Final Exam

1. Done

2. Done

3. Done

4. The "transformative" photo that I took this school year is this one  . This photo changed my view of photography. I realized that I could take an object as simple as an outdoor light and photograph it in a way that was new to people, and thus, make the object unrecognizable. I remember asking you, Mr. Farley, what you thought the photo was. You had no idea that it was so simple as a mounted light.

5. Shape is a figure made up of lines. Form is a general figure that many shapes make up. Form + Shape

6. Pattern is a network of the same shapes repeated over and over again. Repetition can apply to patterns as well, but repetition is a more generic term. Repetition refers to elements of art (any) that repeat itself in a photo. My pattern and repetition photo is the same.

7. Weebly about page here. A further, more comprehensive about can be found on the bottom of the about page, where you'll find a link to my About.me page
Other photographers' about page

8. http://mgmexchange.blogspot.com/   http://we-int.weebly.com/  http://we-int.weebly.com/media-gallery.html            These are the last 3 projects. Of those projects, the best one is the last one (last link). That was where I grew out of the comforts of home. I went to the Santa Cruz mountains over the weekend, and bought a small drone for $39 and I attached a GoPro camera to it. It took a crazy amount of time and effort to get the drone stable enough to take the photos. I realize that some of the photos have odd shifts in color and harbour a little blurriness. it's hard to control a small drone in windy conditions with a second hand camera attached to it. But I do believe it is my best photo because I worked the hardest on it. The last project affected me in a very interesting way. The beginning of the school year, I learned to see in the perspective of a camera. And the last project I learned to see through the lens of a drone.

On a final note, I don't know if you've ever tried drone photography, but you should give it a go. It's easy, yet versatile. Unlimited possibilities.

Student website review

First period: Aileen Hsu | photo | I like the lens flare.

Second: Ryen Teo | photo | I like the perspective of the tree, from the trunk up the center. 

Third: Hugh Smith | photo | Field in Kansas. Can't go wrong with that...

Fourth period: Valerie C. | photo | Pomegranate seeds in an ashtray. I don't know what the story behind that one is, but it seems really deep. Nobody, I mean nobody, puts pomegranate seeds in an ashtray.

Awaiting Photo Idea Approval.

Knolling: a type of organizational photography where topic-related objects are placed in a 90 degree fashion and laid out flat.

1. Adam Savage
2. Andrew Kromelow
3. Cole Ewert (photogallery here)

5 photos:
First photo: hardware related objects assorted by color, arranged in a knoll
2nd: Electronic hardware assorted by importance, arranged in a knoll.
3rd: Foodstuffs and kitchen ware arranged in a knoll.
4th: Furniture and textiles arranged in a knoll.
5th: Writing instruments and utensils arranged in a knoll.

All or most of my photos will be taken at home.

Best picture + favorite photographer bio

Michael Wolf: Architecture of Density

http://photomichaelwolf.com/#biography

Noel Barnhurst

http://noelbarnhurst.com/studio

Brian Skerry (Nat. Geo)

http://www.brianskerry.com/bio/

Joseph Calev

http://www.calevphoto.com/about.html

Muench

http://muenchphotography.com/artist-bios/

MSJ MCW Story

Day 1: Some random Chinese food.

Day 2: Some random Japanese sushi-ish type stuff

Day 3: Some random Chipotle stuff.

Day 4: I mixed stuff.

Story with a Photo -- Religion is Corrosive to Society.

In February, I met with Richard Dawkins in San Francisco where he gave a speech about how corrosive religion was to society. His speech was elegantly militant towards religion. Instead of touching on one religion at a time, he attacked religion as a whole. 

In the last blog post, I talked about how religion is the least multicultural belief. Dr. Dawkins brought up the separation of races in religion, especially in the holy places. I've noticed this too. For example, you have Korean Catholics, Black Catholics, White Catholics, and Asian Catholics. However, the churches are split in such a way. In Fremont, where I live, there are Korean Churches, Chinese Churches, American Churches, and Black Churches. If you go to a Korean church, all of the people there are Korean. And same for the other churches. Religion claims to bring people of all cultures together. I beg to differ.

I own 2 of Richard Dawkin's books: the God Delusion, and The Selfish Gene. The God Delusion targets religion's corrosiveness to science, and elaborates the corrosiveness of science to religion. The Selfish Gene is a more scientific, biological study on human behavior (namely, selfishness). 

I recommend both of these books to anyone looking for intellectual novels to read.

MW Story

Our school's multicultural week is pathetic. In fact, many multicultural events I have attended were all pathetic. Pathetic on the scale of nearing trash. This year's was particularly trash. To begin with, we have to pay for food with tickets, which are substituted in the place of money. Exactly what is the point of that? I don't see anything wrong with paying with money. In addition to this massive embodiment of idiocy, the multicultural week isn't really all that multicultural. Multicultural events are supposed to exhibit a wide variety of activities, according to the different cultures presented. A Chinese event would display fireworks and lanterns, as well as showcase traditional Chinese cuisine. A French event would display fencing and showcase some cold snails in a shell for your palette. And of course, an American event would display a range of overweight objects; giant trucks, giant food, -- giant people--, etc. 

What does our school have? Food. Food from where? Fremont. Made by who? Cheap mock-up Chinese, Indian, French and Spanish restaurants. The so called "Spanish" food comes from Chipotle, which, evidently, is American. It's quite obvious with the giant serving sizes. 

But what angered me the most was the fact that people were praying before eating, with their mock-up multicultural meals in front of them. Don't believe me? Walk around school this week, you'll find a collection of praying idiots hiding in the cafeteria, and other places. Praying? Really? We live in the 21st Century. It should have became evident 100 years ago that praying doesn't work. It is an awful waste of time spending hours a month on your knees praying to some nonexistent spook.

Before you say "respect other people's opinions", I urge you to think about all of the chaos caused by this fake construct of our mind, religion. KKK, Al-Qaeda, terrorists, war-- all of these have one thing in common. They all came to pass upon the foundation of religious purpose. So no, I don't have to respect your opinion or your religion. I don't have to respect your faith. 

"Faith is the great cop-out, the great excuse to evade the need to think and evaluate evidence." 

                                                                                 -Richard Dawkins

What does this have to do with multicultural week though? Religion claims to bring cultures together. Does it? Read the Bible. The Bible is unbelievably racist. Read other religious texts. They are unbelievably racist. Look at the majority of Catholics. They're white. The majority of Buddhists are Asian. The majority of Hindus are Indian. 

But the majority of atheists? The majority of atheists are not of any culture. So the most multicultural religion is Atheism. Thank you.

Principles of Design: Rhythm

Can you guess what this is? I'll let you guess. I'll wait. Still haven't guessed it yet? This is an outdoor ceiling light near the bell tower area. It shows rhythm because the lines and shapes are being repeated hundreds of times.

Edits:
1. Tint: +20
2. Highlights: +30

Principles of Design: Proportion

Can you guess which National Monument this is? Of course not, because it's not a National Monument. In fact, it's not even a State Monument nor a City Monument. Actually, it's not a Monument at all! If I told you the actual size of this "Monument", you wouldn't believe me. But the principle of PROPORTION allows me to shrink down a structure to the size of a pencil but give the illusion that it's bigger than a car.

Edits:
1. Shadow: +10
2. Saturation: +11

Principles of Design: Pattern

Anyone who works in the bricklaying business can tell you that bricklaying is not done in a random way. There is a PATTERN that bricklayers must follow. And you can see the clear pattern of such bricks in the photo.

Edits:
1. Shadow: +50
2. Saturation: +21
3. Highlights: -30

Principles of Design: Movement

When we look at a piece of scenery, our eyes have the tendency to notice parts of the scene which are most attractive and/or appealing (in color, size, or difference). In this photo, the red container box is the most appealing part of the photo. I jumps out at you. Your eyes then move along the line of container boxes to the left, where you then notice the second and third boxes.

Edits:
1. Saturation: +9
2. Shadows: -21
3. Highlights: -15

Principles of Design: Emphasis

The focus is a little bit off, I understand. But my intention of taking this photo was to show the emphasis on that rusty nail sticking out of that pole. It is, after all, the reddest and most eye-popping part of the photo. 

Edits:

1. Selective Focus: On (but failed)

2. Saturation: +32

3. Highlights: +12

Principles of Design: Balance

In case you're wondering, this is a close-up of an edge of a table. Background aside, this photo shows nearly exact balance. The lines to each side of the photo nearly mirror each other. Just don't look at the photo too long though, it'll mesmerize you!

Edits:
1. Selective Focus: On
2. Shadows: -19

Elements of Art: Texture

Edits:
1. Exposure: +8
2. Shadows: -12
3. Selective Focus: On
4. Selective Zoom: On
5. Image Rotation: 7 degrees

Elements of Art: Color

(This was taken in a pizza restaurant in San Francisco.)

Edits:
1. Highlights: -5
2. Saturation: +8
3. Shadows: -10

Elements of Art: Space

Edits:
1. Saturation: -20
2. Contrast: -8

Elements of Art: Form

Edits:

1. Saturation: +32

2. Shadows: -8

3. Selective Focus: On

Elements of Art: Shape

Edits:
1. Contrast: -30
2. Shadows: +11
3. Highlights: -21

Elements of Art: Line

Edits:

1. White Balance: +22

2. Shadows: -50

Lens Blog Photo

Photo 6

1. Slow, because the truck that crashed is not moving, and the trucks still on the road have stopped.
2. Color
3. Element of Art: line. The lines leading into the background (road lines, lanes, lane lines)
4. Principles of design: movement. Your eyes go to the crashed lorry first.

Best Example of "Variety" in NYT: Lens

photo 6

because black and white. Makes it look real old. It was probably taken a long time ago.
because it's not a very positive picture. Portrays a sad life, the life of the blues.
because I love the detail of all of the junk and the crap in the background. A VARIETY of junk and crap in the background. That's why it shows variety.

Elements of Art: Pattern and Repetition

I made absolutely no edits to this photo!

(and yes, it's supposed to be tilted.)

Favourite Photo

Our group: photo 9 

1.Mid-explosion shot. Absolutely amazing. Skilled photographer right there.

2. Her red jacket matches the explosion.

3. The sign says 30 mph, and the woman is using a 30 mm flare gun. Coincidence?

TOP 5 PHOTOS RANKED

Our favorite photos are:

3

9 

11

24

6

Multimedia Fest 2015 Final Draft

Multimedia Fest 2015

Voila!

Movie Monday - The Photo League: Questions and Answers

Movie Monday - The Photo League: Questions and Answers

1. What was The Photo League's credo?

The photo leagues credo held that the camera was more than a means of recording reality. It was a device with a potential to change the world.

2. What organization did The Photo League separate from?

The Photo League separated Workers International Relief. They were originally known as the Worker's Camera League.

3. What was the workshop?

It was a basic documentary photography workshop where Sid Grossman taught advanced technique classes.

4. Who taught "the workshop?"

Sid Grossman.

5. If you were to devote one year of your life to one project, what project is worth your time and energy?

It would be a project that I have interest in, and wouldn't mind spending a year on since if I did not like doing a project, why waste a year of my life on something I dislike?

6. What was The Harlem Document?

The Harlem Document was a collection of portraits of Black urban American and the people, culture and lifestyles of Harlem during the 1930's.

7. Who started The Harlem Document?

Aaron Siskind started The Harlem Document.

8. A photographer discusses a photograph where "the children looked like they came out of a __________ painting. Who was the painter?

Caravaggio

9. Why did the photograph mentioned in #8 look like it was by the painter?

The sun was coming down and one kid was illuminated by the sun.

10. Who was Lewis Hine? (name two significant contributions)

He was an american photographer who inspired the Photo League’s collective portraits of urban life. He was a photographer for the National Child Labor Committee and he also worked for the Red Cross during the Depression to photograph the drought relief in the American South.

11. Who was Weegee?

Wee gee was the pseudonym for Arthur Felling. He was known for his black and white street photography and his quirky personality.

12. How did The League change when The Nazis took power?

The immigrating refugees from Nazi Germany and surrounding territories supplied an influx of new talent and faces to the photo league. Photographers like Laudi Jacobi, Erica Cocfer and Lizet Model were a few of the new photographers.

13. How did The League change during WWII?

Photo League members used their cameras in support of the war. Feature groups documented war production, parades and parties. Female members assumed a much larger role in keeping the League running. Trained photographers served in every branch of the armed forces.

14. How did Siskind change after WWII?

Siskind switched from documentary and realism photography, the type of photography he had championed before the war, to more abstract expressionism.

15. What was the Saturday Evening post?

It was a bimonthly American magazine that started in 1897.

16. Who was Barbara Morgan? What did she photograph?

She was a photographer from Kansas best known for her photos of modern dancers. She also cofounded the photography magazine Aperture.

17. What eventually undermined the Photo League?

The Photo League was listed on a government publication of subversive, communist, fascist and totalitarian organizations.

18. What was the "Growing Menace" mentioned in the film?

Communism

19. Who agreed to serve as President when The League was under investigation?

W. Eugene Smith.

20. What happened to the league?

Photo League Member and FBI Informant, Angela Calomiris testified that the League was a front for the Communist Party. Afterward, the membership dropped and members left and the Photo League disbanded in 1951.

PERIOD 3 - SEMESTER FINAL

1. Favorite photo

My personal favourite photo of the Lens slideshow is photo 6 (The one with the Merc). I love how the dry lake-bed is very abandoned and devoid of life, and in the middle of said lake-bed is a car with people in it. If you look at the sky, there's dark clouds all around, and in the center, directly above the blue car, there is a hole in the clouds, where you can see the sky. The photographer definitely waited for the right time to take that photo. Having that bright blue car in the middle of the lake-bed also brings significant emphasis on the car, rather than everything else.

2. Best Photo

The best photo from the same slideshow is photo 7 (The one with the pretty colours). Its use of perspective really brings out the focus of the photo, the juggler, while the other colours blend into the background. The photographer's use of background light is also very interesting. The photographer uses the darkness of the environment to bring out the bright colours of the ballons and the lights in the background. 

3. Best Work

My best work this semester

I think this is my best work this semester because of how I photographed this photo. I've recently been inspired by NatGeo drone photography. Now, I don't have a drone, but I have an RC helicopter that I've had since I was 9 yrs old. I attached a camera to the RC helicopter to take this photo. I was amazingly surprised by how well it turned out.

I think if I had more time to take this photo, I would try to include more of the sky in the photo, and try to reduce the glare of the sun in the background. 

4. Three Rules of Composition

My 3 rules of composition goes as follows: 

(1) Depth here

(2) Shoot into the light here

(3) Experimentation. here

5. Photo using 2 of 3 Rules

Rules 1 and 2 shown here.

As you can see, I used the rule of depth to focus the tree bark in the front and unfocused the leaves and sky in the background. 

I shot the photo into the light (of the sun and sky) to brighten up the picture and also to further blur the background a little more. 

6. Farley's First Rule

First rule is GET CLOSER

7. Benefits of Working in Groups

Since the beginning of this semester, I have worked in 2 different groups. 

1. I believe that working in groups is very productive because of the support you get from your peers. 
2. If you don't understand something or you need help, you need not call the teacher for help. The person sitting next to you has the answers to your questions.
3. Working in groups can be fun. When you're lonely, you can still talk to other people. 
4. Group work creates a positive working environment.
5. Putting people in groups also helps to organize the class; it adds structure to the class

8. Difficulties of Working in Groups

1. Some groups are unresponsive and/or ignorant of certain group members. 
2. Constant chatter within the group may reduce productivity.
3. Group photography may be hard at times to keep together.
4. Other members in the group may be smelly... (it's true!)
5. Groups can argue a lot.

9. Favourite work by another person...

By Catherine H.   Model: Lucas Williams.

http://cathyhou15.blogspot.com/

10. Master Photographer

Our photographer, Eadward Muybridge, contributed largely to the field of motion photography and early stop-motion animation. 

11. Dorothea Lange

Her most famous photo, of course, is called Migrant Mother. It was taken during the Great Depression, funded by the Resettlement Administration.

12. Life Magazine

Founder:  John Ames Mitchell and Andrew Miller. 

Photojournalism first issue: 1936 (Henry Luce)

13. Robert Capa

Founded Magnum Photos (1947)

14. "Falling Soldier"

Year: 1936

Location: Spain in Spanish Civil War.