Final preview

A portrait tells the story of a person. It is a photographer's job - duty, even - to tell this story accurately, fairly, and positively.

Stories are what separate snapshots from photographs. Some of the best photographers to whom I aspire are portrait and photojournalists.

Hopefully, the images from my final will tell you a story.

Stop motion

Our stop motion video.

The black background worked really well, as well as the sound track and effects, especially for pacman. If we were to decide something that didn't, I wish the zoom creep would have been recognized and fixed beforehand, or more time to shoot. Furthermore, we wish that we didn't have to have a break in shooting over separate days as the table we were using was moved, and it caused some problems.

"Thankful"

I am thankful for many things in my life, but the above photos represent the things for which I am most grateful.

In the middle, a lens cap from one of my camera lenses rests on a table. I love photography in general, and I am thankful to have the opportunity to practice photography regularly. On the bottom right, is a picture of my uncle and cousin. I am very thankful for my family, and they mean the world to me.

On the top right, is a picture of Mrs. Schmidt. Although she can be incredibly annoying :) I am fortunate to learn a lot. Plus, a picture of her snuggling a pinecone is the most accurate picture representing her I could find.

On the top and bottom left are Jenny Merry and Kim Cormier, two professional photographers whom I greatly admire. I am so fortunate to be able to draw from the experience and knowledge of both for photography, and I have already learned so much in so little time, and I hope that I am able to continue learning.  They are both so supportive of me and my crazy ideas of someday becoming a professional, and it is wonderful to have real people like that who don't mind helping 'the little guy,' so to speak.

Happy Thanksgiving!

9. Nov. 2012 - MOOD

Interesting week. Sick, tired, among other personal things, but all in all not a terrible week.

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"BROKEN"

"READY"

Me...Myself...and I... again

OK, so this time I did something that was probably outside of the realm of what I was supposed to, but hey... Just be glad I posted something of myself -- that's harder than you think. Kudos Mrs. Neel if you can guess what technique it was; hint: Joe McNally. It does tell something about me, something very accurate, but it may be a bit hard to get, at first.

There were three selfs, and technically well there's 12 of me! Oh, and there's nothing written about the images at all, because it's a separate post. Sorry, Mrs. Neel - you know me - Good at finding loopholes. Forgive me!

Me, Myself, and I

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"EXCELSIOR"

Critique 26. October

Photo Credit Rachel Gabel:

I disagree with a couple of the critiques that were made on other blogs about this image. I actually really like the flares seen in each lens element (and they are different colors - which means that your lens is multi-coated against dispersion... anyway).. each flare creates a line that all leads to a central point down the middle of the lens' aperture. I also like the fuzziness a little bit up in the corner, because it is distracting yet keeps my eye down in the middle of the frame with the flares again.

Photo Credit Rachel Gabel:

I like the concept you chose for this picture. The light is fairly even, except for the right space, and the plant creates some interesting shadows on the wall. And your house, and the door specifically looks exactly like my grandparent's house, but that's neither here nor there.

Next time, try and diffuse your pop-up flash a little bit, so it's not entirely harsh. Try a piece of tape, or an index card in front of it, essentially to "bounce" the light.

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Video Credit Josh Brumley:

http://www.youtube.com/embed/KVdJjLDvwVw

(blogger doesn't like iFrames, so I just posted the link)

I really like this video! I have a lot of respect for folks that have the patience for timelapses.

I enjoy the music that you put to the video; I think it helps the story. I also like how you did weather, instead of, say, cars moving down a street. I enjoy watching the colors in the sky and the various times of day.

The only thing I would try differently is the transitions/panning/zooming - I'm not a huge fan of those effects in this video. I watched the video that you based yours off of, and I'm not a huge fan of it there, either.

Just nitpicky things, which I tend to be good at...

Experiment & Explore

So... I decided to do something very radical and something I would not want to risk doing when being paid.

I went to Elluminate Productions' Dress rehearsal in the mall this past weekend. Elluminate is a sort of 'play' production. It was incredibly dark, so for my 'experiment' I decided to not use a flash, push my camera, and shoot the entire thing like I would a wedding. No, don't give me that crazy look. I put my camera at some ridiculous settings ("Don't Try This At Home!") - ISO 6400, F2.8, and 1/200th of a second shutter speed, to see what I would get. The lights were constantly changing in color, and the majority were a crazy orange/red, that was a pain to correct later.

But I think the shots turned out very well, and I especially like the B&W. I feel like both shots have an "intimate" feel to them.

The experiment reminded me why I only second (or even third) shoot weddings, and rarely at that. :)

Motion

Both at Frontier sporting events, these photos are both prime examples of how motion can give a viewer a sense of what was happening at the time of the photo.

Food Photography

Some iphone snaps this week, so not the best quality unfortunately. But it was a good challenge

a quick iphone snap of a soda can. Water droplets were added for appeal and effect. The most difficult part was getting an interesting pattern and reflection on the can, without it being distracting from the glare. 

some delicious crackers pose on a plate. it was a cellphone photo, so not the best quality, but the composition and background/shadow idea is still there! The toughest part was getting the proper angle and placement right. It's surprisingly difficult to make a few crackers look interesting, but I think it turned out okay. There was another towel towards the top to add as a reflector for the shadow on the bottom, as well as the creased towel behind to add an interesting texture, and to create an eye line with the shadow from the crease (yearbook term!!)

Station Assignment Post

Since they wouldn't copy to the folder, they are here now.

Color

Metal

Reflection - Camera takes a look at itself while it snaps a photo

Shadow. A nice portrait

Some high speed shooting shows the food coloring in water. Taken at a High ISO

White on white

Reflection Photography

This is a photo that was taken at the Frontier Elementary School.

It doesn't look like much, but if you look closely or zoom in on the photo, my reflection can be seen in the eye of the person being photographed - I didn't even notice til after the fact.

Here is an interesting, although hopefully subtle reflection.

The plant on the left was designed to give a sense of depth and keep your eye out of that side of the frame, like you are peeking into a scenario.

The reflections of the trees and houses are just visible, and serve to keep your eye in that area as well, the bottom foliage pushing the viewer up.

Photojournalism

A very compelling image. An elderly man stops for a rest in Greeley, CO's downtown Lincoln Park before biking away.  MANUAL  SHUTTER 1/450th F/4 ISO 200 Minor edit and retouch in Adobe Photoshop)

Possibly the best of all! A split second reaction of Mrs. Neel's caught on camera. She finds out that she has passed Step 1 of Haiti's government's adoption process. (MANUAL Shutter 1/320th F/4.5 70mm ISO 100 Minor retouch and Edit in Abobe Photoshop )

A photo of my uncle holding up a very old photo of my grandfather. Different generations are viewed here through one photograph (MANUAL Shutter 1/160 F/4 ISO 1600)

A car zooms by a downtown Greeley, CO street. (MANUAL Shutter 1/13 F/22 70mm ISO 100 Minor edit and retouch in Adobe Photoshop)

Alec Street poses with a very interesting face for  the camera during a Publications class, where photography practice was abound! (MANUAL Shutter 1/200 F/2.8 200mm ISO 2000 Minor edit and retouch in Adobe Photoshop)

Best Photos

Here are four of my best/most favorite photos, and the back-stories behind them...

This was a photo I captured at a performance of a band called "They Call Me Hero" - they consist of Frontier Academy students, check them out! - and I loved the punchy colors of the guitar and the general emotion in it. I don't think the image would have worked quite as well if the face of the band member had been included, because it would have detracted from the image. I do wish, however, that I had had a wider lens to capture it to compare. The motion blur wasn't intention (just a mistake on my part with the shutter speed) but in retrospect I think it added a nice effect, the playing was pretty intense!

This was a photo I took in Carlsbad Caverns. It was one of our destinations over summer vacation. There was no flash used to capture this photo, which I think adds to the natural eeriness of the pillar, as well as just general awesomeness (that's a photography term?). It was at an ultra-high ISO, but still looks very nice. My camera nailed the focus perfectly (there really was hardly any light down there whatsoever) which is a bonus, (whoo, go camera! Thanks!) so this shot definitely ranks among my best.

I'm not one for super saturated images or architecture - but this was a very old church in Albuquerque, New Mexico and I had to take the opportunity to capture it with no one else around (bonus points if you know the church!). I had to wait awhile until no one was entering or exiting, but I think it was worth the wait. I hope I portrayed the mood of the church accurately.

This was at my cousin's graduation where I took some photos. I was originally upset at the people standing up around me with their cameras, but in retrospect I think it adds depth to the image, and everyone standing at once to snap photos adds to the 'excitement' of the shot in general.  Graduation photos in which the class tosses their mortarboards  up are always some of the most exciting photos. This was a very large school, as well, so it gave a nice touch to the picture. I hope to capture Frontier's graduation this year as well.

Thanks for reading!

Collage

Here is the final completed & full color collage from 15. August 2012...

My name is Andrew Moline, and Photography truly is my passion. It is more than a hobby, for me, and I hope to someday become a successful professional.

Thanks for reading!

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