DigPhotog: Photographer's Rights & Street/Public Photography (a YT playlist+) (W13-P3) Sp18

Remember what Gordon Parks said about the camera as a weapon to social ills?
"I saw that the camera could be a weapon against poverty, against racism, against all sorts of social wrongs. I knew at that point I had to have a camera." -- Gordon Parks

What would happen though if you as a journalist or even as a citizen, did not have the right to use your camera in public?

To explore this idea, let's first answer a set of related questions

Questions to keep in mind when watching the clips below.

• What is street/public photography?
• What are some do's and don'ts of street photography?
• What are the rights of photographers in public spaces according to the ACLU?
• In what ways are street photography and public photography relate?

In the video above Kai suggests that we should "google it" to get a definition of street photography. When you do so, you'll find this definition that works well. Street photography is "a non-formalised [unposed] genre of photography that features subjects in candid situations within public places such as streets, parks, beaches, malls, political conventions and other associated settings"(Fogherty).

Kai also mentions the famous street photographer, Henri Cartier-Bresson. If you are curious you can see some Cartier-Bresson's street photos here. Also, if you are curious, I recommend you check out "10 Things Henri Cartier-Bresson Can Teach You About Street Photography."






If you are interested, click on the word "Playlist" or the playlist symbol to see the other videos in my playlist on street photography and the related idea of taking photos in public.

So...
What is street photography?
What are some do's and don'ts of street photography?
What are the rights of photographers in public spaces according to the ACLU?
In what ways are street photography and public photography relate?  How do paparazzi fit into this discussion?  Did I say paparazzi? :)

One of the video clips in the above playlist makes reference to the ACLU and photography in public spaces. Read the following: "Know Your Rights: Photographers"


Other types of photography

Street photography is just one type of photography that you can focus on.  There are such types as black and white photography, portraits, still life, architectural, landscapes, close-up nature (flowers, etc.), children, sports & action, etc.  I'd suggest you "focus" on one type until you developed some skills in that area and then move on to other types, if you want.

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DigPhotog: Writing Captions in Photojournalism (W13-P2) Sp18

Besides composing a good photograph, photographers may also be involved in another type of composition. Photographers, especially photojournalist, may also compose captions for their photographs.

Source

They say that a picture is worth a thousand words.

If that is true for news photographs, then the caption (the verbal description) for the photograph, is like the lead to the thousand word story.

In a news article, the first few sentences of the story is the lead. The lead tells the reader the who, what, when, where, why and how of the story. Packed into the lead is quick overview of the whole news story.*


So, as Kobre' points out in his book, Photojournalism: The Professionals' Approach, a caption should tell the reader/viewer the who, what, when, where, why and how of the photograph.  The caption serves the same purpose as a lead in a written news story. [If your interest is specifically in photojournalism, I'd strongly recommend Kobre's book.]

The 5 W's and the H of a news story (or in this case, a news photograph):

• Who - who is the news event about, who is in the photo?
• What - what happened in the news event, what is happening in the photo?
• When - when did the news event happen, when was the photo taken?
• Where - where did the news event happen, where was the photo taken?
• Why (1) - why did the news event happen, what happened that lead to the photograph, what happened before?
• Why (2) - what is the significance of the news event, why is it important to us, what is going to happen after this event?
• How - how did the event happen?

So, a lead in a written news story should answer the who, what, when, where and how of the new event and sometimes it'll address the why and how.

Now, if a caption of a news photograph is like the lead of a news story, then what does a caption include.

The Associated Press recommends a caption should contain two concise sentences. The first sentence of the caption should include the who, what, when and where.  The second sentence should provide the background information on the how and the why, especially the significance of the news event.

Tip: Start the first sentence with the most important thing to your audience.  If who is important, then start with who.  For example, if a celebrity is the who, then you'll probably want to start your sentence with that person's name. If the where is important, then start your first sentence with where.  For example, if a disease is breaking out is a certain area, then the location or where, is probably more important.

Check out AP's Top Photos of the Week page for current examples of news photographs and their captions. Hover the mouse over the photos to see the captions.  Do the AP photographers and photo editors practice what the AP style guidelines recommend?

Can you write a caption for a new photo?  Find some photos you know something about, perhaps from the AP link above or this link, and see if you can write a caption for the photo.  Practice. practice, practice.


* We're especially talking about hard news stories here.

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DigPhotog: An Intro to Photojournalism (W13-P1) [VID] Sp18

Earlier we've spoken of the power of photography to move, to motivate people.
More recently we've spoken of the rights and responsibilities of a photographer.
And, we've touched on the role of the photographer in society.

This brings us to a powerful quote from Gordon Parks.

Parks once said:

"I saw that the camera could be a weapon against poverty, against racism, against all sorts of social wrongs. I knew at that point I had to have a camera."

It is the photojournalist then who could and should be the soldier on the front lines fighting.  Parks was a photojournalist.

Who is a photojournalist and what do they do?

The following videos provide a good overview of photojournalism from rules and tips to what it is like to be a photojournalist.

First, let's get a feel for what it is like to be a photojournalist.

"A Day in the Life of a Photojournalist"


"Insight into Photojournalism - David Dare Parker" - Freelance Photojournalist - The International Angle




In the "Photojournalism Tutorial" video below pay close attention to (1) the definition of photojournalism, (2) the three key rules of journalism/photojournalism, (3) the rules of the field and (4) the tips for being a good photojournalist.

"Photojournalism Tutorial"

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DigPhotog: Diversity & Digital Photography - Docs on Parks and Maier [VID] (W12-P3) Fa18

This week we look at documentaries about two famous photographers named Vivian Maier and Gordon Parks.


Finding Vivian Maier Official US Theatrical Trailer


Searching for Vivian Maier



Half Past Autumn: The Life and Work of Gordon Parks

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DigPhotog: Diversity & Digital Photography - Practical Issues [VID] (W12-P2) Sp18

We shift now from the serious issues addressed in the previous blog post to practical issues of photographing people of different skin tones.

For some written advice read Photographing People of Color, if you are interested.  But, here, let's watch a couple of videos with further instructions.





The above videos covered what to do if your subject has darker skin, but what if you have multiple people in your photograph with different skin tones?  Follow and read the link.

To take things a step further, if you are interested, you would find it helpful to also understand the use of the gray card and "middle gray" in photography.  If interested, you may also want to explore how spot metering works in to all this.

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DigPhotog: Diversity & Digital Photography - Serious Issues [VID] (W12-P1) Sp18

The topics of race, gender and photography intersect in a variety of ways.

Photojournalism: A Man's World?

(Washington Post video   Nov. 2013)

Note also that National Geographic has recently publicly acknowledged their racist past.

Also, did you notice anything about the women discussed above?  Now that brings us to race.  Something should be done to promote the presence of African American women in photography, especially photojournalism.

The camera can be used as a tool to promote racism and to terrorize a group of people as in the lynching photographs/postcards in the U.S. in the early part of the 1900s.  The camera could also be used as a tool to catalog and control a group of people as with Polaroid's involvement in the creation of travel documents that black South Africans were required to carry as they traveled within their own country.

However, the camera can also be used as a tool to fight racism and teach tolerance as in the use of photography to fight for civil rights in the U.S., for example, by Gordon Parks.  Parks wrote a book titled A Choice of Weapons in which he talks about the camera as a weapon.

So, the above depends on how the photographer uses the camera, for good or for evil.


Bias in the Camera, itself

But, how about the camera itself?  Could the camera itself be inherently racist?  Racist by design?
How is that possible?  What does that mean?  What we are asking is: Is there bias in the design of the camera and related technologies, like film?

The following cases arose a few years back.  One of the cases dealt with the facial detection feature of the CoolPix camera asking Asian people if they had blinked.  The other case dealt with the webcam on an HP laptop not tracking the faces of African-Americans.


HP WebCam


For more details on these two cases, if you are interested, see the Time.com article Are Face-Detection Cameras Racist? or the PetaPixel post “Racist” Camera Phenomenon Explained — Almost.


Interested in More?

To finish up on the serious side of the topic of race in photography, see the following articles, if you are interested.

• More on bias in photographic technology ('White is Right, White as Standard'):
• ‘12 Years a Slave,’ ‘Mother of George,’ and the aesthetic politics of filming black skin
• 'Racism' of early colour photography explored in art exhibition (The Guardian.com)
• If you are interested, some info. on white privilege and photography:
• White Privilege and The Photography Industry
• Rant: I’m Tired of ‘White Guy Photography’ Projects
• If you are interested in more online reading on the topic, here is some recommended reading: Camera Obscura After All: The Racist Writing With Light by Jonathan Beller.

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DigPhotog: Controlling Light: What is HDR photography and what is it good for? [VID] (W11-P3) Sp18

You've heard of HDR photos?

What is an HDR photo? What does HDR stand for? What type of photography is HDR good for?What apps (software) are needed?

How To: HDR photography for iPhone and Android (CNET TV)


What is bracketing and what does it have to do with HDR photos?
In short, bracketing is "taking the same photo more than once using different settings for different exposures"




Secrets of Amazing HDR Photography (revision3)
See the first 5 minutes or so.  Save the remaining for later when we discuss photo editing.


Check out some fine HDR photos at BlametheMonkey.com.  When looking at the photos on this site slide the vertical line back and forth to see the standard version of the photo vs. the HDR version.  

Also see comparisons at Tim Clarke's site.  What is the difference between a normal photo and a HDR photo?  What preferences do you have?  Do you like HDR photos?  Pros and cons of HDR?

Quick HDR Landscape Tutorial
Play from 0:00 to 2:15.  Save the remaining for later when we discuss photo editing.


What is spot metering and what does it have to do with HDR photography?
Spot metering is a setting on a camera in which "the photographer [takes] control over exactly which portion of the frame [or image in the view finder] the meter should use to determine proper exposure."


Pro HDR App Tutorial on iPhone 4 (with Example Images!)


Pro-HDR - an app that allows you to take HDR photos.
Note: Try the free version first, if you can find it.

Another HDR app that is currently available as a free version is HDR FX Photo Editor (Free) which is available on Android.

There is also a limited HDR feature on iPhones and iPads. Check this video, if interested.

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DigPhotog: Controlling Light: White Balance (W11-P2) Sp18

Photo credit: Anthony Quintano (cc)

Ever taken a photo like the one to the right where the photo looks a little yellowish?  This is a lighting problem. More specifically, this is a white balance problem.

Miokte defines white balance as "the camera setting used to correct any subtle color shifts in an image that sometimes occur in different kinds of light.  The white balance setting can be set by either the camera or the photographer, depending on the camera model."

Whenever you take a photograph and you have your camera set on automatic, your camera looks out into the world and makes decisions about what settings to use for ISO, shutter speed and f-stop.  We've discussed this previously.  Along with ISO, shutter speed and f-stop, the camera also makes decisions about the white balance.  And, sometimes it makes a good decision and sometimes it makes a bad decision (like in the photo to the right).  When your camera can't seem to get it right, that is the time for you to step in and change the white balance yourself.  But, how?  Why?



Now with some basics out of the way, let's see specifically how to use white balance setting when taking a photo.




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DigPhotog: Exposure and Histograms (W11-P1) Sp18

In the field of statistics, a histogram is "a graphical representation of the distribution of data."  The histogram below shows the distribution of black cherry trees according to height.  Note that there are many trees between 70 and 80 inches tall and a few that are 60-65 inches tall and even fewer that are 85-90 inches tall.

Graphic credit: Mwtoews. Used under Creative Commons

In the field of photography, a histogram is defined in a similar way.  It is a graphical representation of data.  But, what data?  A histogram for a photograph is "a graphical representation of the tonal distribution in a digital image.  It plots the number of pixels for each tonal value."  The tones in a photograph range from shadows (the darker areas or pixels) to midtones (grey areas or pixels) to highlights (the white or bright areas of the photograph).  A photograph which is underexposed, for example, would have lots of shadow.

For visuals and further discussion see the videos below.



A key question: How could you use a histogram to determine if your photos have proper exposure?




A good app for showing the histogram on both iOS and Android is called PicsPlay.  Get the free version first.

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DigPhotog: "Blurry" Background Photos - Bokeh (W8-P2) [VID] Sp18

Now that we've talked about depth of field, let's throw in a related concept.  This concept ties the technical concept of depth of field back to the artistic discussion of photo composition covered earlier.

What is bokeh and what does it have to do with depth of field?

Bokeh is "the aesthetic quality of the blur produced in the out-of-focus parts of an image produced by a lens. Bokeh has been defined as "the way the lens renders out-of-focus points of light" ... Bokeh occurs for parts of the scene that lie outside the depth of field" (Wikipedia).




You can create bokeh simply by paying attention to depth of field and adjusting aperture settings.  However, you can carry the concept further and create shapes in the out of focus parts of a photography.  See video below.  Note that there are smartphone apps for this as well.



"Differences in lens aberrations and aperture shape cause some lens designs to blur the image in a way that is pleasing to the eye, while others produce blurring that is unpleasant or distracting—"good" and "bad" bokeh, respectively" (Wikipedia).

So, how would you judge good or bad bokeh?  Go back to the rules of composition covered earlier.  For example, is the rule of simplicity important here?  Colors important here?  What would be a list of rules of composition that would be relevant to judging bokeh?


If you are curious, check out 40 Beautiful Examples of Bokeh Photography.

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DigPhotog: "Blurry" Background Photos - Depth of Field, etc. (W8-P1) [VID] Sp18

You like those "blurry" background photos?  Would you like to be able to take this type of photo?

Photo by yashh .   Used under Creative Commons.

If so, you'll need to control the depth of field in your photograph and in order to control depth of field, you'll need to better understand aperture.


Depth of field is "the distance between the nearest and farthest objects in a scene that appear acceptably sharp in an image" (Wikipedia).

For a partial introduction to depth of field and some other topics, check out the following video from Jared Polin and his YouTube channel "Fro Knows Photos."





As a follow up to Polin's explanation and visuals, let's see the first part of the following video (0:00 to 1:45 or so).



Stop on the side-view image in the video at about 1:40.  Use the image to get a grasp of the phrases of "narrow depth of field" and "wide depth of field" which you may hear photographers sometimes use.

What do these two phrases mean and what is the difference between the two?  When you are using a wide depth of field, what is in focus in your photograph?

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DigPhotog: Online Camera Simulators to Help Understand Aperture, Shutter Speed, etc. (W7-P3) Sp18

There are two very useful online camera simulators that I'd recommend to help you get a better understanding of aperture, shutter speed and other aspects of photography.

1. Start with Photonhead's "SimCam - Shutter and Aperture" page. It'll allow you to control a few features of the camera.  What settings would get you those blurry background photos?  Why?   Also, try out the film speed or ISO simulator.  Make changes in the settings and then take the photo (i.e. click on "shoot it").  Before clicking the shoot it button make a guess on what the new photo will look like.  Work with the simulations until your guess match the resulting photo.

2. Also, try CameraSim.com. Once you've gotten comfortable for Photonheads camera simulator, then move on to this more complicated simulator.  You can try the embed below (if it appears for you) or go directly to the site.




In addition to adjusting the shutter, aperture and mode, try adjusting the distance you are to the child and also zoom in or zoom out with the focal length setting.

When you are working with both of these simulators, it is important that after you change some settings and before you press the click button, that you make a guess as to what you think the simulated photograph will look like. Only stop messing with these simulators, once you get all your guesses right.

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DigPhotog: Controlling Light (F-Stops, Shutter Speed, ISO, etc.) (W7-P2) [VID] Sp18

As a photographer, your task is to control light. You are a master of light.

When you turn that dial from "auto" to "manual", you are taking control of the light coming into your camera.  Two key ways of controlling the amount of light coming into your camera are by setting the f-stop and the shutter speed.

Here now we have two options for coverage of f-stops, shutter speeds and ISO.  Check out at least one of these.

Option 1


Option 2



If you are curious, you might check out "A Picture To Show You Clearly The Effects of Aperture, Shutter Speed and ISO On Images."

Also, if you are curious and want to get a little more techie, you can optionally check out the following video.  Note the exposure triangle.





EXIF Apps and the Exposure Triangle

There are apps that allow you to see the f-stop, shutter speed and ISO settings for your photographs.  If you recall, the f-stop, shutter speed and ISO data and other data (e.g., date, time, GPS location) is what is called EXIF data.  For android devices one EXIF viewer app is Simple Exif Viewer.  For iOS devices an EXIF viewer app is Exif Viewer. A Google search will also show EXIF viewers for laptops and desktops.

Use one of the EXIF viewers and check the f-stop, shutter speed and ISO settings for your photographs. See if the settings or values make sense.  For example, would an ISO setting/value of 800 for an indoor photo make sense?  Why?   Would a shutter speed of 1/2 second for a blurry sports photo make sense?  Why?

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DigPhotog: Basic Tech: How Does a Digital Camera Work? [VID] (W7-P1) Sp18

Now let's take a look at how the camera works on the inside.  Understanding how it works on the inside, helps with the understanding of how and why the settings do what they do.

Let's start with, how does a digital camera work? What are the steps in the process (a list of the steps)?

Along with this, what are the parts of the camera relevant to a discussion of how it works (a list of the parts)?

How DSLR Cameras Work


Let's take a look at the process again, in a slightly different way.




Let's take a look at this process from a different perspective.  Let's look at it in slooooo....mooooootion





If you'd still like to learn more, I'd recommend two additional YouTube videos: (1) the more detailed "How Digital Cameras Really Work" and the longer "How Does a Camera Work?".

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DigPhotog: Pixels: The Parts of the Picture [VID] (W6-P4) Sp18

Pixel is "short for picture element, pixels are the tiny components that capture the digital image data recorded by your camera" (B&H).





Resolution is "the number of pixels, both horizontally and vertically, used to either capture or display an image. The higher the resolution, the finer the image detail will be" (B&H).

Resolution is typically shown as the number pixel wide by pixel high (e.g. 4200 x 2800).

Note that when you multiply these two numbers you get the total number of pixels in a photograph.


Megapixel (MP) is 1 million (1,000,000) pixels (B&H).

For example...

If you have a camera which is 8 MP, then the photographs you take can contain up to approximately 8,000,000 pixels.   The resolution for those photos would be 3264 x 2468.

If you have a camera which is 12 MP, then the photographs you take can contain up to approximately 12,000,000 pixels.   The resolution for those photos would be 4200 x 2800.






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DigPhotog: Basic Tech: File Formats in Digital Photography [VID] (W6-P3) Sp18

After comparing benefits of film photography to the benefits of digital photography, one of the next topics to be addressed would be how are digital photographs stored.  With traditional film photography, the photographs are stored on film negatives, but what about digital photographs?

How are photographs are stored digitally.  On your phone, camera memory card, or computer, digital photographs are stored in three possible formats.

The three primary file formats used in digital photography are jpeg, tiff and raw.*
Ever look at a list of photos on a computer and noticed ".jpg" at the end of the file name?  That photo was stored in the jpeg format.

So, what are the formats?  What are the differences?  What are the benefits and drawbacks of each?  Which should you use?*



Now with the basics out of the way, let's take a closer look at the idea of a raw file.  I like Mike Browne's cake metaphor.



If you want to learn more, I'd recommend "File Formats in Photography".


* Note that this discussion mainly applies to digital SLR cameras, since smartphones usually only allow jpeg formats.

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DigPhotog: Basic Tech: Film vs. Digital (W6-P2) Sp18

So, advances in technology have brought us the digital camera.  However, just because it is new tech, does that mean digital photography is better than film photography?

Compared to traditional film photography, what are the benefits of digital photography?

1. automatic feedback by seeing photo on LCD
2. digital photography allows for a smaller storage space and 
3. digital photography allows for easy editing.

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DigPhotog: Photo Composition, One Last Time (W6-P1) Sp18

Itten's Contrasts and Color Composition

Very soon we'll move to the technical side of photography.  However, before leaving the artistic side, specifically photo composition, let's remind ourselves of Itten's contrasts and also look the role of color in photo composition.

Please do revisit Itten's contrasts in the previous notes.

Let's address here, a new topic, the color wheel and color schemes

You are probably aware of the color wheel, but how does it fit into photography?  A color wheel is "an abstract illustrative organization of color hues around a circle that shows relationships between primary colors, secondary colors, tertiary colors etc"(Wikipedia).

This discussion of color fits into our previous discussion of composition.  You can use color to compose good photographs as well as using the rules of composition previously discussed.

Let's get some background on color theory.  Pay special attention to the color rules (color schemes) discussed.



Go to Adobe Color (aka Kuler) and explore the different color rules or color schemes.  Become familiar with the following four schemes/rules: analogous, monochromatic, triad and complementary colors.  Be able to define these four color schemes according to their relative positions on the color wheel.  For example, complementary colors are colors on the opposite side of the color wheel.




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DigPhotog: Video Composition: From the Basics to the Advanced (W4-P2) [VID] Sp18

Let's continue our discussion about composition in moving photography.

First, note the techniques of getting a good hand-held video shot as laid out in the video below.  The video below is about using a professional video camera, but the same techniques apply to you using your smart phone or tablet camera.



And now, on to some more advanced aspects of video composition.
Q: What is the rule of composition that cant' be used well in still photography
A: Movement

For some keen lessons on composing with movement let's go to the master, Akira Kurosawa, famed Japanese film director.  Note the specific rules of movement discussed.

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DigPhotog: Can't Leave Composition Behind: How to Use in Video (W4-P1) [VID] Sp18

We've previously talked about photo criticism and photo composition, the artistic aspects of photography.  We'll very soon move into the technical aspects of photography.  However, before we take a look at the tech, let's take one last look at composition.  This time will not look at it in still photography, but moving photography.

The "rules" of composition that you learn for still photography can also be used in your video work.

Note that when shooting video on your smart phone or tablet, the rules of composition still apply. And now that you are adding more time and movement to the shooting of a subject, you can do some interesting things with the still photography rules of composition.

Note the four rules of composition that can be used in video work which are discussed below.





After you learned about composition in still photography (rule of thirds, framing, etc.), did you start to spot those same rules being used in your favorite TV show or movie?  If not, look for it the next time you are watching TV or a movie.

Take, for example, the Tarantino film, Kill Bill.


Just focus on the rule of thirds.  How often do you see the rule of thirds?  How is it used?



Now, you try it.  Go to YouTube (or another video source) and look for clips of a favorite movie.  See how many rules of composition you see being used.  Besides the rule of thirds, what else do you see?  Framing?



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