I remember the day this picture was taken: I had just joined photo journalism and I wanted to create something like the landscape photographer I was researching: Ansel Adams. I remember one of his pictures had a river that had a 's' shape and it enhanced the picture so much that I wanted to give it a try and I was driving down a road by my house after it had snowed a couple days prior and I immediately parked my car on the side of the road, layed in the middle and shot this with my phone. I wanted to get the angle right so the viewers eye would follow the yellow lines so I shot wom's's eye rather than head on. It was my first stroke of a creative vision and somewhat of insanity.
SportsThis was the moment I got a hang of sports photography. We had to get five shots good enough for the newspaper or yearbook by going to various sporting events. It was my hardest assignment but this was the photo that I looked in my viewfinder and knew that there would be a good one as the Howell boys raced in their relay race. The boys had such raw emotion in their face and I had just gotten my camera settings right so it came together in perfect harmony through this picture. |
PhotoshopI created this picture for the last photoshop assignment. I originally took it for my independent project of nature but it got tossed aside for other pictures so I decided to use it here. When this was taken, I was driving around Chesterfield and I saw a fine arts studio with a tree house outside so I quickly grabbed the camera that was in the car with me, parked on the side of the road and took it. I like it because I got really low while taking the picture and that combined with how it was intended to be a photo sketch gave it this cartoon vibe and I like to think it was taken by an cartoon animal roaming the grass. It accurately portrayed the artistic vision I had as I saw it on the side of the road and as I began to photoshop it. |
PortraitThis portrait was my favorite shot in my favorite unit. The subject in this picture is one of my best friends from both winter guard and marching band named Claire. She has such an easy going spirit that the second we started shooting she saw a big tree and climbed almost to the top. In this picture I tried to get the trees to frame her and I used a low angle to emphasize the height she was at in the trees. This was also in the 'golden hour' of the day so the lighting works with the composition and we joke together that she looks like a disney princess among the trees. I learned that no matter how my planning you put in action, often the most spontaneous photos turn out the best and the most real. |
Photoshop
This photo is really powerful to me because I took it after the floods and storms that devastated Missouri a few weeks ago. I walked outside and found a stray purple flower laced among a white flowered tree. To me, it represents that beauty positivity is everywhere even in difficult times. By using photoshop to make the background black and white it highlights the vibrant color found in purple in the flower which is difficult to achieve with just a camera. This was the first time I was able to photoshop to further my idea with the picture and take my photo to a whole new level
This photo is really powerful to me because I took it after the floods and storms that devastated Missouri a few weeks ago. I walked outside and found a stray purple flower laced among a white flowered tree. To me, it represents that beauty positivity is everywhere even in difficult times. By using photoshop to make the background black and white it highlights the vibrant color found in purple in the flower which is difficult to achieve with just a camera. This was the first time I was able to photoshop to further my idea with the picture and take my photo to a whole new level
SportsAlthough commonly seen, this photo taught me a very important lesson about photography. That although it can be tempting to hide in a crowded situation, especially with a big camera making you stand out in a crowd, the ultimate picture is worth the few seconds of being uncomfortable. This baseball game attracted a large crowd that I had to push through to get close enough to capture this moment. The ball was in the shot, there was intense emotion on his face, and I finally got my shutter speed just right so I was able to capture it all in optimum conditions. It also pushed me to the limits of what I was comfortable with because the teacher I had to ask permission from to pull him out of class sent me away both times I asked but I came back everyday to get a quote from him and one day she finally let me. This photo taught me that no greatness ever comes from comfort.
|
PortraitsFor the portraits unit I experimented with image elements such as background in order to get a good shot. This picture taught me that perception is everything because although it looks like my friend Jessica is standing in the middle of a wheat field we were at a park behind a playground and I was crouching between puddles of water. Yet it all came together in the end. One of my favorite aspects of this picture is the contrast in color. She is wearing bold colors that contrast with the natural color background and that helped make her expression pop. Although many shots had the same effect I loved the expression Jessica was giving because it was gentle and content and this conflicts from an insecurity that she has that she looks angry when she doesn't try to. As I showed her the picture she squeled and got excited and told me that this was a special picture because this is how she sees herself but people usually make assumptions of her due to her natural expression. It was so impactful for me to hear this because I was able to help someone over come a struggle through photography and that is such a gratifying experience and it empowered me to get through the rest of the semester.
|
PhotoshopAlthough it is simple, I feel that the artistic, splattered border around the bright orange leave picture takes on a form that looks like its been drawn or shot through glass. I went to the Botanical gardens for my nature assignment and my focus was to pay attention to my surroundings so I took this picture as I looked up on a serene path. In this photo, there are essentially only two colors: blue and orange and they contrast each other to really enhance the vibracy of the photo. While editing it in photoshop I learned that even the most minute changes can bring new life to a picture.
|
This picture was taken for the '26 things' assignment under the title 'sunset'. My favorite thing about it is that the colors look layered light blue to cream to pink and that adds an interesting dynamic to the photo. When I took it i saw this mix of colors in the sky and i knew it would be really special to capture that so i climbed up into my tree and snapped away. Additionally, I feel that the frontal blur and tree framing really highlights the background and causes the viewers eye to go straight to the colors which is the focus in this picture. I learned that the most important thing to have with you for photography is a good eye for picture composition and to focus on what message or mood you want the viewer to pay attention to.
Top Left:
This was taken of my cat, Ruby, for my harsh lighting photo. This is her favorite spot in the house to soak up the sun and immediately as I walked passed I noticed how striking the lighting. It was a hot, spring day and it was around noon so the light was beaming directly down onto her. Without this lighting the picture would just be one of 1,000s of pictures that I have of my cat but with it she looks fierce and stoic and it really captures the eye. The process of taking this picture was especially good practice for me because I intend to take pet adoption portraits at the animal rescue that I'm apart of to help them find their forever home.
Top Middle
I love this photoshop pen and ink photo because of how it enhances the features of a dull shot. The original picture was taken for my nature personal assignment and I was standing in the middle of a cluster of trees during 'golden hour' and took a worm's eye shot of the trees above. The problem with the picture is nothing made it special, it didn't stand out. But, with the help of photoshop I was able to create a stark contrast int the tree elements of the shot- the sky, trunk, and branches- and although it caused much of a headache in arranging the curves and colors the picture ultimately shows immense detail in a before, dull picture. I choose this picture of the trees because I wanted to make the concept of pen and ink realistic and what better way to do that that on an image that most of drawn since Kindergarten:trees.
Top Right:
This picture was taken on the way to my Bowling Green, Kentucky guard competition of my friend and teammate, Eva. I took it for my photo story in which I portrayed the people and process that go into guard competitions. In this particular shot, Eva was listening to our show music as she ran through the show because we were late due to our trailer crashing and wouldn't have time when arrived at the arena. What makes this close-up special is the angelic glow that the soft, morning light creates and the warm light on her face. What I learned from the picture is that even with a rough background, in this case an old bus, as long as the camera is focused on the subject and the light helps tell the story, any close-up can be great.
Bottom Left
This was a portrait turned grayscale photo. It was initially one of my favorite portraits of her because it was so real and authentic but I knew I would get negative comments on the condition of the green, barnyard background because it was falling apart and had stains all over it. But as I played with the grayscale adjustment levels and curves I realized that the stark contrast in colors caused the imperfections to fade away in exchange for a non-distracting black background. Overall, I learned to value photoshop because it helped me fix photos with minor flaws and turn it into something that I could frame.
Bottom Middle
This was taken at the girl's varsity lacrosse game at Central. It was a particularly rough shoot because when I first arrived to the Varsity match I realized that I had lost my SD card on the Central lacrosse field. After searching I finally found it after the varsity game was about to end so I stuck around for the JV match and this was my best shot.I had always struggled with taking good lacrosse pictures and I went to three matches before I finally got a solid one. For these shot, I decided to crouch down and wait for action to come to me because I realized that taking far away shots did not produce a good picture. I like it because it shows the competitor's raw focus and competativeness and also allows room for the ball in the bottom right corner.
Bottom Right
This last one was for my stop-action section of nature photography. After the flooding, water was flowing out of this rustic drain pipe and I noticed that this would be a great contrast to the beautiful white flowers in the background. I crouched low and adjusted my shutter speed in order to capture a picture of the individual water droplets spilling out of the drain. I adjusted the composition in order to ensure that the viewer's eye goes straight to the water because that is what makes the scene unique rather that just another pretty flower shot. By doing this I was able to end up with a picture that captured the eye and told a story rather than just being surface level pretty.
This was taken of my cat, Ruby, for my harsh lighting photo. This is her favorite spot in the house to soak up the sun and immediately as I walked passed I noticed how striking the lighting. It was a hot, spring day and it was around noon so the light was beaming directly down onto her. Without this lighting the picture would just be one of 1,000s of pictures that I have of my cat but with it she looks fierce and stoic and it really captures the eye. The process of taking this picture was especially good practice for me because I intend to take pet adoption portraits at the animal rescue that I'm apart of to help them find their forever home.
Top Middle
I love this photoshop pen and ink photo because of how it enhances the features of a dull shot. The original picture was taken for my nature personal assignment and I was standing in the middle of a cluster of trees during 'golden hour' and took a worm's eye shot of the trees above. The problem with the picture is nothing made it special, it didn't stand out. But, with the help of photoshop I was able to create a stark contrast int the tree elements of the shot- the sky, trunk, and branches- and although it caused much of a headache in arranging the curves and colors the picture ultimately shows immense detail in a before, dull picture. I choose this picture of the trees because I wanted to make the concept of pen and ink realistic and what better way to do that that on an image that most of drawn since Kindergarten:trees.
Top Right:
This picture was taken on the way to my Bowling Green, Kentucky guard competition of my friend and teammate, Eva. I took it for my photo story in which I portrayed the people and process that go into guard competitions. In this particular shot, Eva was listening to our show music as she ran through the show because we were late due to our trailer crashing and wouldn't have time when arrived at the arena. What makes this close-up special is the angelic glow that the soft, morning light creates and the warm light on her face. What I learned from the picture is that even with a rough background, in this case an old bus, as long as the camera is focused on the subject and the light helps tell the story, any close-up can be great.
Bottom Left
This was a portrait turned grayscale photo. It was initially one of my favorite portraits of her because it was so real and authentic but I knew I would get negative comments on the condition of the green, barnyard background because it was falling apart and had stains all over it. But as I played with the grayscale adjustment levels and curves I realized that the stark contrast in colors caused the imperfections to fade away in exchange for a non-distracting black background. Overall, I learned to value photoshop because it helped me fix photos with minor flaws and turn it into something that I could frame.
Bottom Middle
This was taken at the girl's varsity lacrosse game at Central. It was a particularly rough shoot because when I first arrived to the Varsity match I realized that I had lost my SD card on the Central lacrosse field. After searching I finally found it after the varsity game was about to end so I stuck around for the JV match and this was my best shot.I had always struggled with taking good lacrosse pictures and I went to three matches before I finally got a solid one. For these shot, I decided to crouch down and wait for action to come to me because I realized that taking far away shots did not produce a good picture. I like it because it shows the competitor's raw focus and competativeness and also allows room for the ball in the bottom right corner.
Bottom Right
This last one was for my stop-action section of nature photography. After the flooding, water was flowing out of this rustic drain pipe and I noticed that this would be a great contrast to the beautiful white flowers in the background. I crouched low and adjusted my shutter speed in order to capture a picture of the individual water droplets spilling out of the drain. I adjusted the composition in order to ensure that the viewer's eye goes straight to the water because that is what makes the scene unique rather that just another pretty flower shot. By doing this I was able to end up with a picture that captured the eye and told a story rather than just being surface level pretty.