12/14/09

FALL '09 WEEK 14


TODAY IS FINAL CLASS:
-finish Final Projects.
-11:00am critique.

FINAL PROJECT:
PART 1
The final edit images must be submitted to the DROP folder.
NO FOLDERS, just images.
15-20 different images, no more than 20.
  • Project should include at least one: vertical, detail, and overall.
  • At least (8) photos must contain people.
  • Each image must be captioned properly in File Info.
  • The first image in your series MUST have a brief summary of your project, in addition to the caption. 2-3 sentences, be brief and concise.
  • Each image must be slugged properly lastname_final 01.jpg, lastname_final 02.jpg, etc
  • Each image must be cropped, toned, sized, etc in Photoshop
  • Each image should be sized to 10 inches at longest side, 200dpi
  • Each image should be less than 2MGS. Save it at a lower compression if too big.
  • Sequence your images in the best story telling manner.

PART 2
Create an audio slide show in soundsslides (SOUNDSLIDES TUTORIAL),
about 1-3 minutes long.
This should consist of audio of your Final Project subject; interview, ambient sound, narration, music, etc. Project does not need to consist of all these audio elements, only those required to create an effective story-telling piece. Decide which is the best approach for your particular subject.
  • Use no more than 30 photos. Keep the piece under 3-minutes.
  • Edit audio is Audacity (AUDACITY TUTORIAL) or similar audio editing software.
  • Submit just the "publish to web" folder.
  • Slug: lastname_soundslide
  • Submit folder to the DROP.
  • Be sure to start with opening text title slide.
  • If necessary include a brief explanatory text page. Check for typos and usage errors.
  • Create in Photoshop.
  • If any additional credits are required, such as for music, be sure to give proper credit with a closing text slide at the end. Create in Photoshop.

12/7/09

FALL '09 WEEK #13



SUBMIT FINAL PROJECT PHOTOS:
Place in DROP folder. Be sure to slug them correctly:
lastname_finalproject01.jpg
(continue numbers from previous weeks submission)

TODAY
1. Return and review exams
2. 10 Ways to do better Multimedia, by Media Storm.
3. Look at some soundslides and multimedia
4. Final projects

Next week is final class:
FINAL PROJECT:
-The Final Project is due Monday December 14th during FINAL CLASS, attendance required.
This is a firm deadline, no exceptions

PART 1
The final edit images must be submitted to the DROP folder.
NO FOLDERS, just images.
15-20 different images, no more than 20.
  • Project should include at least one: vertical, detail, and overall.
  • At least (8) photos must contain people.
  • Each image must be captioned properly in File Info.
  • The first image in your series MUST have a brief summary of your project, in addition to the caption. 2-3 sentences, be brief and concise.
  • Each image must be slugged properly lastname_final 01.jpg, lastname_final 02.jpg, etc
  • Each image must be cropped, toned, sized, etc in Photoshop
  • Each image should be sized to 10 inches at longest side, 200dpi
  • Each image should be less than 2MGS. Save it at a lower compression if too big.
  • Sequence your images in the best story telling manner.

PART 2
Create an audio slide show in soundsslides (SOUNDSLIDES TUTORIAL),
about 1-3 minutes long.
This should consist of audio of your Final Project subject; interview, ambient sound, narration, music, etc. Project does not need to consist of all these audio elements, only those required to create an effective story-telling piece. Decide which is the best approach for your particular subject.
  • Use no more than 30 photos. Keep the piece under 3-minutes.
  • Edit audio is Audacity (AUDACITY TUTORIAL) or similar audio editing software.
  • Submit just the "publish to web" folder.
  • Slug: lastname_soundslide
  • Submit folder to the DROP.
  • Be sure to start with opening text title slide.
  • If necessary include a brief explanatory text page. Check for typos and usage errors.
  • Create in Photoshop.
  • If any additional credits are required, such as for music, be sure to give proper credit with a closing text slide at the end. Create in Photoshop.

11/30/09

FALL '09 WEEK #12

Detroit Foreclosures by Bruce Gilden
Multimedia presentation on the effects of the foreclosure crisis in Detroit, Michigan.

EXAM TODAY; 9:45-11:15.

SUBMIT FINAL PROJECT PHOTOS:
Place in DROP folder. Be sure to slug them correctly:
lastname_finalproject01.jpg

For next week:
1. Be sure to review these examples of good multimedia, see below.
2. Study list of MULTIMEDIA TUTORIAL LINKS, see below.
3. Continue to shoot your subject, and edit. You should be at least 3 weeks into your project.
4. Submit new photos to the DROP folder.
5. Check GRADED ASSIGNMENTS folder, be sure all submitted work has been graded.
6. Only two-weeks remaining. December 14th is last class.

Good examples of Multimedia

The Last Days of W, by Alec Soth/Magnum
Washington DC, Center of a Nation, by Paolo Pellegrin/Magnum
Fore-closures in Detroit, by Bruce Gilden/Magnum
Aging in America, by Ed Kashi
Love in the First Person, by Matt Eich
Undying Love, by Patrick Davison
Music Therapist, by Thomas E. Franklin
The Elvis of Glen Rock, by Thomas E. Franklin
The Blacksmith, by Thomas E. Franklin
The Horse-Whisper, by Thomas E. Franklin

good MULTIMEDIA TUTORIAL LINKS

INTERVIEW TIPS
VOICE-OVER TIPS
iMOVIE HD TUTORIAL
SOUNDSLIDES TUTORIAL
AUDACITY AUDIO EDITOR TUTORIAL
VARIOUS RECORDING DEVICES

Ten ways to improve your multimedia production, by Media Storm.

11/22/09

FALL '09 WEEK #11

photo by Elliott Erwitt / Magnum

AGENDA

  1. ASSIGNMENT #09 Illustration
  2. Let's look, Soundslide, ASSIGNMENT #09 SOUNDSLIDE TOWN
  3. History of Photojournalism; W. Eugene Smith, Elliott Erwitt, Eddie Adams, Charles Moore, James Nachtwey
  4. Ethics
  5. Final Project , lets see
  6. War Photographer, James Nachtwey
FOR NEXT WEEK:
  1. War Photographer, ; finish watching the film.
  2. EXAM; 9:45-11am.
  3. FINAL PROJECTS: get working, put 15-25 new images in the Drop for next week.
  4. CATCH-UP: submit ALL missed assignments and red-do's.
  5. STUDY: FINAL SALUTE, By Todd Heisler
  6. NPPA CODE OF ETHICS -study


11/20/09

War Photographer -James Nachtwey

"I have been a witness, and these pictures are
my testimony. The events I have recorded should
not be forgotten and must not be repeated."

-James Nachtwey
website



















11/19/09

ELLIOTT ERWITT

ELLIOTT ERWITT
American, b. (Paris) 1928-
WEBSITE



Born in Paris of Russian parents, Erwitt emigrated to the US with his family in 1939. He studied photography in Los Angeles City College (1942-1944) then film at the New School for Social Research ( 1948-1950). After serving as a photographic assistant in the United States Army Signal Corps in Germany and in France, Erwitt met Edward Steichen, Robert Capa and Roy Stryker, former head of the fabled Farm Security Administration in 1950 and worked under him for Standard Oil Company.
From 1950 to 1952, Erwitt was a freelance photographer for Collier's, Look, Life and Holiday. He became a Magnum associate in 1953 and a full member in 1954.
Erwitt has shot journalistic essays throughout the world and numerous commercial assignments for Air France, KLM, Chase Manhattan Bank, among many others.
Since the 1970s, he has turned much of his energy toward movies. His feature films, television commercials and documentaries include "Beauty Knows No Pain" (1971), "Red, White and Bluegrass" (1973) and the prize-winning "Glassmakers of Herat, Afghanistan" (1977).
Following the publication of his book "Son of Bitch," he became famous as a maker of funny pictures where dogs play the starring role, and his work has been exhibited in museums and galleries worldwide.

11/14/09

FALL '09 WEEK #10


Life was the first all-photography U.S. news magazine and dominated the market for more than forty years. Life celebrated the "photo essay." Life was wildly successful for generations before its prestige was diminished by economics and changing tastes. Since 1972, Life has twice ceased publication and resumed in a different form, before ceasing once again with the issue dated April 20, 2007. Recently, the brand name continues on the Internet. -Wikipedia

AGENDA

  1. All Photojournalist Papers are due, put word doc in DROP: lastname_paper.doc.
  2. History of Photojournalism; Joe Rosenthal, Robert Capa, Magnum
  3. Photojournalism categories
  4. Illustrations
  5. ASSIGNMENT #09 Illustration
  6. Lauren Greenfield's Girl Culture
  7. Discuss your Final Project ideas if uncertain. Proposal due today.
  8. Let's look, ASSIGNMENT #08a CITY or TOWN
  9. Audio slideshows lesson
  10. Complete Soundslide, ASSIGNMENT #09 SOUNDSLIDE TOWN

Upcoming dates of importance
-Get started on Final Projects, drop 8-10 photos in DROP.

-EXAM DATE CHANGED
11/30/09 9:45am sharp.

-No make-up exams.
-review all the Power Point Presentations. Especially if you were absent.
-Be aware that many of the PPP’s contained more material than we discussed in class.
-visit web sites/links listed in the PPP’s & BLOG.
-review all entries on the class blog this semester: http://ramapophotoj.blogspot.com/
-make sure you have completed all the reading assignments.
-be sure you understand each shooting assignment & different types of photos.
-review all photo essays discussed\assigned in class, and those in the PPP’s.
-be familiar with important photographers, agencies, publications, discussed in class.
-Read & study all docs in PHOTOGRAPHER’s BIO’s folder.
-Know their names, their work, their era (no dates), why they are important.

ASSIGNMENT #10 Illustration

ASSIGNMENT #10 Illustration (Due Monday November 23)

Part I:
Make an Illustration
Make an illustration for the following topic:

The War in Iraq has been a costly war.

Research and select one dimension of this military conflict that has been costly and make an illustrative image.
Remember, an illustration is a Non-Documentary photograph, and can be completely set up, manipulated, or orchestrated. Make the image has a message. Make sure it is executed with a clear preconceived visual solution.
The image’s message must be communicated clearly.
This is an opportunity to take an idea and transform it into a representative visual, with manipulated guidance. BE CREATIVE AND CONCEPTUAL.
Photo can be montage, multiple images, computer or darkroom altered images.
Image alteration is allowed, BUT not required.

*Students must complete:
1. Select (1) best photo.
2. SLUG PHOTO AS FOLLOWS:
Last name_illustration.jpg EXAMPLE: franklin_ illustration.jpg
3. Place image in the “drop folder.”

PART II:
READING:
Visual Journalism
By Christopher Harris & Paul Martin Lester
Read pages 87-129 (see handout)
Documentary Assignments & Manipulated Assignments

PART III:
READING:
History of Photojournalism; ( see photographers bios or the Blog)
HENRI CARTIER-BRESSON, ELLIOTT ERWITT, EDDIE ADAMS, CHARLES MOORE

FALL '09 ASSIGMENT #09; SOUNDSLIDE CITY OR TOWN (PART 3)

ASSIGNMENT #09 SOUNDSLIDE FOR CITY OR TOWN (PART 3)
(Due 11/23/09)
Complete audio slideshow of photo essay on a selected place.

PART 1.
Finish shooting and editing photos

PART 3.
MAKE SOUNDLSLIDE
1. Title slide
2. Closing text slide, credits.
Include special text:
This multimedia presentation is not for publication. For educational purposes only.
3. Use music. Give credit at the end.

*FOR NEXT WEEK, students must submit:
1. Create Soundslide folder
2. SLUG FOLDER AS FOLLOWS:
Last name_townname
EXAMPLE: franklin_hoboken
3. Place project folder in the “drop folder.”

11/13/09

FLAG-RAISING AT IWO JIMA by Joe Rosenthal

FLAG-RAISING AT IWO-JIMA
On Feb. 23, 1945, Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal captured the Pulitzer Prize-winning picture of Marines raising the flag on Mount Suribachi, Iwo Jima. He recalled, "I could only hope that it turned out the way that I looked at it through the finder." During World War II, Rosenthal also covered the invasions of New Guinea and Guam. Joe Rosenthal died on August 20, 2006 at the age of 94.

FILM FOOTAGE OF ACTUAL FLAG RAISING: see film

ASSAULT LANDINGS ON IWO JIMA: video

PULITZER PRIZE WINNING PHOTO: see video

FEELINGS ABOUT ICONIC IMAGE: see video

NY TIMES OBITUARY: read

11/12/09

FINAL PROJECT

The Final Project is a 4-6 week project that requires each student to spend significant time with a chosen subject, to produce a well-crafted, in-depth photo essay. The Photo Essay is equivalent to a Final Exam.

Each student must submit a written proposal; which must meet the requirements of the assignment and approval by the instructor.

The Final Project is NOT a single event or photo shoot. It should be about a subject of social importance and worthy of a 4-6 week essay. The essay should tell a story.
Each student must develop their essay on a week-to-week basis, and bring photos in each week for critique.

The final essay will consist of an 15-20 images submitted to the DROP folder, as well as a finished slideshow with audio.

The Final Project makes 25% of your grade and is due the final week.


Due Monday November 16th
WRITTEN PROPOSAL FOR FINAL PROJECT / Photo Essay

Each student must submit a well-written, thoroughly planned proposal (250 words or 3-4 paragraphs). The proposal must be an examined, well-planned, and strongly supported idea.
Your proposal will be evaluated and part pf your grade.
Select a story idea, theme, or subject that will be both interesting and visual. You will need to photograph this subject in various stages over the final 4-5 weeks, so make it something good! Something you can spend time with and revisit multiple times.
It should be a subject worthy of a photo essay. Think of some of the work we have reviewed in class. It must also be accessible to you. Don’t select a subject that you can’t get to each week, select an idea that is do-able.
Do NOT select an uninteresting and simplistic subject, such as; my roommate, my dog, or my girlfriend/boyfriend. Select something that has substance, something complex that can be revisited many times and in different ways.

The proposal should outline in detail 4-5 different aspects that you can document, not just one thing repeated each week. This how real photojournalists get their work published. They pitch story ideas to editors. Each story proposal usually has to be approved by a series of editors, and a poorly throughout proposal will quickly dismissed by an editor.



REQUIREMENTS:

-The Final Project is due
Monday Dec. 14th. During FINAL CLASS, attendance required.

PART 1
The final edit must be submitted to the DROP folder.
-Each project must consist of at least 15 different images, no more than 20.
-Project should include at least one: vertical, detail, and overall.
-At least (8) photos must contain people.
-Each image must be captioned properly in File Info.
-The first image in your series MUST have a brief summary of your project, in addition to the caption. 2-3 sentences, be brief and concise.
-Each image must be slugged properly
(lastname_final 01.jpg, lastname_final 02.jpg, etc
-Each image must be cropped, toned, sized, etc in Photoshop
-Each image should be sized to 10 inches at longest side, 200dpi
-Each image should be less than 2MGS. Save it at a lower compression if too big.
-Sequence your images in the best story telling manner.

PART 2
Create an audio slide show using SOUNDSLIDES.
This should consist of audio and photos.
Audio may be: subject; interview, ambient sound, narration, music, etc.

Project does not need to consist of all these audio elements, only those required to create an effective story-telling piece. Decide which is the best approach for your particular subject.

Use no more than 30 photos.
Keep the piece under 3-minutes.
Edit in SOUNDSLIDES.

  • Use no more than 30 photos. Keep the piece under 3-minutes.
  • Edit audio is Audacity (AUDACITY TUTORIAL) or similar audio editing software.
  • Submit just the "publish to web" folder.
  • Slug: lastname_soundslide
  • Submit folder to the DROP.
  • Be sure to start with opening text title slide.
  • If necessary include a brief explanatory text page. Check for typos and usage errors.
  • Create in Photoshop.
  • If any additional credits are required, such as for music, be sure to give proper credit with a closing text slide at the end. Create in Photoshop.


-YOU WILL BE GRADED ON WELL YOU MEET THESE REQUIREMENTS, AS WELL AS THE OVERALL IMPACT OF YOUR PHOTOS.

-PROJECT SHOULD REFLECT 4-5 WEEKS OF WORK.

PLEASE FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS CAREFULLY!

FINAL PROJECT CHECKLIST:
1. be sure you submitted to the DROP updated final proposal, if you changed topics.
Slug: franklin_finalproposal.doc
2. make sure all photos are captioned.
3. sequence photos, take special care to put photos in order.
4. slug photos properly.
5. Photoshop & size each image properly.
6. submit 15-20 final photos to the DROP when you are done
Slug: lastname_final01.jpg, lastname_final02.jpg, etc.

MAGNUM PHOTOS, photo agency

Magnum Photos is a prestigious international photographic cooperative founded by Robert Capa, Chim, Henri Cartier-Bresson, William Vandivert and George Rodger in Paris in 1947. It is wholly owned and controlled by its members. They select its staff, establish its business practices, and share in its profits.

Inge Bondi writes that Magnum was the first photographers' cooperative and it had a spirit of unusual independence and tolerance.

Magnum's members have established an unparallelled standard of photographic excellence and quality to become a vital force in contemporary photojournalism. A New York office was opened in 1947, and the agency also has offices in London and Tokyo, with approximately 50 members.

Magnum was founded when Robert Capa, Henri Cartier-Bresson and David Seymour, who had been friends before World War II, were reunited unexpectedly in liberated Paris at the war's end. Capa conceived the organization as a fraternal forum for professional photographers as well as a training ground for young talented persons, and as an association that would combine the support of a group with much individual freedom for each photographer. The three men decided to name the cooperative "Magnum" --after the two-quart bottle of champagne. Capa is credited with doing much to energize, market, and promote the agency once it was incorporated in the spring of 1947, with initial capital of less than $2000.

Magnum was, from its inception, an international enterprise and has been called "a miniature United Nations". Each of its charter members assumed responsibility for the coverage of a different geographic area. Capa was the only roving photographer; Chim was to cover Europe; Cartier-Bresson: India and the Far East, Vandivert: the United States, and Rodger: Africa. Magnum continues as a successful photographic cooperative with offices in New York and Paris.

ROBERT CAPA

Robert Capa, nee Andre Friedmann,
(1913-1954),

Robert Capa (1913-1954), nee Andre Friedmann, was born in Budapest in 1913. Like many of his student companions of the thirties, he was keenly involved in the political turmoil of the period, and at the age of 18 found it expedient to leave Hungary. He moved on to Berlin and then Paris, where Chim persuaded the editors of Regards to give Capa a job covering the Front Populaire movement.
In 1936, Capa went to Spain to cover the Spanish Civil War with his friend Gerda Taro, nee Gerda Pohorylles. By that time, he was using the camera as a means of expression and setting on film the political life around him. Her tragic death ended her photographic career and left a deep scar on Capa's personality.
Capa went on to cover the Second World War from 1941 to 1945 in European theatre, and received the Medal of Freedom Citation from General Dwight D. Eisenhower. His photographs of the D-Day landing are classics. He became known as the quintessential war photographer though war was not the only subject of his camera.
In 1947, with his friends, David Seymour "Chim", Henri Cartier-Bresson, George Rodger and Bill Vandivert, he began a picture agency named Magnum. He spent the next few years making Magnum into a successful cooperative, and photographing the good times with his artist friends, including Picasso, Ernest Hemingway and John Steinbeck.
While visiting pre-war friends in Japan he was called to replace another photographer on a LIFE assignment in Indochina. Capa took the assignment, and was killed after stepping on a land mine, the first American correspondent to die in Indochina.
Steinbeck said of Capa: "The effect of Capa will be found in the men who worked with him. They will carry a little part of Capa all their lives and perhaps hand him on to their young men." Of photography, Capa said, "If your pictures aren`t good enough, you aren't close enough."

International center for Photography. ICP


American, b. (Budapest) 1913 - d. (Indochina) 1954

On December 3, 1938, Picture Post introduced "The Greatest War Photographer in the World: Robert Capa" with a spread of 26 photographs taken during the Spanish Civil War at the battle of Ebro.
The "greatest war photographer" hated war. He was born Andre Friedman, a Jew from Budapest, and studied political science at the Deutsche Hochschule für Politik in Berlin (1931-33). At the same time he was working part-time in the lab of the Ullstein magazines group to whom he sold his first published picture of Leon Trotsky's 1931 Copenhagen meeting. Driven out of the country by the beginnings of the Nazi regime, he settled in Paris in 1933.
In Paris he participated in the beginnings of the agency Alliance Photo and met the journalist and photographer, Gerda Taro. Together they invented the "famous" American photographer Robert Capa and sold his prints under that name. He met many artists, among them Picasso and Hemingway, and began friendships with colleagues that would be essential in the creation of Magnum, such as David "Chim" Seymour and Henri Cartier-Bresson.
Beginning in 1936, Capa's coverage of the Spanish Civil War appeared regularly in Vu, Regards, Ce Soir, Weekly Illustrated and Life. His 1936 picture of the Loyalist soldier falling to his death brought him international reputation and became a powerful symbol of war. In Spain Capa also shot newsreels for March of Time, Time-Life's film department.
After his companion Gerda Taro was killed in Spain Capa traveled to China (1938), then emigrated to New York in 1939. From 1939-45 he photographed World War II (most famously the landing of American troops in Omaha beach, the Liberation of Paris and the battle of the Bulge) as a Life and Collier's correspondent in Europe.
In 1947 he founded Magnum Photos, in conjunction with Henri Cartier-Bresson, David Seymour, George Rodger and William Vandivert. The next year Capa traveled to Russia with John Steinbeck, and from 1948-1950 to Israel with Irwin Shaw, completing the first of a number of stories for Holiday. In 1951 he became president of Magnum and initiated several group projects involving all his colleagues.
Robert Capa died on May 25, 1954, in Thai-Binh, Indochina, after stepping on a land mine while photographing for Life. He was awarded the War Cross with Palm by the French army. The Robert Capa Gold Medal Award was established in 1955 to reward exceptional professional merit.

MAGNUM PHOTOS

11/7/09

FALL '09 WEEK #9


photo by DOROTHEA LANGE / FSA
  1. Let's look, ASSIGNMENT #07 FLASH USE\ALBUM COVER
  2. Let's look, ASSIGNMENT #08 CITY or TOWN
  3. History of Photojournalism; FSA, DOROTHEA LANGE and her MIGRANT MOTHER, WEEGEE, LIFE MAGAZINE
  4. Look at former students final projects, Audio Slideshows
  5. Proposal for your final project due next week
  6. REMINDER: Photojournalist Paper Due 11/16/09
  7. National Geographic photo essays
  8. Audio

11/4/09

FALL '09 ASSIGMENT #08; CITY OR TOWN (PART 2)

ASSIGNMENT #08 CITY OR TOWN
(Due 11/16/09)
Photo essay on a selected place

PART 1.
READING:
History of Photojournalism; ( see photographers bios or the Blog)
1. MAGNUM
2. ROBERT CAPA

PART 2.
Charlie Rose interview with National Geographic women photographers


PART 3
SHOOTING ASSIGNMENT
Continue shooting the interesting town, place, or neighborhood, in the manner of a National Geographic photo essay, see the "Places of a Lifetime."

Go to same location, but at a differnet time of day/night, as this is a multiple-week assignment. Explore the place, further and produce a diverse set of images.

Shoot photos at various times of the day and night. Use all the techniques and strategies we've discussed in class. Focus on the people, not just the places.
use your flash if necessary.

*FOR NEXT WEEK, students must submit:
1. Select (10-15) ADDITIONAL best photos.
2. Caption photos.
3. SLUG PHOTO AS FOLLOWS:
Last name_townname_01.jpg, Last name_townname_02.jpg
EXAMPLE: franklin_ hoboken.jpg
4. Place images in the “drop folder.”

PART 4
Select a piece of music, original or not, and bring to class in MP3 format. WAVE files are OK also. Select and appropriate piece that goes well with you subject.

11/1/09

FALL '09 WEEK #8

There will be no class tomorrow 11/2.
Please submit ASSIGNMENT #07 FLASH USE\ALBUM COVER to the DropFolder by the end of the day. (otherwise you will be marked late and lose points).

For next week, please be sure you have read the reading assignments from last week and this week, and completed shooting Assignment #08.

See you next week

10/31/09

FALL '09 ASSIGMENT #08; CITY OR TOWN (PART 1)

ASSIGNMENT #08 CITY OR TOWN
(Due 11/9/09)
Photo essay on a selected place

PART 1.
READING:
History of Photojournalism; ( see photographers bios or the Blog)
1. FSA
2. WEEGEE
3. LIFE MAGAZINE

PART 2
Log onto the National; Geographic website; "Places of a Lifetime."
Stdy some of the photo essays.
http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/places/places-of-a-lifetime.html


PART 3
SHOOTING ASSIGNMENT
Select an interesting town, place, or neighborhood, and shoot a photo essay in the manner of a National Geographic photo essay, see the "Places of a Lifetime."

Be sure you select a location you can go back to next week, as this is a multiple-week assignment.
Be sure you select a location that is visual and interesting. Explore the place, and produce a diverse set of images.

Shoot photos at various times of the day and night. Use all the techniques and strategies we've discussed in class. Focus on the people, not just the places.
use your flash if necessary.

*FOR NEXT WEEK, students must submit:
1. Select (10-15) best photos.
2. Caption photos.
3. SLUG PHOTO AS FOLLOWS:
Last name_townname_01.jpg, Last name_townname_02.jpg
EXAMPLE: franklin_ hoboken.jpg
4. Place images in the “drop folder.”

10/24/09

FALL '09 WEEK 7

photo by THOMAS E. FRANKLIN/ NorthJersey.com

TODAY'S AGENDA

1. Photos of the Week
2. Let's look, ASSIGNMENT #6; Covering a Live Event
3. Editing photos; Giants vs. Arizona
4. Adding text using Adobe Photoshop
5. ASSIGNMENT #07 FLASH USE\ALBUM COVER
6. Look at former students final projects
7. Three idea's for your final project for discussion.
8. REMINDER: Photojournalist Paper
Due 11/16/09
9. Lauren Greenfield's Girl Culture


MISC
EXAM: November 23th. Mark it down now, no make-up exams will be given.

REMINDER: Please slug and caption your photos correctly, do not be careless
-it's costing many of you valuable grade points.

10/22/09

ASSIGNMENT #07 FLASH USE/ALBUM COVER

ASSIGNMENT #07 FLASH USE/ALBUM COVER
(Due 11/2/09)
Flash Usage (2 parts) Rock Star

PART 1.
READING:
National Geographic Ultimate Field Guide
Read pages 25, 95-103, 103-117

Guide to Photojournalism
By Brian Horton
Read pages 79-101“Features and Portraits; Seeing the World Around Us.”

Visual Journalism
By Christopher R. Harris & Paul Martin Lester
Read pages 63-86“Technical Considerations.”

PART 2
History of Photojournalism; FSA ( see photographers bios or the Blog)

PART 3
SHOOTING ASSIGNMENT (2) PARTS
Find a musician(s) to photograph, or an actor(s) to play a musician, and make an album/CD cover shots USING YOUR FLASH both indoors and outdoors. Also, add album title/artist text using Adobe photoshop. Plan your text placement before composing your images. Save image as Photoshop document

PART A
Photograph your musician indoors using a camera flash.
Be creative, and make personality driven images, highlighted by excellent lighting. Make well-composed and expressive photos of a person using your flash. Must be taken indoors.
***You will be graded on your creativity and use of flash.***
-Flash use should be executed perfectly.
-Set proper white balance setting be sure to have correct white balance usage.
-Use bounce flash whenever possible.
-AVOID: red eye, shadows behind heads, and other forms of sloppy flash use.

Keep in mind some of the elements of good composition, avoiding; cluttered and distracting backgrounds, objects appearing behind heads, dead space, etc. Fill the frame, making interesting, personality-filled photos, that have impact.
Composition, positioning, background, lighting, and lens selection should all be taken into consideration.
-consider the various flash techniques, such as: bounce flash, fill-flash, diffused flash.

PART B
Photograph your musician outdoors using a camera flash. This should be a different set-up than the indoor images.
Can be taken during daytime, night-time, or twilight.
Be creative, and make personality driven images. Make well-composed and expressive photos of a person using your flash. Must be taken indoors.
***You will be graded on your creativity and use of flash.***
-Flash use should be executed perfectly.
-Set proper white balance setting, be sure to have correct white balance usage.
-Use bounce flash whenever possible.
-AVOID: red eye, shadows behind heads, and other forms of sloppy flash use.

Keep in mind some of the elements of good composition, avoiding; cluttered and distracting backgrounds, objects appearing behind heads, dead space, etc. Fill the frame, making interesting, personality-filled photos, that have impact.
Composition, positioning, background, lighting, and lens selection should all be taken into consideration.
-consider the various flash techniques, such as: bounce flash, fill-flash, diffused flash.

*Study methods discussed in class and in reading material.

*Students must complete:

1. Select (1) best photo for each part.
2. Add text: album title and artist name
3. Save image as Photoshop document, NOT JPG.
4. SLUG PHOTO AS FOLLOWS:
Last name_flash00.jpg
EXAMPLE: franklin_ flash01.psd
franklin_ flash02.psd
5. Place images in the “drop folder.”

10/16/09

FALL '09 WEEK #6


photo by THOMAS E. FRANKLIN / The Record
LOCATION LIGHTING. Was a camera flash used in this photo, in mid-day sun?

TODAY'S AGENDA
  1. Photos of the Week; MSNBC
  2. Let's look, ASSIGNMENT #5; Light
  3. Due next week: ASSIGNMENT #6; Covering a Live Event
  4. Lesson; LIGHT part II; Flash Use
  5. Photojournalist Paper. Have you made contact yet?
  6. History of Photojournalism; Jacob Riis & Lewis Hine
  7. Bring your camera to class next week, ready to use
  8. UPSTATE NY; Brenda Ann Kenneally
  9. CROSSES; Carmine Galasso
  10. NEXT WEEK; Bring three ideas for your final project for discussion.

10/15/09

UPSTATE GIRLS -Brenda Ann Kenneally

Upstate Girls; What Became of Collar City

Brenda Ann Kenneally:

As a journalist and activist I have dedicated my life to exploring the how and why of class inequity in America, I am concerned with the internalized social messages that will live on for generations after our economic and social policies catch up with the reality of living on the bottom rung of America’s upwardly mobile society. My project explores the way that money is but a symptom of self worth and a means by which humans separate from each other. Poverty is an emotional rather than physical state with layers of marginalization to cement those who live under them into their place. The economic crisis as it is called has done some to take the moral sting out of being poor, though the conversation remains centered on economic rather than social stimulus relief. Thus indicating that it is those that are recently without money rather than Americans whose ongoing struggles left them un-phased by the headlines.

My project has followed seven women for five years as their escape routes out of generational poverty have lead to further entrapments. Read more.

Photos

All Video (vimeo)




Upstate Girls - What Became of Collar City from The Raw File on Vimeo.

10/14/09

CROSSES -by Carmine Galasso


Photographer Carmine Galasso's recent book, Crosses: Portraits of Clergy Abuse, shows the huge, personal price paid by survivors of clergy sex crimes and their struggle to seek justice from a Catholic Church intent on covering it up. Read more

10/12/09

JACOB RIIS & LEWIS HINE


WNPR -Shedding light on NYC's 'other half'
 Photos

JACOB RIIS
American, 1849-1914
see PHOTOS

America's first journalist-photographer, in fact a muckraker with a camera, Jacob Riis was known at the turn of the century as the "Emancipator of the Slums" because of his work on behalf of the urban poor. His brutal documentation of sweatshops, disease-ridden tenements, and overcrowded schools aroused public indignation and helped effect significant reform in housing, education, and child-labor laws.
Riis was self-taught. His photographs, taken over a 10-year period, were made without artistic intent, yet they deeply influenced the course of American documentary photography. Riis wrote: "I came to take up photography ... not exactly as a pastime. It was never that for me. I had to use it, and beyond that I never went." The camera was a weapon of propaganda he wielded in his fight to ameliorate the living conditions of countless underprivileged people who would have remained unseen if not for his passionate social concern.
Riis was born in Ribe, Denmark, the third in a family of 15 children (one of them adopted). In opposition to his father's wishes, he was a carpenter's apprentice in Copenhagen from 1866 to 1870, when he emigrated to the United States.
Riis lived in poverty in New York City for some time before he found a job with a news bureau in 1873. He became a police reporter for the New York Tribune and the Associated Press in 1877. Horrified by the squalor of immigrant life, he began a series of exposes on slum conditions on New York's Lower East Side. In 1884 he was responsible for the establishment of the Tenement House Commission.
In 1888 he left the Tribune for the Evening Sun and began work on his book How the Other Half Lives. Riis was among the first photographers to use flash powder, which enabled him to photograph interiors and exteriors of the slums at night. He worked at first with two assistants but soon found it necessary to take his photographs himself. Primarily a writer, he wanted pictures to document and authenticate his reports, and to supply the vividness that would ensure attention.
Sections of How the Other Half Lives appeared in Scribner's magazine in December 1889. The full-length book attracted immediate attention upon publication some months later and was reprinted several times. It had a powerful and lasting effect on movements for many kinds of social reform.
For the next 25 years Riis continued to write and lecture extensively on the problems of the poor. He published over a dozen books, including his autobiography, The Making of an American (1901), and many articles. He became known as "the father of the small parks movement" after his success in creating a park A in the infamous Mulberry Bend section of lower Manhattan. Following a decade of heart trouble, Riis died In Barre, Massachusetts, at the age of 65.
Riis's photographs fell into obscurity for many years until Alexander Alland was able to find and salvage them in the early 1940s. Riis's son presented 412 4" X 5" glass negatives, by Riis and his assistants, to the Museum of the City of New York in 1946. A major exhibition of prints from these negatives was held at the Museum in 1947. Rus's home in Richmond Hill, New York, was designated a National Historical Landmark in 1971.

Text from The Encyclopedia of Photography (1984)






LEWIS HINE

American, 1874-1940
see PHOTOS

"There is work that profits children, and there is work that brings profit only to employers. The object of employing children is not to train them, but to get high profits from their work." -- Lewis Hine, 1908

His photographs remind us what it was like to be a child and to labor like an adult at a time when labor was harsher than it is now. Hine's images of working children stirred America's conscience and helped change the nation's labor laws.For Hine, the camera was both a research tool and an instrument of social reform.
He became the photographer for the National Child Labor Committee (NCLC), documented child labor in American industry to aid the NCLC's lobbying efforts to end the practice.
Between 1906 and 1908, he was a freelance photographer for The Survey, a leading social reform magazine.
He took all these pictures to show the country the cruelties of child labor.
Hine believed that if people could see for themselves the abuses and injustice of child labor, they would demand laws to end those evils. By 1916, Congress passed the Keating-Owens Act that established the following child labor standards: a minimum age of 14 for workers in manufacturing and 16 for workers in mining; a maximum workday of 8 hours; prohibition of night work for workers under age 16; and a documentary proof of age. Unfortunately, this law was later ruled unconstitutional on the ground that congressional power to regulate interstate commerce did not extend to the conditions of labor. Effective action against child labor had to await the New Deal. Reformers, however, did succeed in forcing legislation at the state level banning child labor and setting maximum hours. By 1920 the number of child laborers was cut to nearly half of what it had been in 1910.
Lewis Hine died in poverty, neglected by all but a few. His reputation continued to grow, however, and now he is recognized as a master American photographer. His photographs remind us what it was like to be a child and to labor like an adult at a time when labor was harsher than it is now. Hine's images of working children stirred America's conscience and helped change the nation's labor laws.

Photographs of _Lewis Hine: _Documentation of Child Labor
http://www.kentlaw.edu/ilhs/hine.htm

10/11/09

FALL '09 WEEK #5


photo by THOMAS E. FRANKLIN / The Record
LOCATION LIGHTING. How was this photo lit and made to look like this?

TODAY'S AGENDA
1. Photos of the week, MSNBC
2. Let's look, ASSIGNMENT #4, Composition
3. History of Photojournalism: Mathew Brady
4. Lesson; Covering a live assignment
5. Lesson; LIGHT part I
6. ASSIGNMENT #5; Lighting
7. ASSIGNMENT #6; Covering a Live Event
8. Photo essay; Eye of the Storm; Times-Picayune - NOLA.com

10/10/09

FALL '09 ASSIGNMENT #05; LIGHTING

ASSIGNMENT #05
(Due 10/19/09)
Light

PART 1
History of Photojournalism; Jacob Riis & Lewis Hine

PART 2

READING:
National Geographic Field Guide
Read pages 103-117

Guide to Photojournalism
By Brian Horton
Read pages 79-101“Features and Portraits; Seeing the World Around Us.”

Visual Journalism
By Christopher R. Harris & Paul Martin Lester
Read pages 63-86“Technical Considerations.”

PART 3
Light

Lighting MUST be the key element in these photos.
DO NOT USE A FLASH!


Photo 1: A documentary photo of some aspect of college life with strong sense of NATURAL light:
  1. Make well-composed and expressive photo using one of the lighting techniques discussed in class. Photo should have exceptionally strong quality of light.
  2. Lighting technique should be very obvious.
  3. This must be a documentary-style photo, do not manipulate the image in Photoshop.
  4. Do NOT USE A CAMERA FLASH!!!!!!!!!
  5. Lighting must be natural; sun, or cloudy day. Can be indoors or outdoors.
  6. Keep in mind some of the elements of good composition, avoiding; cluttered and distracting backgrounds, objects appearing behind heads, dead space, etc. Fill the frame, making interesting photos that have impact.
  7. Composition, perspective, background, and lens selection should all be taken into consideration. Consider the various lighting techniques discussed in class; directional light, soft light, window light, back light, etc.

Photo 2: A photo of some aspect of college life with strong sense of ARTIFICIAL light,
this does NOT need to be documentary, can be passive:
  1. Make well-composed and expressive photo using one of the lighting techniques discussed in class. Photo should have exceptionally strong quality of light.
  2. Lighting technique should be very obvious.
  3. This must be a documentary-style photo, do not manipulate the image in Photoshop.
  4. Do NOT USE A CAMERA FLASH!!!!!!!!!
  5. Lighting must be from an artificial light, such as a lamp or bulb. Can be indoors or outdoors, day or night.
  6. Keep in mind some of the elements of good composition, avoiding; cluttered and distracting backgrounds, objects appearing behind heads, dead space, etc. Fill the frame, making interesting photos that have impact.
  7. Composition, perspective, background, and lens selection should all be taken into consideration. Consider the various lighting techniques discussed in class; directional light, soft light, window light, back light, etc.

Review examples showed in class and Power Point Presentation.


*Students must complete:
1. Select best photo from each part, submit (2) photos.
2. SLUG PHOTO AS FOLLOWS:
Last name_natural.jpg, Last name_artificial.jpg
EXAMPLE: franklin_natural.jpg
franklin_artificial.jpg



10/4/09

FALL '09 WEEK #4

photo by Lily Szabo

By now, we should be well aware of the technical considerations that determine a photograph, such as aperture, shutter speed, lens selection, and camera types. You should also be familiar with the categories of the "Visual language."


So, what can your determine in looking at these three iconic images?


Jerome Delay's iconic image from Iraq, as hundreds of Iraqis storm the Abu Ghraib jail Oct. 20, 2002 following the announcement by President Saddam Hussein that most of Iraq's prisoners would be freed. Tens of thousands of prisoners were greeted by their relatives and friends upon their release.

Charles Moore's photo from the Civil Rights movement in the 1960's.






Eddie Adams won the Pulitzer Prize for for his picture of a Viet Cong lieutenant being executed at close range on a Saigon street by a South Vietnamese general.
How about this Diane Arbus image?


Misc.

Could it be...that some submitted photos are not slugged correctly or contain proper captions....
Be sure caption explains which assignment it is.

Be sure to review the Powerpoint Presentations, they contain material not always covered in class, due to time restriction.

Agenda for today's class.


1.Photos of the week; MSNBC
2. Let's look, ASSIGNMENT #3, Selective Focus.
3.
Lesson; Composition
4. ASSIGNMENT #4, Composition
5. ASSIGNMENT, Photojournalist Paper
6. Photo essay; “"Bound to El Norte: Immigrant Stowaways on the Freight Trains of Mexico," by Don Bartletti

10/3/09

ASSIGNMENT #03, Composition

(Due 10/12/09) Composition

PART 1
National Geographic Field Guide
Read pages 82-95, 160-165 composition

Guide to Photojournalism
By Brian Horton
Read pages 79-101“Features and Portraits; Seeing the World Around Us.”

PART 2
HISTORY OF PHOTOJOURNALISM
Read: Mathew Brady (see Photographer’s Bio’s)

PART 3
Composition (2) photos

PHOTO 1: Make an environmental portrait of a person using “Rule of Thirds.
Subject: Make well-composed, expressive environmental portraits of a person in their place of work environment. Photo should give insight into what the person does. The environment should be obvious and explanatory. Make photos of subject in different positions, locations, with special emphasis on positioning.
Keep in mind:
YOU ARE IN CONTROL. This is a passive assignment.
There should be obvious foreground & background.


PHOTO 2: Make well-composed, action photos of a person at work in their place of work environment using one of these compositional techniques:
  1. Framing
  2. Leading Lines
  3. Juxtaposition
  4. Silhouette
This should be a Graphic Photograph, meaning one that is visual and emphasizes the relationship between the lines, shapes and forms produces an aesthetically pleasing visual presentation. Graphic elements are as important as the story-telling content with this assignment.
Keep in mind: This is NOT a passive assignment, this is an active photo, and should be documentary.

*Students must complete:
  1. Select (1) best photo of each. (2) total.
  2. Follow “Basic Photoshop”, use outline provided if needed.
  3. Type complete caption in FILE INFO field in Photoshop, see instructions. ****CAPTION MUST STATE WHICH TECHNIQUE YOU ARE USING!
  4. SLUG PHOTO AS FOLLOWS: Last name_ composition1.jpg, Last name_ composition2.jpg
  5. Place image in the “drop folder” (remember to save a copy for yourself to you folder)

10/2/09

PHOTOJOURNALIST REPORT

Photojournalist Paper
Due 11/16/09

Each student will be required to select and contact a working photojournalist of choice, accompany them on an assignment, conduct an interview and write a paper on the experience.
The project will require research and preparation, and the ability to contact and meet with the photojournalist. Every effort should be made to try and accompany the photojournalist on an assignment. This will require planning and coordination.

***WEDDING & COMMERCIAL PHOTOGRAPHERS ARE NOT PERMITTED. WORKING PHOTOJOURNALISTS & NEWS PHOTOGRAPHERS ONLY!

SELECT SOMEONE WITH REAL EXERIENCE –at least 5 years.

The goal of this presentation is for students to learn something about the field of photojournalism, which is undergoing cataclysmic changes, from a working professional who can offer insight. In addition to the list of questions below, students should prepare their own set of questions. Research on photographer’s background should be completed BEFORE interview session.
Be inquisitive. Get their advice. Get a sense of the photographer’s attitude, style, and perspective. This is a unique opportunity to get some real career insight, even in photojournalism is not in your future. There is much that can be learned from professionals in related fields. Make the most of the opportunity.

1. The written paper should be minimum 2000 words (2-3 pages, no more), and written in the student’s own words... DO NOT PLAGIARIZE.
The written report must be a WORD document.
-12pt font, single-space, and submitted to the DROP FOLDER.
2. Shoot your own photo of the photojournalist, hopefully in action.
-Copy and paste 1-2 photos of photographers work into WORD document.
-Copy and paste 1-2 of your photos into WORD document.

3. The paper MUST follow this outline:
I.BACKGROUND
-Why was photographer selected?
-What is the photographer’s background?
-How did they get interested and started?
-Etc.
II. PHOTOGRAPHY WORK
-What type of work or projects is the photographer known for?
-List examples, and gives description.
-Copy and paste at least 2 photos into WORD document.
-Who do they work for now, in the past?
-Describe their job/assignments.
Etc.
III. JOB
-Describe their job/assignments.
-What aspects of their jobs are most satisfying? Least satisfying?
- What aspects of their jobs are most difficult?
-What advice do they have for young journalists?cont>
-What are the most important skills to have to be a successful photojournalist?
-What changes in the business have they experienced?
-What does the future hold for photojournalists?

PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE FOLLOWING PHOTOGRAPHERS:
-Chris Pedota / The Record
-Carmine Galasso / The Record
-Tyson Trish / The Record
-Matt Rainey / Star-Ledger
-Tony Kurdzuk / Star-Ledger

DO’s AND DON’Ts:
-Do not wait until the last minute to contact the photographer. DO IT NOW!
-Do not expect the photographer to get back to you immediately, if at all.
-Be persistent and assertive, and don’t wait for returned calls. Be proactive.
-Do research BEFORE contacting them. Impress them with what you already know about them. This will most likely lead to a better interview, and will show respect for their time.
-Ask for help in making initial contact.
-Make every opportunity to accompany them on an assignment.

Where to find a photojournalist?
-Get in the habit of looking for credits under published photos.
-your local newspaper
-Visit photojournalism web sites:
www.njppa.org (New Jersey Press Photogs Association)
www.nppa.org (National Press Photogs Association)
www.digitaljournalist.org Dirck Halstead (very important site!)
www.sportshooter.com (not just sports)
http://www.aphotoaday.org/ (a photo a day web site & blog)

-The Star-Ledger
-The Record
-The Asbury Park Press
-The Herald News
-The NY Times

-Review the PPP’s.
-Ask me.