Intro to Self Portraits

Portrait photography can be tough at first because the human face changes from moment to moment. Capturing the best moment requires some persistence and skill, but learning the basics isn't too difficult and can improve the quality of your portraits significantly. Here's a quick overview of what we're going to cover:

• Use shallow depth of field to keep your subject in focus and your background out of focus. If you have a DSLR, certain lenses (like a 50mm or 85mm prime lens) will be more effective.
• Compose your photo well, drawing the eye to the right places and using an interesting setting to create a more interesting portrait.
• Consider color regardless of whether or not the final photo will be in color.
• Make sure you have good lighting, whether you're relying on available light or using an artificial setup.
• Keep your subjects engaged (capture that moment you are looking for, maybe a certain emotion, or facial expression) Capture their personality

Students will be assigned a celebrity, of which they will closely examine their portrait.As they work in pairs, they will answer the following questions. Once they have finished, we will share thoughts, ideas, and opinions with the class.

Questions:

1. What kind of expression\mood is being displayed? How do you know? (Talk about the posture, lighting, setting, etc)

2. If you were to have a re-shoot (meaning you were going to conduct your own photo shoot with this person), what would you change? Why?

3. Now, think about yourself. Ask your partner, and classmates for ideas. What would your self-portrait look like? Where would it be? Lighting? Setting? Posture? and Why?

Celebrity Portraits - Find the celebrity that your group chose (answer questions 1&2 about this photo)

Chris Brown

Derek Rose

George St. Pierre

Albert Einstein

John Mayer

Justin Bieber

Lady Gago

Lil Wayne

Lindsay Lohan

Obama

Oprah

Quentin Tarantino

Ray Charles

Will Smth

Rhiana

RG3

Marilyn Monroe

Selection Tools Portrait Edit

Students will be using selection tools in Photoshop to learn how to manipulate and edit a self portrait. They will be working with adjustments, lasso tool, pen tool, copy and paste options, and several uses of transforming options.

Contact Sheet

Students will design a contact sheet including their photos using the five compositional techniques. This will be their first introduction to Photoshop.

Extreme Angles

There’s always more than one way to photograph a subject. Using different camera angles can make an otherwise boring image really stand out. The more you practice using different angles, the quicker you’ll know what works and what doesn’t.

 

Framing

Framing is the technique of drawing attention to the subject of your image by blocking other parts of the image with something in the scene.

The benefits of framing pictures include:
1. giving the photo context (for example framing a scene with an archway can tell you something about the place you are by the architecture of the archway or including some foliage in the foreground of a shot can convey a sense of being out in nature).

2. giving images a sense of depth and layers (in essence framing a shot generally puts something in the foreground which adds an extra dimension to the shot).

3. leading the eye towards your main focal point (some ‘frames’ can draw your photo’s viewer into the picture just by their shape). Some also believe that a frame can not only draw the eye into a picture but that it keeps it there longer – giving a barrier between your subject and the outside of the shot.

4. intriguing your viewer. Sometimes it’s what you can’t see in an image that draws you into it as much as (if not more than) what you can see in the picture. Clever framing that leaves those viewing your image wondering a little or imagining what is behind your frame can be quite effective (get it wrong and it can also be quite annoying!).

Macro

Macro

 Macro photography is photography magnified. It is generally recognized as “macro” when you are increasing the size of an object in your picture from about half life-size, as represented on the image sensor, to five times life-size.

 

Leading Lines

Leading Lines

One of the tools you can use as a photographer to create a meaningful composition is to use leading lines. Leading lines are used to draw the viewer’s eye through a photograph. They are intentional or unintentional, natural lines created in the space of the photograph and are used to create a visual narrative in the composition. Leading lines are also used to draw your eye to a focal point in the shot that you would like to highlight.

 

 

Compositional Techniques

Rule of Thirds

 

The Rule of Thirds is a simple guideline to help you produce a photo that is more likely to be visually stunning based on how you compose and frame your subject.

1.) What is Rule of Thirds?

You might have already stumbled across Rule of Thirds. Ever seen those “annoying” lines running horizontally and vertically on your camera’s LCD screen? Well, you might think that the grid is there to help you compose everything in the center, but it’s actually quite the opposite.

The basic idea behind Rule of Thirds is to think of a photo divided evenly into thirds.The concept is that by placing main elements and subjects at the power points will create a more balanced photograph and engage the viewer more readily. The photograph would be more aesthetically pleasing and easy on the eye.

 

 

Film Vs. Digital

History of the Camera

Before the invention of photographic processes there was no way to preserve the images produced by these cameras apart from manually tracing them. The earliest cameras were room-sized, with space for one or more people inside; these gradually evolved into more and more compact models such as that by Niépce's time portable handheld cameras suitable for photography were readily available. The first camera that was small and portable enough to be practical for photography was envisioned by Johann Zahn in 1685, though it would be almost 150 years before such an application was possible.

Precision was Key!!

Then it was instant!!

More Advanced and High Quality Film

Point and Shoot Digital Camera

Present Time

Although technology has advanced, what if anything, are we missing by going digital? Is this similar to books? Why or Why not? What are the advantages and disadvantages of digital? If you had your choice, what type of camera would you choose, and why? What type of subject matter would you want to capture? Consider that you could be anywhere, anytime, at any given place.