Great Black and White Photographers - Part 3

1. What first caught your eye while looking at your photographers photos? Is there something in particular about their photos that made you want to choose them? 

I like Irving Penn because his photos are different, and are of unusual subjects. And one thing that caught my eye about the photos with people in them, their facial expressions are blank compared to how their bodies are positioned, and their scenery. 

2. Look ar those 2 photos you posted last time in the assignment Great Black and White Photographers Part 2. Use your five senses to tell me (Mr. Reeves) more about those photos. 

In the first photo I see all objects, like games pieces and cards. I also see ashes, and two dark drinks. In the second photo I see 11 people, some are standing, some are sitting. There is nothing in the back grounds and ladders. 

In the first photo I smell the drinks and the ashes. In the second photo I smell the sweat from the models because it is hot in the building and they have been there for a long time. 

In the first photo I don't hear anything because everyone is quite so the Penn can concentrate. And I also hear the shutter of the camera. In the second photo I hear the shutter of the camera and the models complaining because they are tired of posing.  

I can't taste anything.  

I feel confused and inspired by the photos. 

3. Finally, what would you like to create to show the world your great photographer. Ideas include, posters, power points, a blog, etc. You tell me (Mr. Reeves) what you would like to create so we can come up with a plan to share your thoughts and ideas about your photographer with your classmates and with the rest of the school. 

Because Irving Penn takes photos of a lot of different things. I would create a powerpoint and separate into categories like; people in black and white, people in color, objects and food. 

Instagram Mural!! :)

1. What theme that we could take here at school could we do a series of these panels to place around the school?
I think whatever we decide to do, it should be something we all have in common.
2. Should we use phones only, or should we open it up to our regular cameras for those people that don't have camera phones?
I think so that everyone can participate we should do camera phones and regular cameras.
3. Where would you want to put the mural on campus?
I think it should be where a lot of people can see it, like somewhere in the front of the school or by the stairs.

Africa and Mural Project

1. My first reactions to the powerpoint were that they were so beautiful not just the animals but the effects on the pictures and how the photographer captured the animals in their natural environment.

Favorite Photo

2.

3. This is my favorite photo because the lions have so much emotion towards one another. It looks like they are talking to each other. And it creates a romantic view. 

4. One rule of photography I see in this photo is simplicity, in the background there is nothing but grass and the empty sky. 

5. Look up the photographer on Google –

a.     What kind of camera did he use?

b.     What is his reason for taking the photos?c.     What is his hope by taking these types of photos?d.     Find something he has to say about Africa and post the quote on your blog"While 35mm cameras with motor drives and long lenses do a great job of capturing action, they miss the personality and soul of both the creatures and the place that they live in." 

He used a Pentax 67 II with 120 film.

He was trying to photograph these animals in very close, deliberate shots.

He wanted to capture them in the context of their world that moves him and enchants himself.

-Nick Brandt

Academic Shoot Preview

Action and Emotion

I consider this a photo filled with action because based on the googles and lab equipment, that the girls are performing a experiment. The photographer snapped the photo at the perfect moment when the chemicals or experiment reacted. 

 Filling the Frame

I find this photo most interesting because there is a lot of people do one experiment. Also, your not sure on what they are doing but the substance on the table looks really cool. And everyone in the photo looks like they are having fun.

The Story

This photo tells a story because the lighting and the way everyone is holding hands, the audience can tell that this something important. You can also see that it has emotion behind it.

Favorite Photo

My favorite photo of the Academic & Community Service section was a high school graduate. You couldn't see his face, but you saw is back and he was holding up his diploma, based on the position he is proud and happy. The is light that is hitting him and it looks as though he is shinning. 

1. Why did you pick this photo?

I picked this photo one because I like the way it looks, and another because hopefully I will get a chance to feel that way this year.
2. What rules of photography are evident in the photo?

Out of all the rules of photography, in this photo I think simplicity is the rule that is shown. Because the photographer could have gotten the audience and everyone in front of him, but he chose to just show the lights and graduate. 

Academic Photo Shoot 

1. Where do you think you could take photos like the ones you look at today?

I would think to take photos in a science class, or gym because they would possibly be doing some sort of hands-on activity.
2. Whose classroom would you like to visit and take photos in?

Visit my science teachers room or an art teachers room.
3. What will you do, as the photographer, to get amazing photos like you look at today?

I would first look for student who are actually doing their work. And try to ind moments with the best action or creativity. 

Touching People

1. What do you think about this project and photo essay?

I like this project because it pushes people to of their comfort zones and the photos are interesting because not many of them are comfortable enough to touch a stranger. 

2. What would you do if someone approached you with a camera and asked you to participate in a photo shoot and then asked you to touch a stranger?

If I were asked to touch a stranger in a photo shoot, I would like to think I would say yeas. But you can never really know until it happens. 

3. Think of an unusual photo shoot similar to this one that you think would be fun to go and shoot.

A photo shoot that I think would be fun is having people take a photo with random props. 

4. Finally, tell me what you thought of the photography, are the photos good? Do you like looking at them?

I think that the photos are simple, but are good. The real thing that catches your eye is all the peoples expressions and their body language. 

40 greatest photos

I picked this photo because of the story behind the photo. Like why the dog was there. Also, because the dogs expression is what makes you feel sad and brings out your emotions. The photographer putting the subject of the photo at the bottom not only draws your attention to the dog but to the other graves. I think that the reason this photo made the top 40 was not only because of the the story but also because of the simple background that rule of thirds.

I picked this photo because it's cute that the little boy is the only civilian who is saluting. The photographer framed the young boy with two soldiers so, that your eyes would only see him. For one thing I think that this photo made the top 40 because it was taken at President John F. Kennedy's funeral. But also because of the framing the photographer used in this photo. 

I picked this photo because I think that it is really cute and adorable. The photographer gets in front of the subjects, not only to see he front of them but to also see all the other soldiers and their families. I think that this photo made the top 40 because he was the only solider that was out of line and reaching out for his son or family. 

Great Black and White Photographers PART 2

Irving Penn

        Biography 

From my previous post, Great and White Photographers Irving Penn is my favorite photographer. He was born June 16, 1917 in Plainfield, New Jersey. His younger brother is Arthur Penn, a film director and producer. Irving Penn attended the Philadelphia Museum School of Industrial Art. It is now known as University of Arts. He attended that school from 1934 to 1938. He studied drawing, painting, graphics, and industrial arts under Alexey Brodovich. He worked for Alexey Brodovich at Harper's Bazaar. Many of Irving Penn's painting were published there. For two years after graduating, he worked as a freelance designer. Then he took Brodovich's position as the art director at Saks Fifth Avenue. He was the art director for a year, then he left for a year to work on painting and photographs in Mexico and across the U.S. After that, he returned to New York, where Alexander Liberman offered him a position as an associate in the Vogue magazine Art Department. He worked there, until Liberman asked him to try photography for the magazine. He worked at Vogue until the 1950's, the he founded his own studio in New York and began making advertising photographs. He met his wife, Lisa Fonssagrives, at a photo shoot in 1947. In 1950, they got married. Two years after that their son, Tom Penn. Lisa died in 1992. Irving Penn died at age, 92 on October 7, 2009 at his home in Manhattan.

Post Shoot Reflection

1. What challenges did you encounter while trying to get the photos of your first 3 prompts (Red, Metal, Happy)

Some challenges I encountered during my first 3 prompts were trying to find subjects that were different and not everyone would think of. 

2. What technical aspects of photography or the assignment in general (focus, framing, holding the camera, etc.) did you find yourself thinking about the most? Provide a specific example of what you did to do this correctly.

I tried to focus in on my subject and eliminate things that were not necessary for the assignment. For example, when I took the picture of the fire alarm, there was flyers and a clock around it so I focused in and just got the fire alarm. 

3. If you could do the assignment again, what would you do differently now that you know some basic rules of photography?

I would have changed the way I placed my subjects. 

4. What things would you do the same?

I would have kept the simplicity of some of my photos. 

5. Finally - go back and edit your blogs with the 3 photos (red, metal, happy), tell me what rules of composition (which you just learned about) did you end up actually achieving? Did you have any?

In my metal photo, the water fountains have a very simple background. It helps the audience focus on the subject and what the prompt is. 

6. Are you interested in shooting those prompts again, why?
I would like to shoot those prompts again only because now that I know how to make my pictures look better, I would like the results more. 

Avoiding Mergers

The photo can be considered a merger because there is no way to tell what is debris and what is still standing. And the smoke surrounding the tower is covering more of the scenery.

Framing

In this photo the destroyed building is focused on because the two still standing buildings are sort of leading your eyes to the tower.

Balance

I think this photo follows the rule of balance because the destroyed tower is in the middle of two still standing towers.

Lines

This photo follows the rule for lines because it has a simple background of soft smoke, and it has a better dynamic because of the diagonal lines.

The Rule of Thirds

The rule of third is a guide in the off-center placement of your subject(s). When I try to determine if a photo is rule of thirds I divide the picture into thirds horizontally and vertically in my head. And when I look at this photo I see the three firefighters in the top and bottom right hand corners.

Simplicity

In this photo the tower is the main subject. Using the plain sky as the background, the photographer simplified and improved the appearance of this photograph. The simplicity rule is suppose to focus on the main subject and not suppose to have the picture look chaotic.