Links to materials for Final Exam

You all would have found these on your own, but here are links to the materials for the final exam:

Materials for the midterm exam on 3/11

Materials and prep for exam on 4/29

Same deal as usual: open notes. Questions will come directly from the two exams, although they may take a different form – a True/False question may become a multiple choice or vice versa. If it wasn’t on the previous exams, it won’t be on the final. Although the material covers the whole semester, it will concentrate on themes and concepts we consistently reinforced.

There will be some extra credit questions, too, to boost your score if necessary.

Assignment 6: Visual Narratives

DEADLINE: by the end of class (8:15 p.m.) on Monday, April 22

The Assignment:

Select a topic, issue, or subject and create a visual narrative or photo essay. This is not a “survey” assignment where you simply present a variety of photographs of something. Tell me a story with your photographs and make each picture count! Use everything you’ve learned this semester about timing, light and composition. Utilize the concepts of visual variety. Practice the strategies we learned in order to go beyond the immediate and superficial. Put it all together!

Requirements: 

Your story should consist of 4-6 pictures. The goal is to find the “right” number of pictures to tell your story. No more, no less. Can you do it in four? Yes, but 5-6 is probably about the right number to adequately tell your story, given the amount of time you have to work on this. However, if you think you really need more than six pictures to tell your story, contact me and we’ll go through your images.

Introduction. Write a short introduction for your story to set the stage before you let your photographs take over the narrative. One paragraph should do it. No more than three short ones. You can embed this in your first image, or you can add a Word or text file to the folder containing your assignment.

Captions. Strict, complete AP Style captions are not required for every image included in this assignment. You should include sufficient information and enough context to compliment your photos and move your narrative forward. Use AP Style first-reference rules, but – as in a written story – you don’t have to repeat full information that’s been previously introduced.

Sequencing. Number your image files (along with an image title) in the order that you want them to be viewed.

Post to your Google Drive folder no later than the end of class on April 22. Class that day will be a work session, where your classmates and I can help you make your final selections and proofread the captions and introduction for your story. Bring all of your images on a jump drive or external hard drive, but please do some preliminary editing. Also, bring your notes so you can complete your captions. Don’t wait until the 22nd to begin making selections, writing your intro, and writing your captions! Do as much work as you can before class that day.

 

TIPS and SUGGESTIONS

Make the time to build trust with the people who will be your subjects. You don’t have a ton of time before the end of the semester, so perhaps find a person or subject that you have a certain comfort level with and are interested in. Still, shadowing people with a camera can be awkward at first, for both the photographer and the people being photographed. That’s normal. Keep shooting. If you are photographing people being themselves in their environment, you’ll find that the initial awkwardness fades away relatively quickly and you can really get to work.

Visual Variety! Don’t shoot every picture from the same distance and focal length. Mix it up. And don’t forget your photographer’s mantra. It will help your pictures communicate more quickly and cleanly. Technique will only take you so far, however.

Concentrate on good, story-telling moments.  Avoid “doing” pictures in your final story. You might have to shoot a lot of “doing” pictures until you capture a moment, though. Don’t give up on situations until you get one. Pay attention to your own emotions while shooting, and see if you can translate those feelings through your photographs.

Remember 3 + 1. This basic structure will help your pictures become a story instead of a mere collection of images. Remember that your story needs an opening image and a closing image. Keep this in mind while you’re shooting and editing. The body is made up of the pictures in between your opener and closer that develop your narrative. Contained within the body should be your “key” or “signature” shot. Your preceding pictures should build up to your showcase image.

Try out the Life magazine formula. The old Life magazine formula for a photo essay is a good template for building your story and giving it structure. The formula also helps ensure that there is visual variety within the story. You don’t want a series of redundant images.

It is not necessary to include every category in your finished story, but if you try to shoot at least one of each category, you are increasing your chances of having a more dynamic, complete final product.

1. Introductory or Opener
2. Medium
3. Close-up
4. Portrait
5. Interaction
6. Signature
7. Sequence
8. Closer or Clincher

Take notes and get quotes while shooting. Incorporate them into your captions to help give your story context and a present a better understanding of your story. Quotes are great, but you can paraphrase your subjects, too, if it helps us better understand the context of their quotes.

Evaluate as you shoot and edit. Your pictures should emphasize the human elements over processes. If your pictures are looking like a “How To” manual, go back and reshoot, if you can.  Ask yourself some of these questions:

• Are my pictures visually compelling, or do they look like snapshots?

• Do my pictures present visual variety, or do they all look like they are shot from the same distance and perspective?
• Do my pictures have graphic appeal? (Light, creative composition)

• Am I capturing story-telling moments?

• Are my pictures emotionally appealing?

• Have I shot any intimate pictures, revealing something private and unique about my subject?

Some moments, if you miss them, they are gone forever, and you can’t re-shoot them. But, more often than not, there are plenty of recurring elements in any story that can be shot over and over until you capture that element in a compelling way. Insist on that kind of excellence.

Selection and sequencing. The pictures in your story don’t have to be in the chronological order you shot them. Keep this in mind while you’re shooting, as well. For example, your “clincher” doesn’t have to be from the last group of photos you shot. But it needs to help give your story some type of closure or leave a lasting impression.

Your story will only be as strong as your weakest photo. You need to learn the difference between your favorite pictures and the pictures that best express the story you are trying to tell.  They are not always the same. Don’t wait until the last minute to begin the selection process. It’s okay to seek opinions about your images during the whole process – either mine or someone else’s. It’s good to have a seasoned eye look at your work, but sometimes it’s a good idea to have someone who is not a journalist look at your work to make sure your images are communicating what you want to communicate. The whole point is to make sure the audience “gets it.”

Enjoy what you’re doing! Part of this assignment is to understand the process of visual story telling and the professional standards by which it is judged. But the act and process of visual story telling should be rewarding. Documenting the human condition, even just a little part of it, helps us to understand ourselves. Hopefully, you’ll take some satisfaction from tackling this project.

As always, feel free to contact me as you work through this.

Review of class on 4/8: Visual Narratives

Reviewing the materials might help you get started on your final shooting assignment for the semester. Make sure you thoroughly read through the assignment itself, though.

Here is the handout that accompanies the lesson on visual narratives. It contains lists for the formulas that we discussed in class. Referring to this will help you through the shooting and editing process:

Visual Narratives: The art of picture stories and photo essays

Here is the PDF version of the presentation on visual narratives. It might help to review the examples of picture stories we looked so you can see how the pictures work with one another, along with the captions, to create a narrative:

Presentation: Visual Narratives

Here is the key video we watched in class. Again, listen carefully as Dave explains how he discovers what he needs to shoot in order to tell someone’s story. Essentially, by talking to your subjects and getting to know them, they will lead you to where the pictures are. And understand the importance of projection. The best journalists, regardless of the medium they work in, learn how to put themselves in another’s shoes in order to tell their stories. And learn the importance of trust. You will never scratch below the surface and be able to move your audience without the trust of your subjects.

 

We didn’t watch this in class, but here is a follow-up, companion video to the one above. This is a master lesson in how to approach and think your way through shooting a picture story, in great detail. In the first video, Dave tells us about working with a student during a workshop on a story about a woman caring for her 97-year-old father. In this video, we get to hear an actual, unedited conversation between Dave and the student, specifically talking about how to approach the story, the student’s concerns, and Dave’s advice. It’s like being in the huddle with a master coach, and it offers some keen insight into the thought process and problem solving while shooting picture stories. It’s a little longer, but I highly recommend you find a little time to view it. Great advice on shooting and what to look for. Great advice on editing. Just great advice …

Assignment 5: Events

DEADLINE: 5:30 p.m., Monday April 8

 

Primary objectives

One way a professional visual journalist distinguishes his or her work – from the noise created by billions of images on social media – is by creating visual narratives. Learning how to create and use multiple images to capture the spirit and relevance of a news event is how we start. Start practicing the concepts of visual variety. Develop strategies and learn how reading the visual and social cues around you can lead you to the pictures you need to tell the story.

The Assignment:

Create a three-picture package that captures the spirit of a news event.

There are four different perspectives to practice shooting from. Only three pictures are required (and only three, so make your editing process count!), but each picture must demonstrate a different perspective from among the following.

• Long Shot
• Medium Shot
• Close-up
• Detail

I will also be looking for evidence that you are trying to implement some of the strategies we discussed in class. (See Tips below and review the handout/presentation)

Each photo must have a FULL AP Style caption embedded in the image file. Even though three pictures are due, approach your caption writing as if your audience might only see one of your photos. So all info about your picture and the event should be included.

Grades will be based on how your three pictures communicate together, as a whole, not on individual pictures. In other words, you will receive ONE grade for this assignment. Make each photo count. You’re package is only as strong as the weakest photo!

NOTE: Don’t use weather as an excuse. Unless an event is outright cancelled, weather can be part of the story!

Your three pictures (again, only three) are due in your Google Drive folder no later than 5:30 p.m. on Monday, April 8.

 

TIPS for shooting events from our lesson on Covering the News

Understand the story – What’s newsworthy about his event, what’s going on, and why should it matter to my audience? What interpersonal dynamics do you observe? Who are the characters and what are their roles? What is the mood and the energy of the environment? Can you pick up on the visual and social cues presenting themselves to you? If you can answer these questions, you can begin to put yourself in a position to capture key moments before they happen. Observe and anticipate!

Set the scene – Shooting an overall shot can give our audience a sense of scale for the event and how story elements relate to one another. Don’t settle for a boring wide angle shot with no focal point, though. You still have to capture your audience’s attention. Find an unusual or interesting angle. Use creative composition and/or light. Incorporate moments into your composition, if you can.

Shoot symbolic pictures – Details can help tell the story. Composition is extremely important with detail shots. Don’t make mindless “product” shots. Utilize depth-of-field (or lack thereof) and use light effectively.

Watch for the human side – Don’t simply shoot pictures of people “doing stuff.” Emotional appeal is where we set the bar as photojournalists. Capturing emotion and interaction is key. If the event is fun for participants, your pictures should reflect that. If the energy is tense, you pictures should reflect that. Again, photographs can be symbolic. Capture the essence of the event with storytelling moments.

Highlight the sidelights – Look away from the obvious action. Whenever there is an audience or bystanders at an event, their reactions can often tell an important part of the story.

Get behind the scenes – There’s usually a lot that goes into an event that most people don’t see. Try to share some of that with your audience. That might mean having to sell yourself to gain that kind of access. It never hurts to ask.

Steer clear of the pack – Don’t settle for the same shots everyone else is getting. Dare to be different!

Come early, stay late – This is a good way to get behind-the-scenes pictures. Sometimes you can capture moments that are more revealing and instructive when the spotlights are turned off and the TV cameras aren’t rolling. Trust me – I understand the time limitations of college students! If you can’t afford to be there early and late, then choose ONE! Be there early, or stay late. You will reap the benefits.

Get the facts – IDs are a must, but don’t stop there! Don’t forget to gather enough information to help people better understand the context in which your photographs were made. Don’t simply describe the action that’s already obvious in the photo.

Practice visual variety – Explore your subjects! Don’t shoot everything from the same perspective and angle. Explore each scenario you photograph. This will be a major part of your grade!

Assignment 4: Interaction (due April 1)

 DEADLINE: Due in your Google Drive folders no later than 5:30 p.m. on Monday, April 1!

Capturing storytelling moments is at the very heart of photojournalism. Moments are what allow photographs to tell stories and connect with audiences. Timing, anticipation and persistence are perhaps the most important skills for a photojournalist to develop. Also, basic composition gives structure to your photographs so you can better convey the message you intend to share with your audience. This is your chance to start practicing both!

The Assignment:

Photograph three different scenarios that show the way people interact. Your subject can be a person, or an event, or some type of activity you think would be interesting to other people.

Turn in THREE pictures showing:

1. One subject interacting with his or her environment
2. Two people interacting with one another
   
3. Three or more people interacting with one another 

• Concentrate on capturing visual cues: facial expressions, gestures, body language, and actions.
• All photos MUST be candid. No interference or coaching!
• Each photo must be accompanied by a full AP Style caption, embedded into the image file . Review the post or download the handout on AP Captions so you understand the information you need to gather from your subjects as well as the proper form for presentation.
• Practice using the Photographers’s Mantra:

1. Create a focal point
2. Control your background
3. Fill the frame
4. Wait for the moment!

• Your grade will take into account 1) technical quality (focus, exposure, etc.), 2) visual cues/storytelling moments, 3) execution of the Mantra, and 4) AP Style captions.
• Again, your three selections are due on the website no later than 5:30 p.m., Monday, April 1.

 

Interaction Assignment TIPS 

MOVE!

Using the Photographers’s Mantra requires that you move around and explore your subjects from different angles and perspectives. Photography is not a static activity! You need to move around until you create a focal point in your frame. And you might have to move more to control your background and fill the frame. At a certain point, you might find the best place to be. THEN it’s okay to park yourself there and wait for the moment.

Be a witness, but put your subjects at ease

Be as unobtrusive as possible, but you shouldn’t try to ambush your subjects like a paparazzo. You’re not a spy or a voyeur. You’re a witness. Your goal is to capture REAL, honest interaction. Telephoto lenses help with this, but it’s not an option if you don’t have one. It might not even be the best perspective. When you approach subjects, try to exude an aura of trust. Your own body language and manner can make a difference.

You will have to interact with your subjects in order to get enough information for your captions. It is often best to begin shooting and gather information later. If they notice you and are distracted, try to keep shooting until they begin to ignore you and go back to their activities. It’s okay to explain what you are doing to your subjects and the people they interact with. Once you explain, simply ask them to ignore you as best they can. You can usually tell when subjects are playing to the camera. Don’t use these shots, however! Keep shooting until you feel like you are capturing honest moments.

You should be ahead of time so you can be where your subjects are when they are doing something of interest. Just make sure they are not doing something solely for the benefit of you and your camera.

Patience and persistence 

These are the most important attributes to have, if you want to capture storytelling moments. It takes time to put your subjects at ease. It takes time to understand what’s going on in front of you. It takes time to figure out what story you’re trying to tell with your photographs. It takes time to put yourself in the right position to tell that story.

Often, it helps to shoot a lot of pictures, even if you don’t intend to use them. This is how you visually explore your subjects. This is how you practice the Photographers’s Mantra. Even if you think you’ve got a good shot, keep shooting! You might get something better. The best way to learn is to actually shoot pictures – a LOT of them!

Also, the assignment requires exactly three specific scenarios, but I encourage you to shoot more than three. For example, you might photograph people at an event, but over the course of the next week, you might run across a better scenario which better illustrates a person interacting with his or her environment. Don’t settle for the minimum! Always see if you can shoot better pictures than the last ones you shot. The more you shoot, the better you’ll get.

Gather enough information for your captions

The assignment is to help you develop a sense of timing and composition, but you still must be able to explain the nature of the interactions you capture. What are people doing? What are they talking about? Why might the audience care and how can you help them connect to and understand your subjects?

For example, student life is a common topic on a college campus. Your pictures may reflect some aspect of this, but you need to explain WHAT aspect. Are your subjects studying? Are they planning a night out?

You may have captured a great moment, but you need to explain – briefly – what the story is behind that moment in your caption. Make sure you talk to your subjects enough so you can explain the context of the moments you capture.

Content Counts!

While the primary focus of this assignment is to practice capturing storytelling moments and to hone your basic composition skills, choice of subject matter still counts towards your grade. Don’t treat this as a mere exercise for this class. Treat it more like real enterprise assignment for a news publication. Photograph something or someone that is interesting to you. If it’s not interesting to you, it probably won’t be to someone else. Plus, you’ll be more likely to stick with your subjects long enough to capture the necessary moments. It might be worth reviewing the handout Forget Good: Make Your Photos Interesting! It might help you find interesting subjects.

While planning and scheduling is essential, considering carrying your camera with you everywhere you go. You never know when you might run across someone or something interesting to photograph for this assignment. Be ready!

Contact me if you have any questions, and don’t wait too long to get started!

Review of class on 3/25

There is no handout for our last lesson. Start using the “mantra” every time you pick up your camera now!

Here is the full presentation if you want to review the lesson and the assignment with examples:

Presentation: Composition/Timing

Follow-up on class (3/4). Forget Good. Make your photos interesting!

“It is not important if photographs are ‘good.’ 

It’s important that they are interesting.”

– John Loengard, former Life photographer and picture editor

Sure, some people have a “gift” for photography, but you don’t need to have special talent to make interesting, relevant news photographs. It involves more than pushing a button, however. To create photographs that resonate with your audience, pushing that button is one of the last things you do in a long series of actions set in motion by knowledge and experience.

The first half of the semester has been primarily dedicated to learning control: controlling how your images look by understanding your gear, and recognizing the various properties of light. The second half of this semester will be dedicated to exploring the types of photographic assignments that are typical in the news business.

In the news business, the primary goal is for photographs to present authentic depictions of people and events. Our role is to be a witness on behalf of our audience. That means making a commitment to documentary photojournalism – photographing subjects and events in a candid, non-intrusive fashion – as the primary approach for every assignment, whenever possible.

Here is the link to the presentation from class:

Presentation: AP Style Captions/Interesting Photos

And here is the accompanying handout:

Forget Good. Make your photos interesting –Generating and executing newsworthy photo assignments

It might be worth your time to to download the handout and print out the the first page. Use Loengard’s list of “what makes a photo interesting” as you are shooting and/or when you are selecting your pictures for your assignments. Consider it a checklist. If you don’t feel like you are accomplishing one of these things on the list, keep shooting until you reach one of these goals. Or maybe choose a different subject.

 

Remember …

Photo editors are an endangered species in today’s news business. You may not only be charged with producing visuals as a photographer, but you might find yourself playing the role of photo editor – either producing ideas for visual coverage or selecting visuals to accompany text and other multimedia presentations. Arm yourself with the necessary knowledge to produce and use visuals in a productive and ethical fashion.

Know the inherent strengths and weaknesses of photography as a medium for communication, and use that knowledge to help you make decisions about creating and using visuals in reporting the news.

Photographs aren’t simply pretty decorations meant to break up blocks of text on a page, printed or digital. Photography is an important medium for helping our audience understand and appreciate the world around them. Content matters!

Be an enterprise journalist, regardless of what medium you are using to communicate the news! Be proactive, not reactive. If you want to be successful in the communications business, you have to be a producer of content, not someone who waits around for assignments before beginning to work.

Don’t settle for portraits or photographs from staged events. We have an obligation – professionally and ethically – to produce photographs that help our audience connect to our subjects and explain why people and events are newsworthy. Eyetrack studies prove that our audience pays more attention to documentary-style photographs than they do to posed photographs. We are cheating our audience and compromising our journalistic values when we settle for less than a documentary photojournalism approach to our visual reporting.

A documentary approach to visuals requires commitment and time. Don’t ask subjects when they are “free” for a photograph. Ask when they are busy, doing what they do, and make photographs that help your audience connect and understand. Plan accordingly, and learn from your experiences.

 

Captions Matter

First, here is an online link to the requirements for AP Style captions.

AP Style Captions

You can always find this on the class website. If you feel like you need to download this and print it out, here is the PDF version:

AP Style Captions.PDF

Make sure you always gather the required information while you are shooting your future assignments. That means, on occasion, you might have to stop shooting pictures to run someone down and get their information. At the very, very least, IDs for the people in your photographs are required! You might want to have the handout beside you or on your screen the first few times you write AP Style captions. Remember that an AP Style caption embedded in the “description” field of your image is required for every image you turn in for the rest of the semester.

Over on Mark Johnson’s Visual Journalism blog, he explains the importance of captions: Captions Matter

Without captions, it’s just photography, not photojournalism.

The linked article specifically addresses making photographs of people who are grieving, which is one of the hardest tasks for a photojournalist. But the sentiments expressed really apply to any situation. Never assume people won’t talk to you, even in the most traumatic circumstances.

Mark chose one quote to feature. I choose another, by Kenny Irby, who founded the photojournalism program at the Poynter Institute:

“Irby says there are two benefits when photographers introduce themselves and interact with their subjects. One is that they can obtain accurate caption information — which ultimately adds more meaning, value and credibility to the photo for the reader. The other is that it can make the experience of being photographed more rewarding for the subject — even in a moment of extreme grief.”

When you express interest in another person, he or she is less likely to feel violated or spied-upon. We are not voyeurs or paparazzi.

There are many reasons that complete captions accompanying your photographs are a basic professional standard. It’s not an arbitrary formality.

One of the greatest qualities of photography is the ability to help viewers connect with the subjects depicted in photographs. And if that is your goal, it’s difficult to achieve if you – the photographer – do not connect with your subjects. And simply talking to them and recording their information is one of the easiest ways to do this.

Be a journalist, no matter what medium you choose to communicate with!

Portraits assignment grading criteria

Your Portraits assignment is due in your Google Drive folder before class on Monday (2/4). If you haven’t already started shooting, make sure you read over the assignment carefully: A3: Portraits/Light.

Your first two assignments were for credit, as long as you completed them and followed directions. Portraits will be your first graded assignment. We haven’t really discussed Joe Elbert’s Hierarchy since the second class, but you should re-read the handout or review the presentation, because it’s about setting standards for news photography. It’s something I use when grading assignments. As a quick reminder, here is the short version:

1. Informational
2. Graphic Appeal
3. Emotional Appeal
4. Intimate

While strictly informational photos can serve a purpose, our goal is to rise above these rudimentary types of photos. Photos with graphic appeal raise the bar by making your photos more interesting through composition and light. However, remember to set the bar at creating photos with emotional appeal. This is how we best create connections with our audience. And intimate photos are the ultimate goal. The very best news photos often exhibit all of these traits. The Portraits assignment is your first opportunity to start raising the bar with your images.

The following are some of the questions I will ask myself as I evaluate your photographs. I highlighted areas that relate to Elbert’s Hierarchy.

25%: Captions

• Have you written full sentences?
• Are there any typos in your caption? Spelling and grammar count!
• Have you followed AP Style to identify your subject? (The  “Who” part of your caption, just like for the mugshots assignment.)
• Is it clear in your caption why this person might be newsworthy or interesting?
• Have you included at “sign-off” at the end of your caption in parentheses? (Your Name/MMJ3333)
• Is your caption embedded in the “description” field of your image file?

25%: Technical quality

• Is your photograph properly exposed? (Neither too dark nor too light)
• Is your subject sharp and in-focus? (NOTE: if you chose a shallow depth-of-field for your photograph, your subject still needs to be sharp and in-focus. HINT: typically focus on your subject’s eyes – especially for your close-up portrait)
• Is your color balance realistic?

25%: Use of Light

• Does one portrait exhibit soft light and the other hard light?
• Is it obvious, or do I have to guess which is which? (Study the characteristics of each type of light. It should be obvious!)
• Does the light help create a mood or atmosphere that is appropriate for your subject?
• Does the light create graphic appeal that draws interest to your subject through contrast and/or direction?

25%: Content

• Is one image an environmental portrait and the other a close-up featuring your subject’s face?
• Does your portrait exhibit the character, personality, or uniqueness of your subject (emotional appeal!)?
• Does your environmental portrait provide visual cues in order to better understand why your subject might be interesting or newsworthy (information!)?
• Does your portrait exhibit a level of intimacy between your subject and the viewer by revealing something personal or profound? Or by creating a sense of being right there, without the filtering presence of you, the photographer?

 

I will grade each portrait individually, so you will receive two grades, on a scale of 0-100, for this assignment. That way, if you excel at one and the other is not so great, you only need to re-shoot one, if you choose to do so.

Letter grades are as follows:

A (90%+) – Professional quality work. Technical execution, composition, content and captions meet professional standards.

B (80-89%) – Publishable. Competent technical quality and understandable, relevant content. Some correctable flaws.

C (70-79%) – Marginally publishable, but not desirable. Could have good content with technical problems. Could be technically fine, but lacking in journalistic value. A “record shot” which might be fine for social media, but not for professional news publications.

D (60-69%) – Not publishable. Poor technical quality and little-to-no journalistic value. 

F (Below 60%) – Not acceptable. Major technical problems and no journalistic value. Missed deadline.

 

Remember this quote:

“A portrait is not made in the camera but on either side of it” 

– Edward Steichen

A good portrait, or any good news photograph, starts with an interesting subject. And ends with your effort to tell his or her story.

Some of this criteria is specific to the Portraits assignment, but expect much of this (especially Joe Elbert’s Hierarchy) to be considerations for every shooting assignment you have for the rest of the semester.

Contact me if you have any questions.

Assignment 3: Portraits/Light

DEADLINE:  Upload to your Google Drive folder no later than 5:30 p.m., Monday, March 4!

Objectives

While candid, documentary photography is always the preferred approach in photojournalism, sometimes portraits are a valid and necessary approach under certain conditions. Portraits can describe much more than what a person looks like. As with all photojournalism, storytelling is the focus of a journalistic portrait. Also, our understanding about the characteristics of light is key to visual storytelling. Our use of light can help shape the perception of our photographs. 

 

The Assignment:

Create TWO journalistic portraits that go beyond simple snapshots and capture a unique aspect of a subject’s character and personality, and make light part of your storytelling.

Requirements (especially note the requirements in bold-face type)

1. Shoot one environmental portrait – incorporate your subject’s environment into your image to facilitate understanding. You can include full body or head-and-shoulders, or anything in-between. You can include storytelling elements in the foreground or background, or both. You can use props if they help tell your subject’s story.  Your choice of angle or perspective (via lens focal length) and how you arrange everything in your frame can make a difference (composition). Can your use of light help draw interest or set the right tone?  (Review the presentation about visual cues, using props, light and composition! Also, review examples of former students’ work.)
2. Shoot one close-up portrait – concentrate on your subject’s face, giving us a sense your subject’s personality, or create a mood or feeling with light that is appropriate for telling your subject’s story. Props, clothing/headware, expressions, and gestures are in play. You may include head and shoulders if a gesture or body language helps tell your subject’s story, but the face must be the primary focus in this portrait. See examples of closeups in the presentation.
3. One portrait must demonstrate the use of a HARD light source – explore how hard light creates interplay between light and shadow, emphasizing texture, form, and detail and creating dramatic contrast.
4. The other portrait must demonstrate the use of a SOFT light source – explore how diffused light softens features and opens up shadows to reveal details or create a more relaxed, soft mood.
5. You choose which portrait uses soft or hard light, but you must demonstrate the use of each. It should be obvious, so review the lesson on using light.
6. Shoot in manual mode. You choose your camera’s exposure settings. You choose what focal length to set your zoom lens at for a certain perspective. You choose how much depth of field you want in your image, via lens focal length, aperture, and distance to your subject.
7. A full caption must be embedded into your image file in the “Description” field. Caption requirements:

• Full sentences!!! (Aim for 2 sentences, but 3 is acceptable if one of them is a quote from your subject.)
• Follow AP Style for “Who” (just like for the mugshots assignment)
• Include a sign-off at the end of your caption: (your name/MMJ3333)
• Establish newsworthiness in your caption
• What’s interesting about your subject?
• Why should your audience care?
•  Review AP Style captions if you are unsure about style or the required information.

Other considerations

• Your portraits may both be of the same person, or you may select two different people. Select one or two subjects you think others ought to know about. Your choices can be based on personal interests, or simply someone you think is interesting. You must be able to show us and tell us why they might be interesting. Remember to SHOW us first! Create a visual connection between your subject and your audience!
• Use the various characteristics of light to help tell your subject’s story and make your portraits interesting. Is hard light or soft light best? Can the direction of the light help create a mood or visual interest? Is warm light or cool light appropriate for the mood you want to create? You need to think about all these things and incorporate them into your portraits.
• Again, your caption must be adhere to AP Style. Captions are extremely important for portraits to help your audience understand why someone might be noteworthy. A great portrait should be eye-catching, but you still need to explain, in your caption, WHY your subject might be interesting or newsworthy to your audience. This is a good opportunity to add context that might not be included in your portrait and/or use a quote by or about your subject. A couple of sentences should do it.

Upload your TWO portraits, with captions embedded in the “description” field, to your Google Drive folder no later than 5:30 p.m., Monday, March 4.

 

Portrait Assignment TIPS 

Control!

With posed portraits, YOU are in control of nearly everything. You choose the location. The time. How you want your subject to pose. Whether or not to use props. You are in control of everything in your frame – front to back, corner to corner.

Be methodical – THINK your way through this assignment!

Because you have the opportunity to control everything, take advantage. Slow down. Be methodical. Continue to practice shooting in manual mode with back-button focus. Evaluate your light. Move around your subject to see how the available light interacts with your subject. Or have your subject move to best utilize the available light. Shoot lots of pictures and try to draw out your subject’s personality. You might be shooting hundreds of frames to complete this assignment. Keep checking the results with your camera’s playback button as you shoot. That’s okay. Each unsuccessful frame is a learning experience. Even if you think you’ve got it, keep shooting. You might do better!

Technical excellence

Shoot test frames to make sure your exposure is correct and your pictures are in-focus and sharp. There’s no excuse for technical problems with these portraits because you have the time to make corrections.

What’s your subject’s story? 

Be clear about what you are trying to communicate about your subject. Why do you think this person is interesting or notable?

You might want to draw out your subject’s personality, but personality alone doesn’t always make a person newsworthy. What else is unique and interesting about your subject? If your subject’s personality is connected to their notable activities, show us that personality, then explain (in your caption) how it’s relevant to who they are or what they do.

Remember to SHOW us first (that’s your connection point), then tell us.

Read the light

Start using your knowledge of light to help you create a more compelling photograph. You may want to scout locations before you set up any portrait sessions.

Light is especially important with your close-up portrait. Even if your subject is not particularly expressive, dramatic light can help make your portrait eye-stopping and memorable.

Make note of the light quality, direction, and color cast. Think about the characteristics of light and think about how those characteristics can help you tell your subject’s story. Maybe walk around your subject on the scene and see if the light interacts differently with your subject when you change positions or perspective. And think about how those changes affect your photograph.

What tone or atmosphere do you want to set? Bold and dramatic? Light and airy? Open and relaxed? Dark and mysterious? The type of light you choose can make a big difference in your results.

Composition

Composition is extremely important  with environmental portraits.

Carefully evaluate the environment you photograph your subject in. What’s in the foreground? The background? Where are you going to place your subject in relation to his or her environment? What angle are you going to choose? What lens focal length will be best to use? How much depth-of-field do you need? That’s the basic stuff. Can you be more creative and surprise us?

Composition with your close-up portrait is a little less crucial – you should essentially fill the frame with your subject’s face. You can shoot even tighter, featuring one aspect of your subject’s face – the eyes, for example. You can leave some creative compositional space in your frame if you like, but your subject’s face needs to be the clear focus in your close-up portrait.

Make your subject comfortable

You can give some direction about how you want your subject to pose, but try to draw out your subject’s natural personality. Facial expressions, gestures, and body language should honestly reflect your subject’s personality. This is especially key with your close-up portrait.

Talk to your subjects. Ask them questions about themselves to make them comfortable and to learn more about them. Their answers can help you decide what to shoot and how to shoot it, as well as give you additional information to include in your caption.

While light may drive your choice of location, try to photograph them in an environment that’s familiar to them. That can make them more comfortable and give you more options in how you photograph them. See if you can make the environment a meaningful part of your portraits.

As always, feel free to contact me. If you run into stumbling blocks, contact me. Again, I can’t promise to respond right away, but I’ll respond as soon as possible.