Digital Photography in the Classroom

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Digital Photography in the Classroom
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Getting to know your digital camera
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Digital Image Capture

• The difference between a digital and a film-based
  camera is the method used to capture the image
  formed by the light passing through the lens.
• Instead of film, digital cameras react to the
  image-forming light electronically using a CCD
  (or charge coupled device.)
• The CCD contains millions of light-sensitive
  electronic sensors called pixels.
• The higher the number of effective pixels, the
  greater the quality of the picture.

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Pixels and Resolution

• Pixel quantity is only one aspect of image
  quality
• Image Size
• There are different ways to specify the image
  quality of a camera using pixels
• Two most commons ways
• File size in megapixels (The megapixel size
  gives a quick way of comparing two cameras. e.g.
  a 3.2 megapixel camera produces smaller images
  than a 5.0 megapixel type.)
• Image dimensions in pixels ( 2560 x 1920
  pixels) Specifying the actual image size in
  pixels is useful in allowing you to determine how
  big your final prints can be.

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Pixels and Resolution

• Resolution
• Resolution refers to the number of pixels
  contained in one unit of measurement e.g. one
  inch.
• Generally this measurement is useful to refer to
  in the context of printing or viewing your
  digital images.
• For top quality prints it is normal to use a
  resolution of 300 dpi (dots per inch).
• An image of 2560 x 1920 pixels will produce a
  final print size at 300 dpi of around 8 x 6
  inches.
• Using a lower image resolution will produce a
  bigger print but with less quality.

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Image File Formats

• TIFF Tagged-Image File Format
• Even when compressed, TIFF files retain full
  photographic image quality. This format uses a
  lossless compression method. This is the format
  preferred in the printing industry where high
  quality must be maintained.
• JPEG Joint Photographic Experts Group
• This format was devised specifically to provide
  a compression system that would retain acceptable
  quality but result in small file sizes. JPEG
  uses a lossy compression system, so the more a
  file is compressed the lower the quality of the
  final image. JPEG is very useful for photo
  images destined for the internet, where small
  file sizes allow faster download times. One
  major problem with JPEGs is that each time you
  save the file it is re-compressed, resulting in a
  gradual lose of quality after each save.

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Image File Formats

• AVI Audio Video Interleave
• This is the standard Windows video format for
  storing movies with sound. A sequence of
  individual still images and sound are stored
  together in one file and played back as a movie.
• RAW Raw data
• May digital cameras allow the image to be stored
  in RAW format which saves it as a string of
  bytes. Although this is the most basic state the
  image can be saved in, it is a quite useful
  format because the captured data is not changed
  at all by the camera software. This allows the
  purest start for manipulation of the image on a
  computer.
• WAVE
• Digital cameras that allow voice memos and sound
  to be recorded store this in a special WAVE file
  format.

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Storage Systems

• Memory Cards
• Digital cameras store their images on a memory
  card.
• Some cameras have a small internal memory as
  well.
• Different cameras use different types of memory
  cards.
• The most common are the Compact Flash and the
  Smart Media.
• Each type of card comes in a variety of sizes
  (capacity).
• It is advised to buy the largest capacity memory
  card for your camera that you can afford. The
  more the memory the card has, the more pictures
  you can take at one session.

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BASIC PICTURE TAKING SKILLS

• Holding the Camera
• Hold it steady to avoid camera shake
• Shoot at a shutter speed of 1/125 second or
  faster until you learn to have a steady hand
• Press the shutter release button gently

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BASIC PICTURE TAKING SKILLS

• Camera should rest comfortably in your hands
• Be easy to turn from a horizontal to a vertical
  position and be able to press the shutter release
  without difficulty.
• Use your body as a tripod
• Stand with your feet slightly apart
• Keep the arm with the hand that supports the
  camera next to your body, preferably resting on
  your ribs as a brace.
• Exhale your breath before pressing the shutter
  release

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BASIC PICTURE TAKING SKILLS

• Composing The Picture
• Get close
• The biggest mistake most photographers make is
  not getting close enough. By getting close to
  your subjects and filling the frame with only the
  most important information, your photos will be
  much better.
• Dont hit the bulls-eye
• To improve the dynamics of your photographs,
  avoid placing the subject in the center of the
  frame. Centering your subject makes for an
  uninteresting, static photo.

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BASIC PICTURE TAKING SKILLS

• Take your time
• Get in close
• Compose the scene
• Wait for the right moment to take your picture.
• Take more than one picture
• Explore all of the angles
• A simple change in perspective (like shooting
  from a higher angle) can help eliminate
  distracting backgrounds, telephone poles or other
  obstacles that might otherwise negatively affect
  your photograph.

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BASIC PICTURE TAKING SKILLS

• Focus on the eyes
• For most pictures, especially portrait type
  pictures, you want the subject to be looking into
  the camera. This makes the picture feel more
  personal.
• Pictures should be simple
• Pictures should state one thing

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BASIC PICTURE TAKING SKILLS

• Choosing your lighting
• Shoot during the golden hours
• Try to shoot within an hour after sunrise and
  inside of an hour before sunset for the best
  results. During these times, the light is warm
  and soft, giving a beautiful quality to a
  photograph.
• Shoot on overcast days
• The light created on overcast days is great for
  almost any situation. There are no harsh shadows
  and the colors on your pictures will look better

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BASIC PICTURE TAKING SKILLS

• Use window light
• Take indoor pictures near a north-facing window.
  The soft light can be a beautiful light source.
  (On an overcast day, any window will do.)
• Avoid shooting at midday.
• Midday lighting creates less-than-appealing skin
  tones, muted colors, and harsh shadows on faces.
• Avoid using direct flash
• Direct camera flash causes flat lighting and
  redeye. If at all possible, use a camera setting
  that allows you to avoid the need of the flash.

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Light

• Light makes subjects visible to us.
• There are three important characteristics of
  light that influence our perceptions of subjects.
• Direction
• Quality
• Color

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Light

• Direction
• Light can come from virtually an direction, and
  each direction affects the appearance of a
  scenes three-dimensionality.
• Front Lighting is when the light source is behind
  the photographer.
• Direct front lighting makes scenes look flat but
  readily shows shape.
• Shadows disappear reducing the three-dimensionalit
  y of a scene.
• It excels in revealing detail.

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Light

• Direction
• Side Lighting is when the light source is at the
  photographers side.
• Shadows become apparent, raising texture and
  rounding out form.
• Side lighting excels in revealing
  three-dimensionality.
• With harsh side lighting, shadows may intrude.
  An exposure increase of 1 to 1 ½ stops may be
  required to show shadow detail.

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Light

• Direction
• Backlighting is when the light source shines in
  the photographers face.
• Backlighting can indicate distance and raise
  texture.
• With large scenes having a foreground and
  background, shadows cast toward the camera
  indicate distance.
• With small scenes, the shadows primarily reveal
  texture and secondarily distance.

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Light

• Quality
• Quality refers to harshness or softness of the
  lighting.
• Point sources, such as the sun and electronic
  flash, give harsh light (sharp shadows).
• Diffuse sources, (filtered) such as an overcast
  sky, shade lighting, or bounce flash, give soft
  light (unship shadows).
• Harsh light often gives hard and heavy shadows
  that contrast with highlights. It works well
  with simple and bold subjects but can overwhelm
  more delicate subjects.
• Soft light revives subtle hues and quiets bold
  colors. Often directionless, it seems to come
  from all over. Soft shadows and dull highlights
  give a low contrast that works well for showing
  detail in busy or delicate subjects. Soft light
  is favored for portraits.

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Light

• Color
• Color originates from light.
• Midday sunlight appears colorless because it
  carries a nearly even mixture of all wavelengths.
• The color of daylight can vary with the time of
  day, the weather, seasons, and latitude.
• Sunset is orangish.
• Overcast days, shade, and twilight are bluish.
• Filters can be used to change the color of light.
• Trick
• Use the camera flash in bright light like noon
  sun to wash out shadows on your subject.

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Aesthetics and Composition

• Composition is the selection, and the arrangement
  of visual elements in a photograph.
• Rule 1
• There are no rules. The rules are not really
  rules they are merely a description of why we
  like certain compositions and not others. There
  are no edicts to be followed blindly, but rather
  aids in trying various compositions.
• Rule 2
• Every element in a photograph should be present,
  and where it is, for a reason.

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Aesthetics and Composition

• Rule 3
• An active picture is more interesting than a
  passive picture. A good picture will lead the
  eye through it, using the various elements of
  composition.
• Beginners tend to put the subject dead center in
  the picture because that is where the focusing
  aid is in most cameras. Visually this is static,
  and usually boring because there is even space
  around the subject. However, you may break this
  rule to emphasize symmetry or lack of symmetry,
  or to symbolize a feeling of solidity.
• The rule of thirds is a good compositional aid.
  It refers to a rectangular frame divided into
  thirds both horizontally and vertically with four
  points located where the lines intersect.
  Placing your center of interest at one of the
  four points will generally result in a much
  stronger composition than centering it.

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Aesthetics and Composition

• Rule 4
• The eye is attracted to the largest, brightest,
  most favorable placed visual element in a
  photograph.
• The larger a subject is in a photograph, the
  less likely it is to appear centered.
• Rule 5
• Use any or all elements to unify the picture.
  Without some logic to the composition, the
  photograph is random. Create a photograph by
  examining all the elements.

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Perspective can make a dull picture look fun.
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A good picture will lead the eye through it,
using the various elements of composition.
Symmetry
Picture has depth
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A boring subject can become interesting when
arranged creatively.
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A good picture will lead the eye through it,
using the various elements of composition.
Get Close and dont hit the bulls eye
Have picture make a statement
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We have great pictures Now what?
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Putting the picture to use

• Printing pictures
• Copying pictures to the computer
• Editing photos
• Sharing your pictures

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Printing pictures

• On your computer
• At a photo kiosk
• On-line services

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Copying pictures to the computer

• Card Reader
• Camera Cable

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Editing photos

• Software the comes with your camera
• Free software on the web
• Kodak Easy Share _at_ Kodak.com
• Goggle software - Picasa 2
• PixResizer
• Purchased Software
• Adobe Photoshop Elements 3.0

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Sharing your pictures

• Slideshows
• PowerPoint
• Photo editing software to post it on the web.
• Purchased software such as ProShow Gold
• Email Might need to resize the picture. Use
  editing software to do this.
• Printing
• Print on computer printer
• Take memory card to a photo kiosk and have it
  printed
• Use on on-line service to have the pictures
  printed.
• Incorporate your pictures into applications on
  your computer
• Insert into PowerPoints, Word documents, etc.

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A few ideas for using photography in the
classroom

• Slideshows
• Of examples of what is being taught (e.g.
  historical places you have visited previous
  class completing the same project, etc)
• Of field trips
• Of class projects
• Of highlights of the school year
• Class lists students picture with name
  attached to have for subs.
• Story books
• Bubble maps
• Science fair projects
• Documenting a students progress
• Posting pictures on the web
• Use pictures to post a schedule of the day
• Have students take pictures, then journal about
  them to create their own scrapbook of the year.

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Be Creative!