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INVITATION How can we help students increase their creativity and artistic talents by creating and manipulating digital photography? How can we motivate them to approach digital photography as a method of creative art? In what ways can we communicate to students the importance of independent learning and the appreciation of different forms of creative expression? |
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TASKS Students explore the world of visual art and the ability to change and manipulate perspectives. With 35 mm cameras, digital still cameras, or digital camcorders, students create digital photographs and use software tools to create digital artwork. Through the use of digital photography, students develop and practice their skills using software tools and the Internet. Students create a digital portfolio of their work and choose how to deliver their project from a selection of software titles. |
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TOOLS Computers. AppleWorks; Art Mania 12,000; Photoshop LE or Photoshop Elements. Director Academic (optional); QuickTime Pro (optional). Digital still or video camera (optional); scanners (optional); 35 mm camera (optional). |
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INTERACTIONS Students meet as a class with the teacher for class discussion. They then work individually during the first part of Phase 1 and meet as a class to present their finished photographs. Students continue to work individually and with the teacher during the rest of the project phases. After student portfolios have been created, the class meets for student presentation of portfolios. |
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STANDARDS To identify the curriculum standards for your state that correlate to this student project, select the state in the popup menu below and then click the Go button. View Detailed Standards in |
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SITUATIONS Students work in the classroom, in the computer lab, and in the community. This project is ongoing and will last approximately two weeks depending on prior student knowledge of the software and hardware. The teacher needs to determine how much time an entire student presentation will take. The presentation time needs to be added to the overall development time of two weeks. |
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ASSESSMENT The teacher assesses student designs based on their creativity and detail, the understanding they demonstrate of the concepts and process of digital photography, and their overall clarity and organization. Clearly defined expectations of each learned element need to be given to the students prior to the assignments. Teachers can then analyze student growth, keeping a checklist of skills. Students keep a portfolio which contains examples of all digital photography. |
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In 1936, Walter Benjamin published a remarkable essay titled The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction. Benjamin wrote about the way the creation and perception of works of art had been changed by the widespread use of technologies to reproduce them. The shift of artwork from the creation of unique, permanent objects associated with ritual to the creation of easily reproduced work had already changed the meaning and perception of art in his time. This shift was most evident to Benjamin in two art forms that existed because of new technologies: film and photography. With the shift in today's culture, brought about by the new technologies developed in the Information Age, the age of art Benjamin was referring to has once again been redefined. In this project, students challenge themselves to gain an understanding of the elements of one of the newer art forms, digital photography, and create a portfolio that represents their talents and the world in which they live. |
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Phase 1: Changing of the guard Discuss with students a brief history of the changing of art media and how social change has also influenced the media which have been available to artists. Show an AppleWorks slideshow that illustrates this historical change to give students a perspective of the development of art and its transformation into the digital world, and discuss the following kinds of questions: What are some of the similarities of art in the early 1800s compared to current digital artwork? If a photograph during the early stages of photography were redone with a digital medium, what might it look like? Questions like these should help students to begin to gain a different perspective of digital photography. |
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Phase 2: Elements of fun Ask students to find five images that represent some of their favorite things to do. Students can then begin using Photoshop LE or Photoshop Elements to manipulate the images and get familiar with the programs’ tools. Using the finished images, students create a short AppleWorks slideshow and share them with the class. Finished images should also be saved and added to students' digital portfolios. |
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Phase 3: Composition During this phase, students explore composition (or the organization of subjects within the picture area) through selection and arrangement to produce the most pleasing and graphically effective form. Students should come to class with five pictures and compositions in mind. Each image needs to be opened in Photoshop LE or Photoshop Elements and text needs to be added to describe the specific areas of composition defined here:
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Phase 4: Colorization Students now bring in five black-and-white pictures, scan the images and open them in Photoshop LE or Photoshop Elements. They use the editing tools and filters on certain portions of the images and look for creative ways to bring those portions of the photo into color. Challenge them to notice how the depth of the image changes as the color replaces the black-and-white portions. Students should try a few images and save the best three in their portfolio. Then assign the reverse of this activity: ask students to bring in five color photos and use the editing tools and filters to move portions of the color image into black and white. Students should also save the three best images in their portfolio. |
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Phase 5: Restoration Students find five old photos that have cracks, dust spots, or other blemishes. They use the editing tools and filters to restore the images to the best possible form, and select two to add to their portfolio. |
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Phase 6: Manipulation This phase allows students to use their imagination and creativity as they work with opacity, masking, layers, and merging. Students take five original photos and open them in Photoshop LE or Photoshop Elements. They manipulate the images as much as possible while still maintaining some of the basic elements from the original photo. Students choose their three favorites to include in their portfolios (along with the original images). |
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Phase 7: Ad this to your list During the final phase, students think of a new product to be sold on the Internet. This product can be anything that is appropriate for classroom use. Students then use original photos and the editing tools in Photoshop LE or Photoshop Elements to create an advertisement poster to sell the product. This final assignment will incorporate all of the previous phases. Students can add art files from the Art Mania 12,000 CD, but two-thirds of the finished ad must come from original photographs. The final ad is added to students' electronic portfolios. |
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PREPARATION
Prepare an AppleWorks slideshow that illustrates the historical change of photographs and art and the movement toward digital photographs and art. Make sure that students are comfortable using AppleWorks and Photoshop LE or Photoshop Elements, and that they know how to import files from Art Mania 12,000 into Photoshop LE or Photoshop Elements. Make sure that students understand the software they use for creating their electronic portfolio. Titles include AppleWorks, Director Academic, and QuickTime Pro. |
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OPTIONS AND EXTENSION ACTIVITIES
Invite a professional photographer, or a guest speaker with a background in digital photography, to visit your classroom and speak to students. Share a wide range of digital art and photography with students to spark their interests. Invite the school board to view the finished products. Share the final portfolios with family and community members. Challenge the class to create a professional example of digital photography for publication. |
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 BOOKS Essentials of Digital Photography by Akira Kasai A Guide to Using Digital Photography in Graphic Design by John Odam Learn Digital Photography in a Weekend (In a Weekend) by Brad and Marc Braun Photographer's Digital Studio: Transferring Your Photos into Pixels by Jo Farace Professional Digital Photography Desk Reference by Frank Romano A Short Course in Digital Photography by Dennis Curtin |
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INTERNET RESOURCES
Digital Photography for High School Teachers
ShortCourses
digital photography news
Photography Resources
Imaging World
Digital Photography Online
Digital Photography with Craig Freeman
PhotoDisc
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