Creative Inventions and Robotics Digital Photography

Creative Inventions and Robotics

www.build-it-yourself.com

Digital Photography


What you’ll need …1. Digital camera2. Windows or Mac computer3. Adobe Elements or Photoshop or

equivalent4. PowerPoint

What you’ll learn …1. Qualities of a good photo.2. File management3. Digital image theory4. Digitally reworking images5. Composing a photo journal6. Making a photo journal come alive

Wars are everywhere.

Many people around the world don’t trust others.

Why is it like that?


The Problem …

Help the next generation of leaders and builders to understand the history, culture and traditions of other lands.

Compose a photo journal that describes why your life, country, and community are good. Collect images that show what could be improved.

Make your photo journal tell a story and then share your story with other kids around the world.


Your Mission

• Composition• Simplicity• Contrast• Rule of thirds• Perspective• Know your frame

• Foreground Background• Color• Shadow• Focus• Lighting• Exposure


Components of a great picture

Ansel Adams





Annie Liebowitz





Harold Edgerton

Which picture is more interesting?Why?


Composition

Which picture of flowers is more interesting?Why?


Foreground vs. Background

Only a small section of the frame is interesting

Fill the Frame


Dramatic color contrasts Little color contrast

Color


http://www.luminous-landscape.com/1photo-pages/s/snow.shtml

…but they don’t always work ‘cause sometimes

you can’t dig the subject

Shadow that works because the outline

is cool.Do you feel scared?

Shadow


Focus on eyes

Focus

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/gallery/2009/jun/25/?picture=349359640

1) Use odd numbers.2) Spontaneous vs. staged.3) Find dramatic or memorable angles.4) Look for contrasts.5) Frame points of interest, often off-

center.6) Focus on points of interest, especially

eyes.7) What story is the picture telling?


Interest

The Camera Basics

• Turn it on

• Quick View

• Zoom in

• Zoom out

• Focus

• Shutter button

Subjects

• Texture

• Shapes

• Nature

• Emotion

• Action

• Color

Rules Before We Shoot

• Wear your Wrist Strap

• Stay with your buddy

• Think about your photos

• Explore your subject thoroughly

Uploading Your Photos

• Find a computer

• Plug in the Camera

• Import them to the photo library

• Make sure they are saved on the computer

• Check them out

Five Rules of Composition

• Simplicity

• New perspective

• Rule of Thirds

• Use your foreground

• Know your frame

Simplicity

• Chose your one subject before you take the shot

• Show your subject as clearly as possible

• Avoid distracting ‘hot spots’

• Avoid distracting shapes

• If you take a picture of everything you take a picture of nothing.

New Perspective

• We have knees so use them• Don’t just show us the same perspective that

we see every day. Get Creative!• The most interesting photos may be the ones

taken while lying on the floor or standing on a rock.

• Show us a new cool perspective of your subject that makes your photo more interesting

Rule of Thirds

• Asymmetry makes photos more interesting

Use your foreground

• The foreground can be a useful tool to draw your viewer into the photo

• When used right it can also help to make your photo more interesting

• Try putting objects in your foreground that compliment and don’t distract from your subject

Know Your Frame

• It is your photo so know everything that goes into it

• Get that distracting leaf out of the corner or that bright reflection away from your subject

• Before you press the button scan the whole frame from top to bottom to make sure you want everything you see

Lighting

• When and how to use your flash

• Backlighting

• Dappled lighting

• Indoor lighting vs. Natural Lighting

• How to use shadows

The Flash: how it works

• The flash button is the lightening button on the back

• By pressing it you can chose which mode you want

The Flash: modes

• Auto: the camera chooses how bright to make the flash based on the amount of light coming into the camera

• Eye Ball: ‘red eye’ flash takes away red eye by flashing quickly before the shot is taken

• Lightening bolt: full flash, the camera puts the flash at full power

• Crossed out bolt: the flash is turned off.

Backlighting

• When something is lit from the back by a light shining towards your camera

• This means that the camera cannot get very much detail out of the front of the subject because the back is so bright

• Normally you want to avoid allowing your subject to be lit from behind

• If a subject must be lit from behind try turning your flash on to light the front

• Can be cool sometimes when trying to make a silhouette

Dappled Lighting

• This happens a lot when you take a picture while your subject is in the shade of the tree

• The light coming through the leaves makes a lot of distracting ‘hot spots’ in the frame

• It is best to avoid dappled lighting unless you have a good reason to use it

Indoor and Natural Light

• Indoor and natural light are completely different colors: natural light from the sun looks blue and indoor light looks yellow

• Which light you chose can drastically effect the mood of your photo. Pick the light that is right for your subject

Shadows

• Shadows can make a photo very dramatic

• Shadows are an easy way to create contrast that can make your photo more interesting

• In order to get good shadows try turning your flash off and looking for subjects that are lit by only one light source

Exposure

• What it is and how it works

• Detail

• Contrast

• Color

What It Is And How It Works

• Choosing your exposure is choosing how light or dark to make your picture

• On the camera press the ‘menu button’ and press ‘mode menu’ go to the ‘camera’ options and select the plus and minus sign in the black and white box

• From here you can make your exposure go up or down. If you go up you make the picture lighter and if you go down you make it darker

Detail

• Exposure useful when trying to get detail out of a very dark or light subject

• If you are taking a picture of a person who looks almost white in your frame try to turn your exposure down to darken their face and see more detail

• if you are taking a photo of a very dark person or subject try turning the exposure up

Contrast

• In your image you always want to have some bright areas and some dark areas

• Exposure is a good way to draw attention to your subject by making it stand out against a darker background or vice versa

• By turning your exposure up or down you can make the photo more interesting by creating more contrast

Color

• Color can make an ok photo look amazing

• By lowering your exposure you can make hard to see colors stand out more

• Try not to use too many colors or your photo will become too complex and distracting

Documents

Creative Inventions and Robotics Digital Photography