Project #1: The Rule of Thirds and Composing Your Photographs

The Kodak website is a valuable resource to use as you develop your eye and your compositions.
The students in this class who have taken Digital Photography 1 will be presenting the rule of thirds to those who haven't.

Digital Journal #1:

Visit the following websites and bookmark for future reference:
http://asp.photo.free.fr/Composition/photoProgramCompMainClass.shtml

Part 1:
Just as a composer uses all the instruments in a symphony to create a stirring piece of music, you should compose each picture so that its parts work together to create a work of beauty. Each item in a picture has an effect on the whole, so don’t just point and shoot. Take a little time to compose each picture into the masterpiece that it has the potential to be. Remember that you are trying to develop mastery in concept composition as well as in technique.
Visit the following sites and make notes in your Digital Journal (named "_dj1")about each topic. Include an image that you find online to illustrate what you are talking about.  Click the links below:

Shooting vertical or horizontal
http://www.digital-photo-secrets.com/tip/504/when-to-shoot-in-portrait-or-landscape-mode/ 

Choosing a main point of interest

http://wwwca.kodak.com/CA/en/consumer/guideToBetterPictures/eStores/index.jhtml?style=&cat=9&subCat=1

Adjusting your angle of view

http://wwwca.kodak.com/CA/en/consumer/guideToBetterPictures/eStores/index.jhtml?style=&cat=9&subCat=2

Placing the subject off-center

http://wwwca.kodak.com/CA/en/consumer/guideToBetterPictures/eStores/index.jhtml?style=&cat=2&subCat=5

Using leading lines

http://asp.photo.free.fr/Composition/photoProgramCompClass41.shtml

Avoiding distracting backgrounds 

http://asp.photo.free.fr/Composition/photoProgramCompClass62.shtml

Including foreground objects

http://wwwca.kodak.com/CA/en/consumer/guideToBetterPictures/eStores/index.jhtml?style=&cat=2&subCat=6

Part 2: 

In your Desktop Journal, have examples of people, places, and things (three images of each), with the rule of thirds grid drawn over them.

People/Rule of Thirds

http://photoinf.com/General/KODAK/guidelines_for_better_photographic_composition_rule_of_thirds.html

Project

After reviewing the rule of thirds and visiting the above assigned Kodak sites, you are to photograph the following Plan Your Photo Composition (36 works):

1. Hands (such as braiding hair, holding something, working on something) (4 works)
2. Feet/Shoes (4 works)
3. Geometric Shadows/Forms (4 works)
4. Organic Forms and/or Texture (4 works)
5. White on white/eggs (4 works)
6. Lines (4 works)
7. Glass/transparency (4 works)
8. The remaining photos are your choice (8 works)

These are due by the end of class on Wednesday, September 25th. 

Naming convention: _ruleof3rds  (Please LABEL your photos on the Contact Sheet by the corresponding #'s 1-8 from the categories above. EXAMPLE: All the photos with Hands in them would be labeled, "1.")

You will turn in a digital contact sheet to receive credit. We will have a class critique on your photos to help you determine which compositions work best in regard to the rule of thirds and how to photograph your subject with more interesting view points to attract viewers to your composition.

Your grade for this assignment will be based on several factors:

• Completion of each image turned in on a contact sheet.
• Turned in on time (formative)
• The quality and creativity of your 36 best images
• Your choice of which photos to possibly use for your portfolio (summative).