Final Exam - First Semester Pd 3

1. My favorite photo from the Lens slideshow is the fifth one with the waves and the lighthouse. The placement of the lighthouse clearly shows the rule of thirds, and the white foam of the waves creates a line that leads the viewer across the photo. Many small details, including the brick foundation of the lighthouse and the smaller waves in the sea, fill up what is left of the space. Wow, that coincidentally fits all of my three rules of composition!

2. Regarding the best, the fourth photo depicting the Marine officer, hat, and Air Force One fit that role the most. There are multiple focal points (conveniently placed at various "thirds" of the photo), and each focal point is so colorful that it seems to draw attention away from its dull gray background. Besides having great composition, the photo also has a great story behind it. The hat blown off the Marine's head by the wind of Air Force One shows me that powerful leaders sometimes mistreats their subordinates.

3. In my opinion, my best work this semester was a photo of small signs surrounded by tufts of grass. See here. (You may have to scroll down a bit. Or you can scroll down right now and see the photo.) I really like how the everyday objects in the photo are so mundane, but they tell a powerful story. The photo also has a lot of bright, happy colors and sharp color contrasts.

If I had more time, I would have taken a few more shots at different angles. Maybe there would be a better picture at a different angle. Who knows?

4. My three rules of composition are: Fill the frame, rule of thirds, and leading lines.

5. My best work also shows my best example of my three rules of composition. See below.

There are little details that fill the frame, and the wires and poles lead to the white sign in the middle, which is the focal point.

6. Hello, Mr. Farley! Your first rule of composition is to get closer to your subject.

7. Benefits of working in groups: divide and conquer (which ultimately fails but nonetheless works for a while), less work, and therefore less stress (until divide and conquer fails), input from everyone makes result more creative, and different people cover for your weak spots.

8. Difficulties of working in groups: when divide and conquer fails and you have to do everything by yourself, hard to make decisions, one person controls everything, people just can't agree on anything, and the problem of finding times and places to meet.

9. My favorite photo by someone else in the class is definitely Pavi's photo of her shoes and the floor. The tiles create an optical illusion of 3D, which is very cool. And interesting.

Yay history

10. Margaret Bourke-White was one of the original photographers for Life Magazine, and its first female photographer. Her photos greatly contributed to the idea of an "American Style" of photography. Some of her photos have become iconic American favorites.

11. Migrant Mother, Dorothea Lange's most popular photo, was taken in Nipomo, California, around the February or March of 1936. At the time, she was employed by the Resettlement Administration.

12. John Ames Mitchell and Andrew Miller created/founded Life Magazine. Its first copy was published on January 4, 1883.

13. Capa co-founded Magnum Photos in 1947.

14. Capa took "Falling Soldier" in Spain, during the year of 1936.