Africa/ Brandt

1. Reactions to on this earth, a shadow falls, across the ravaged land~

When I had read on this earth, a shadow falls, across the ravaged land it was very unique. The reason I believe this is because Brandt is not like any of the other nature/animal photographers. He focuses on the individuality on each and every single animal he has photographed. Since he also gets very close to the animals instead of using telephoto lenses it makes his photos seem more realistic.

2. Favorite photo:

3. The reason why this photo is my favorite photo from Brandt's albums is because I love how he managed to wait for the perfect timing to take this photo. If it wasn't at the right moment then the photo wouldn't even have turned out like it did. The fact that he got the rhino's touching horns together while on a giant puddle of water is gorgeous to me. Everything about this photo seems to be just great in my opinion.

4. Rules of photography used in the photo:
~Rule of thirds [the main subject must be in one of the four corners]
~Simplicity [not much happening in the photo]
~Balance [The photo doesn't seem to crowded with subjects]
-Avoiding mergers (the two rhinos are somewhat touching, so not sure if that counts) [There must be a subject touching another object/subject]

5. He uses three fixed-length lenses: a 55mm, a 105mm, and a 200mm
The camera Brandt uses is a Pentax 67

6. The reason he takes the photos is because he wants to  record a last testament to the wild animals and places there before they are destroyed by the hands of man

7. His hope for taking these photos is to capture all his feelings or love towards animals in pictures since he could not capture it on film.

8. I had a vision in mind: I wanted to create an elegy, a likely last testament to an extraordinary, beautiful natural world and its denizens that is rapidly disappearing before our eyes. I wanted to show these animals as individual spirits, sentient creatures equally as worthy of life as us.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

9.  Brandt's new focus with his photography is to try to make a difference. To show how are human activities are causing the animals of this world to be moved from their homes or to be killed off quicker due to our needs or wants in this world. He is showing us a new view on what is happening in this world by photoshopping animals with the frames around it and what we did to the land that they are supposed to be on.

10. Brandt selected unpublished photos from that period, printed them in California, shipped them to Kenya, constructed their steel and plywood frames on location, and positioned them so they seemed apart of the physical surroundings.

11. He had to wait many days for people to settle down and no longer look at his piece. His photography also made people aware of the problems happening to animals and he had the need to address them to others through his photography/ new album.

12. When I was looking at these photos I felt disgusted, angry, sad, and guilty. The reason why I feel this way is because the fact that we are taking away the land that they once stayed on, away from them makes me feel what I feel. I feel guilty for going on the land that was once there, mad for the people who took it away from them. Sad that they went through moving and adjusting to their new land and changing what they eat and live just because we wanted more buildings for our wants and needs. I'm also disgusted that they probably didn't even care about the fact that the animals are going through all of that or that it even crossed their minds when they were planning on using of their homes for our needs.

Messing with aperture, shutter speed, and ISO

Aperture settings available
~2.8
~4
~5.6
~8
~11
~16
~22



Shutter speed settings available
~1 second
~ 1/60 second
~ 1/4000 second



ISO settings available
~100
~200
~400
~800
~1600
~3200
~6400
~12800
~25600

ISO

Photo taken at ISO 3200

Photo taken at ISO 220

1. What are the advantages of shoot at a higher ISO at a sporting event like basketball or a night football game?
Well with a higher ISO you can actually see who is playing. If it were to be low at a sporting event then it will be hard to tell who is playing or what game is being playing. You get to see what is happening in the photo if the ISO is higher.

2. What suggestions did the author make about using a low ISO?
Try to stick to using base ISO so you can have a chance of getting a high quality photo with not too much noise in the photo.

3. What suggestions did the author make about using a high ISO?
You should only use it if you are unable to brighten the photo's shutter speed or aperture. Otherwise you should stick with base ISO. A photo taken at too high of an ISO will also show a lot of grain (noise)

Shutter Speed

Photo with high shutter speed

Photo with slow shutter speed

1. If you were assigned to shoot at Bulldogs and Hotdogs night, which was a few weeks ago, what shutter speeds do you think you would have to shoot at the following events that night I would like you to answer the question for the following two situations:

At the beginning while the sun was still up and the courtyard had reasonable good light

a.) a booth in the middle of the yard near the Tree

~ Fast shutter speed

b.) a food booth outside under one of the big red awnings

~Fast shutter speedc.) the Stars performance inside the gym

~Fast shutter speedd.) students dancing near the center of the courtyard

~Fast shutter speede.) people streaming in from the front doors

~Slow shutter speedf.) the basketball booth where students are shooting basketballs at a hoop

~Fast shutter speed
Towards the end when there is no sun and has gotten dark enough that you can't see from one end of the courtyard to the other.

a.) a booth in the middle of the yard near the Tree

~Slow shutter speed

b.) a food booth outside under one of the big red awnings

~Slow shutter speed

c.) the Stars performance inside the gym

~Fast shutter speed

d.) students dancing near the center of the courtyard

~Fast shutter speed

e.) people streaming in from the front doors

~Slow shutter speed

f.) the basketball booth where students are shooting basketballs at a hoop

~Fast shutter speed

2. List the three settings your camera has regarding setting shutter speed (these are found at #5 on the Shutter Speed website. 

You could set the camera to auto mode so the shutter speed is selected by the camera.

But if you want to set it manually you can set the camera to shutter priority mode. Which allows you to choose the shutter speed and the camera automatically picks the aperture.

Also when you set it to manual mode you can choose shutter speed and aperture manually.

Aperture

Photo taken with a aperture setting of F2.8

Photo taken with a aperture setting of F/16

1. What part of the body should we closely relate aperture?

We could relate aperture to the pupil because our eyes can either expand or shrink depending on what we are looking at. Which with aperture you can shrink and enlarge it just like you can with your pupils. That's why I believe the pupil can closely relate to the aperture.

2. Finish this sentence - the smaller the Aperture the darker the photo gets, the higher the Aperture the smaller it gets.

3. In your own words tell me how aperture impacts Depth of Field?

Aperture affects the depth of field depending on which aperture size you are using. Like if you are using a very large aperture (f/1.4) then the depth of field would be very thin.Which allows the background to be completely out of focus. But compared to a very small aperture (f/22.0) , the depth of field would be very large. Meaning the photo is very sharp.

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? Post the images with your writing.

While I was looking at Brassai's artwork I was drawn to how his photos are not exactly bright photos. I like how they seem somewhat simple when you first look at it, but in reality they are more to his photos then what there seems to be. I chose his photos because I have actually been looking at Brassai for a while now. I've known about his work for about 4 or more years. There isn't a exact reason why I like them, I just like the way he takes the photos and the dark theme he has going on.

2.) Look at those 2 photos you posted last time in the assignment Great Black and White Photographers Part 2. Use your five senses to tell me more about those photos. Answer them on your blog.

~I see light being reflected off the water under the bridge. It's very foggy outside and it's hard to see because of it. But the only things I could see is the light above me coming from the street lights, the water and the way the bridge is shaped. From afar it's kinda creepy but it's also calming since no one seems to be around.
~I smell the water in front of me. It isn't a pleasant smell but it's not too bad as it seems. It is kinda swampy but at night it looks so clear and nice. It's weird how at night the water can be calming and peaceful while during the day it is the complete opposite due to the weather and people passing by.
~I hear the whispers of the wind as it passes by my ear. It too thinks that this scenery is gorgeous and loves how calming this place can be at night. I can also hear the rustles of the trees as the wind is passing through this bridge area.
~I taste the refreshing water. It isn't too bad, their is only a occasional couple of leaves that come from the trees around me. It's nice to drink the water as the leaves are falling from above into the water. The leaves dance with the wind then fall into the water and stays afloat.

~I feel the bark of the tree as I am pressing against it while looking at the bridge. It's rough but I sometimes when I'm looking at the reflection of the water. I get lost in it and doze off. Which causes me to forget what is surrounding me or what's touching me. It's ok because the reflection shows who I really am.

~I see the darkness surrounding me. As I am going deeper into the night the quieter it gets. People are probably at their houses with their family's while I am here, at the waterway. It's lonely here by myself. There is no one else walking around at this time that i'm here at.

~I smell the water as it sways away slowly. The more it sways the farther it goes. But other then that I could also smell the wind as it brings a slight scent of the park that is near by. 

~I hear the water moving away from me as I try to get closer to it. I don't think it likes me, but i'll become one with it soon. It it weren't for the wind moving the water away from me, I would be able to get closer to it. At the moment the wind seems to get stronger and stronger as the night is going by. All I can hear now is the sound of it...

~I taste the bittersweetness of the wind. It's kinda like candy, but once you taste it for what it really is for a while. It becomes more and more bitter. The stronger it is, the stronger the taste.

~I feel the wind as it goes through me. It's cold, but then all of a sudden a leaf can and smacked the back of my neck. Now I feel it scratching my neck as the wind is trying to dance with it. It feels weird.

~I see a woman shaped figure as I walk pass this alley. She is just standing there looking off into the distance. I wonder if she can see or hear me as I take footsteps towards her and head into the light. 

~I smell the perfume she is wearing. It's a very sweet smell, but I like it. As she stands there the smell seems to get stronger and stronger. It's circling her surroundings and is spreading out into the air as she is there.

~I hear her breathing. It sounds heavy, I wonder if she's ok. She must be in shock after seeing something she wasn't supposed to see. That might be why she is just standing there and looking off into the distance.

~I taste the air as I am trying to take a deep breath before I approach her. What should I say? What should I do? Will she walk away? These questions are constantly circling around my head as I watch her stand there with her arms to her chest.

~I feel her presence as I am approaching her. I sense a sad/shocked presence. It's unusual, I don't see anything around her causing this to happen. I should go and talk to her before she leaves in front of my eyes. I don't want to lose her so I should hurry and go towards her.

3. I would like to do a powerpoint about the great photographer Brassai

Photoshop Basics

Photo 1                                                                              

Photo 2                                                                         

Photo 3