(If possible) and shutter speeds(If possible).
• Make sure to shoot at least 1 image using each of the following settings(if your camera allows it).
  • aperture priority
  • shutter priority
  • manual exposure
  • manual focus

Updated:
To Turn in:
• Resize your images to a maximum dimension of 800 pixels wide or 800 pixels high(watch the video on image processing) and save them as jpegs with a quality setting of 7.
  • If you don't resize to this size, angel might not upload the file.
• Make sure your images are named like this:
  firstname_lastname_assign2_datecreated_imagenumber.jpg
  • Watch the video on image processing to rename files quickly
  • Use your own name and date of course.
• Put your 10 images only in a folder named mark_garrett_assign2(use your name), zip the folder and drop them into the Angel drop box for the assignment.

Assignment 4 - Main Assignment - Shutter speed and depth of field:
Shoot photos exploring shutter speed and depth of field. If you do not have direct control of these features, like on a point and shoot, try to use the controls you do have, like scenes, or factors like the distance to your subject to change the depth of field. Turn in exactly 5 images that show different shutter speeds and exactly 5 images that show different depth of field.
See examples here.

To Turn in:
• Resize your images to a maximum dimension of 800 pixels wide or 800 pixels high(watch the video on image processing) and save them as jpegs with a quality setting of 7.
  • If you don't resize to this size, angel might not upload the file.
• Make sure your images are named like this:
  firstname_lastname_assign2_datecreated_imagenumber.jpg
  • Watch the video on image processing to rename files quickly
  • Use your own name and date of course.
• Put your 10 images only in a folder named mark_garrett_assign4(use your name), zip the folder and drop them into the Angel drop box for the assignment.

Assignment 5 - Main Assignment - Object photos:
Photograph a chair or other similar object. Don't use a chair unless you have no imagination. Be as creative as you can. You can move the object, change the lighting, etc. Think about all the options you have with 1 subject. Shoot at least 30 images. Select your 5 best images. They can be manipulated or straight. You will turn in all 30 images. See Examples Here.

To Turn in:
• Resize your 30 best images to a maximum dimension of 700 pixels wide or 700 pixels high(watch the video on image processing) and save them as jpegs with a quality setting of 5.
  • If you don't resize to this size, angel might not upload the file.
• Make sure your images are named like this:
  firstname_lastname_assign5_datecreated_imagenumber.jpg
  • Watch the video on image processing to rename files quickly
• Turn in as a folder of 30 files, with your 5 selects in an inside folder.
• Zip the folder and put the file in the drop box in angel.
• Update: Also, post your 5 selects to your flickr account and add them to the group page:
  • http://www.flickr.com/groups/gdes73_online_summer12/

For help, consider the following list of characteristics of images:
• Composition
• Framing
• Focus/depth of field
• Light
• Contrast
• Color
• Point of emphasis
• Line
• Shape
• Texture
• Balance
• Point of view
• Motion
• Perspective

Assignment 8 - Main Assignment - Portraits:
Do 2 outdoor portrait series' of people.
Read Ch. 11 in Digital Photography: Essential Skills for more tips on photographing people.

Series 1:

One series will be of someone you know. The images can be posed or candid.

Series 2:

The second series is of someone you don't know very well or at all. A friend of a friend or aqaintance would work well, or approach someone who looks interesting to you and ask to take their photograph. It could be at an event, a park, on the street, etc. You can tell tell them it's for a school assignment, which can help if they are suspicoius of your motives. You can have them look at the camera, or you can capture the person as they are performing an activity or interacting with others. Get close.

For both series, try to portray the subjects character. Shoot at least 20 images of each person, probably more if possible. Lighting can can be natural or artificial, but try to use the ambient(existing) light as much as possible. You can use flash if necessary to supplement the existing light(fill flash). Watch this video for tips on fill flash. GET CLOSE.

Download examples from the portrait assignment here.

To Turn in(Please read carefully):

• Pick the 5 best images from each session, 10 images total and resize your images to a maximum dimension of 800 pixels wide or 800 pixels high(watch the video on image processing.)
• Save them as jpegs with a quality setting of 7.
• Make sure your images are named like this:
  firstname_lastname_assign8_datecreated_imagenumber.jpg
  • Watch the video on image processing to rename files quickly
• Do not turn in a web gallery.
• Make sure your name is on each image.
• Put only your 10 best images in a folder, zip the folder and drop them into the drop box for the assignment.
• Also, post your best 4 images, 2 for each subject on Flickr.
  Add them to the group(http://www.flickr.com/groups/gdes73_online_summer12/) and tag them portraitassignment(all 1 word).
  You can add tags near the bottom right of the page when the image is open in Flickr.

Assignment 11 - Main Assignment - HDR:
Shoot bracketed images of 2 high contrast scenes and create HDR images from them using Photomatix and/or Photoshop. Make 1 realistic version of each scene and 1 painterly/hyperreal version of each for a total of 4 final images. Download HDR assignment examples here. Check the calendar for due dates.

• See HDR Tips
• Stuck in Customs HDR Photography Tutorial

To Turn in:
• Turn in your 4 final images and your original bracketed shots that you used when making the final images.
• Put your final images into a separate folder.
• Resize all images to a maximum dimension of 800 pixels wide or 800 pixels high(watch the video on image processing) and save them as jpegs with a quality setting of 7.
  • If you don't resize to this size, angel might not upload the file.
• Make sure your images are named like this:
  firstname_lastname_assign11_datecreated_imagenumber.jpg
  • Watch the video on image processing to rename files quickly
  • Use your own name and date of course.
• Put your images in a folder named mark_garrett_assign11(use your name), zip the folder and drop them into the Angel drop box for the assignment.
• Post your 4 final images to your flickr account and add them to the group page:
  • http://www.flickr.com/groups/gdes73_online_summer12/
  • Tag the images with "hdr"

Start Assignment 12 - Main Assignment - Compositing:
Make 2 composite images(not faces) on the subjects of your choice, with at least 1 being as believable as possible. Use at least 2 original(shot by you) images in each composit. Try to match lighting, color, f-stop, focal length, etc when shooting your original files to make the final images blend more realistically. Turn in as as layered photoshop files(PSD) with a maximum dimension of 1500 pixels wide or 1500 pixels high. You can go to the image menu in photoshop and select image size to resize. Change the pixel dimensions at the top of the dialog box. Make sure resample image and constrain proportions are checked at the bottom of the dialog box. Download compositing assignment examples here. Check the calendar for due dates.

Final Project Assignment 17:
Do a series of photos on the subject of your choice with 10 quality images, each able to stand on their own, as well as work as a group. Download assignment examples here. Check the calendar for due dates.

Examples:
• Tell a story with images
• Document someones life or an event
• Create a series of landscapes with a common theme or style

To Turn in:
• Resize your 10 images to a maximum dimension of 800 pixels wide or 800 pixels high(watch the video on image processing.)
• Make sure your name is on each image.
• Save them as jpegs with a quality setting of 8.
• Put only your 10 images in a folder, zip the folder and drop them into the drop box for the assignment.
• Post your 10 Final Project images to the flickr group and tag with gdes73finalprojectsummer12