This journal will serve as a repository of the work I’m doing in Course 01: Cameras, Exposure, and Photography of the Michigan State University Coursera Specialization, Photography Basics and Beyond: From Smartphones to DSLRs.
Course 01, Week 01: Cameras, Exposure, and Photography - WELCOME, OVERVIEW, and FUNDAMENTALS
Welcome to the Module One of Course One, where we will begin our journey together to gain the knowledge and skills that will help you take control of your photography! The world of digital photography presents so many "tech" options that it can be quite confusing. Throughout this Course and Specialization, we will be sorting through the various functions, menus, and also the good old focus and exposure and camera craft aspects, so you can build a foundation for success. We'll start with some Basics, and keep building!
Assignment - Nice to Meet You!
This assignment is about beginning to define and share your goals as a photographer. Consider the following question: what is it that you have a passion to photograph? Is it family portraits or landscapes? Is it pure abstract creative expression, or documentation of your hobby? You may have many areas of photography that motivate you to pick up a camera, but for this assignment just choose one to explore for yourself and share with classmates. Unfortunately, because of previous acts of plagiarism, we must also make the following statement first: ONLY PHOTOGRAPHS THAT YOU HAVE PERSONALLY CREATED IN YOUR OWN CAMERA, NOT A PHOTOGRAPH MADE BY SOMEONE ELSE OR A PHOTOGRAPH OF ANOTHER PERSON'S PHOTOGRAPH, MAY BE USED FOR THIS AND ALL OF THE ASSIGNMENTS IN ANY OF THE COURSES IN THIS SPECIALIZATION. IF A LEARNER PRESENTS PHOTOGRAPHS OR WRITINGS THAT ARE NOT THEIR OWN IN RESPONSE TO ANY ASSIGNMENT, THAT WILL BE CAUSE FOR IMMEDIATE CANCELLATION WITHOUT REFUND.
To keep the focus on the content you are seeing, framing, composing, we will minimize the variations on exposure and focus settings by placing the camera in AUTO Exposure Mode. AUTO is symbolized by a Green Square, sometimes with a sidewards triangle inside. It is usually found on the camera's Exposure Mode Dial. Please do not "photoshop" your picture, simply upload the JPEG file created by the camera without alteration.
Make a series of photographs that fit into a broad area of photography you would like to pursue. It can be any style or subject, as long as it is something that relates to your goals as a photographer. Pick one photograph that you feel is a success in composition and a success as an example of a type or style of photograph that motivated you to enroll in this Course. Your image file must be in JPEG FORMAT ONLY... or you will risk being unable to receive feedback on your pictures in this assignment and all those in the future. Please no RAW, TIFF, PDF, or other formats.
Write a Statement of from 3 to 5 sentences describing the area of photography that interests you most, and explain why it interests you. For example, someone might write, "I am interested in the subject of food. I would like to write a blog on the restaurants I visit and illustrate it with my photographs. Gaining more control of my camera will help me make the pictures of food that my readers will enjoy."
3. Give your photograph a title (not "Untitled") that will give the viewer an additional level of content, to add to the meaning of the picture.
4. Upload your Statement and a photograph (again, JPEG FILE FORMAT ONLY please!) to the Peer Review area
5. Respond to your fellow Learners' photographs in Peer Review with complete sentences that address clear points of content, composition, and camerawork!
A photograph taken at the ART KNAPP NURSERY parking lot in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada, at dusk, following a heavy downpour which left a large portion of the parking lot flooded. Every fall this nursery is transformed into a place where holiday Christmas decorations and trees can be purchased.
TITLE: HOLIDAY SHOPPING BLUES
DATE: December 12, 2019
Unedited digital photograph shot using the automatic setting on a Sony CyberShot RX100III, through the closed window of an SUV.
With this course, I want to not only improve my photography on a formal level but on a conceptual level as well. To this end, one theme I am interested in exploring through photography is the concept of consumerism. Specifically, I am interested in the aspects of consumerism geared around the holiday season between the start of Black Friday sales in the USA through to the end of Boxing Day / Week sales here in Canada. Formally, I'm interested in exploring this topic through a sort of fine art documentary photographic approach, which could even see elements of street photography brought indoors.
With the specific image I shot for this first submission, I drew a bit of inspiration from photographer Abbas Kiastami, who played with shooting photographs through rain soaked car windows in his 2005 series ROADS & RAIN. I like the approach of being able to shoot through things in the real world that can serve as a found filter of sorts. Other photographers who have done this include Sam Abell, who has shot scenes through objects such as fish tanks and curtains; or Arthur Meyerson, who has shot through a waterfall in a shopping area, and through a wall of bricks with a repeated pattern that let you see through it. I also drew inspiration from Lee Friedlander, who shot photographs across America from inside his car in a series called AMERICA BY CAR.
This is not necessarily the way I might shape an entire body of work over the course of this term, but it definitely helped create a bit of mystery, and depth to the photo including a sense of loneliness that I liked.
I think the composition helps create a well organized visual statement. There is depth to the photograph, from the car window that is closest to us, to the large, flooded parking lot and the busy highway to the right of frame, to the hills off in the distance. White holiday lights are seen to the left of frame which gives the suggestion of some kind of store featuring holiday goods but it's not overtly in your face. The light of the cars is perhaps a bit too blown out, but this shot was very much grounded in a snapshot aesthetic. It was meant to be quick and dirty. My camera has a RAW and JPG version of this and this is the JPG version right off of the camera, as taken in full auto, no post processing. I took about six or seven photos in this spot, some with the window rolled up, some with the window down. Some with cars passing through the parking lot, and others with no cars driving through the lot like this one. I don't think any of these shots had people in them.
This was also posted on Instagram.
PEER REVIEW FEEDBACK…
Grade: 85%
