Rubric for Photojournalism Projects

Name_______________________________  Date__________  Period______

Project #  1     2      3      4     5     6      (please circle) Project topic:________________________

Objectives:                                                                                            Points  Available            Points Awarded

Photographer shot the correct number of photos                         15                         _________

Photographer followed project instructions                                   10                         _________

Photographer put photos on their blog                                            15                         _________

Project topic is relevant and creative                                                 5                            _________

Photos are well composed                                                                  15                         _________

Photos are retouched and technically sound                                   15                         _________

Photos/project overall are creative                                                   25                         _________

GRADE ________________________

Simple Photo Retouching

Follow these steps before placing the image in InDesign or using a yearbook photo placement plug-in. Do them in this order for the best results.

Mandatory retouching:

1. Adjust Levels to balance highlight, midtones and shadows. IMAGE<ADJUSTMENT<LEVELS – In the top pull-down menu, choose the red, green and blue channels individually. In each, pull in the sliders on the left and right to the edges of the histogram. After adjusting the levels in each channel, go back to the RGB channel and adjust the midpoint slider slightly to the right or left so that the brightness and contrast are perfect.

2. Adjust color balance. If a photo needs to be corrected for color, the photographer can do that under IMAGE<ADJUSTMENT<COLOR BALANCE. To add warmer tones, add more magenta and yellow. To give a photo a cooler tone, add cyan or blue. Move the sliders left or right until the desired color tones are achieved.

3. Adjust the sharpness of the images. FILTER<SHARPEN<UNSHARP MASK – To help images appear more in focus, adjust the sliders in Unsharp Mask from the bottom slider up. Leave threshold at 0 or close to it, adjust radius and amount as little as possible to make the photo more in focus. Avoid an unnatural look by making the photo too sharp.

4. Take the red out. Photoshop CS includes a red-eye tool (found underneath the band-aid tools). Zoom in on the eyes. Choose the red-eye tool and click on the red eyes. They red goes away.

5. Use the dodge tool to lighten a dark area or the burn tool to darken a light area. This works especially well if one face needs to be lightened or darkened to match the other faces in a photo or to lighten up a shadow area. Photographers sometimes use the burn tool to darken the edges of a photo so that the center of interest stands out or to darken a light area in a photo.

6. Larger spots or scratches will require use of the cloning tool or the healing band-aid tool. Choose the cloning tool. Using the ALT key, choose an area that is close to the area needing to be cloned. Let go of the ALT key and right click the area which needs to be spotted. If another area needs spotting, choose a new target with the ALT key and then clone that area. Repeat these steps until all spots are retouched. The healing band-aid tool is used by dragging over an area so that the colors in that area are averaged to heal the problem.

7. Remove dust and scratches from photos. FILTER<NOISE<DUST AND SCRATCHES – Use this filter to remove dust and scratches from the photo. Use may also need to use DESPECKLE  or other NOISE filters. Be careful that these filters actually improve the photos. Sometimes they counteract the UNSHARP MASK filter and make the photo blurry.

List of Projects for Third Six Weeks

Check out cameras to begin taking photos for projects.

Photojournalism Projects – Third Six Weeks

Choose four of the projects below to complete by January 11, 2011. All projects must be placed in a PowerPoint slideshow with each frame labeled with the name of the project.

1. Landscape- Shoot at least 30 frames of landscape shots. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow. Pay attention to lighting, colors and shapes. The images can be color or black and white.
2. Action- Take photos at an event where people are moving – game, dance, race, etc.  Shoot at least 30 frames of action shots. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
3. Magazine Cover- Shoot 20 portrait shots of a person; choose 1 that could be used on a magazine cover. In Photoshop, create a magazine cover with your photo, the name of the magazine complete with teasers and headlines about what is contained in your “magazine.” You will need to know how to use layers and text in Photoshop.
4. Macro – Take 30 close-up shots using a macro lens. You must get really close to a single object. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
5. Fisheye – Use the fisheye to distort faces, buildings or scenes. Shoot at least 30 frames of fisheye shots. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
6. Children - Shoot at least 30 frames of children playing. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
7. Event – Shoot at least 30 frames at an event, either school or community related. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
8. Black & White – Shoot at least 30 frames of photos which can be converted into black and white or sepia. Subject matter is open. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
9. Nature - Shoot at least 30 frames of nature shots like flowers, trees, other organic subjects. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
10. Reflections - Shoot at least 20 frames of reflections in water, glass or some other reflective material.  Retouch the best three and include in your slideshow.
11. Still life – take photos of inanimate objects. Pay special attention to lighting and composition to create unique shots. Shoot at least 40 shots of four different objects. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
12. Human body - Shoot at least 30 frames of a portion of the human body like hands or feet. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
13. Photo manipulation – Take at least 20 photos to use a base for artwork that you create in Photoshop. The finished image should make a statement. Include two images in your slideshow.
14. Pop Art - Take at least 20 photos to use a base for artwork that you create in Photoshop. Ask for Pop Art instructions if you want to do this project. Include two images in your slideshow.
15. Open – If you would like to do some project not listed above, write a proposal for what you want to do and submit it to Mrs. Duncan for approval.

December 2, 2010 Assignment

1. Google "Photography Galleries." Look at different professional galleries.

2. Login to your blog. Create a new post where you paste your 5 favorite gallery links. Also, get creative with your blog by changing the design, adding gadgets, adding additional photos, etc.

3. Get two other people's blog addresses and comment on their photos.

4. Check out cameras (if needed) for your projects. First project is due next Friday, Dec. 10.

Orchids in Hawaii

This is a photo I took in Hawaii. I love the bright colors in the orchids and the lighting from the overhead skylights.

Taking Great Sports Photos

This is a Dallas Morning News photographer talking about taking photos with emotion, on the field and on the sidelines.

November 30, 2010

Check out cameras to begin taking photos for projects.

Photojournalism Projects – Third Six Weeks

Choose four of the projects below to complete by January 11, 2011. All projects must be placed in a PowerPoint slideshow with each frame labeled with the name of the project.

1. Landscape- Shoot at least 30 frames of landscape shots. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow. Pay attention to lighting, colors and shapes. The images can be color or black and white.
2. Action- Take photos at an event where people are moving – game, dance, race, etc.  Shoot at least 30 frames of action shots. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
3. Magazine Cover- Shoot 20 portrait shots of a person; choose 1 that could be used on a magazine cover. In Photoshop, create a magazine cover with your photo, the name of the magazine complete with teasers and headlines about what is contained in your “magazine.” You will need to know how to use layers and text in Photoshop.
4. Macro – Take 30 close-up shots using a macro lens. You must get really close to a single object. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
5. Fisheye – Use the fisheye to distort faces, buildings or scenes. Shoot at least 30 frames of fisheye shots. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
6. Children - Shoot at least 30 frames of children playing. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
7. Event – Shoot at least 30 frames at an event, either school or community related. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
8. Black & White – Shoot at least 30 frames of photos which can be converted into black and white or sepia. Subject matter is open. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
9. Nature - Shoot at least 30 frames of nature shots like flowers, trees, other organic subjects. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
10. Reflections - Shoot at least 20 frames of reflections in water, glass or some other reflective material.  Retouch the best three and include in your slideshow.
11. Still life – take photos of inanimate objects. Pay special attention to lighting and composition to create unique shots. Shoot at least 40 shots of four different objects. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
12. Human body - Shoot at least 30 frames of a portion of the human body like hands or feet. Retouch the best four and include in your slideshow.
13. Photo manipulation – Take at least 20 photos to use a base for artwork that you create in Photoshop. The finished image should make a statement. Include two images in your slideshow.
14. Pop Art - Take at least 20 photos to use a base for artwork that you create in Photoshop. Ask for Pop Art instructions if you want to do this project. Include two images in your slideshow.
15. Open – If you would like to do some project not listed above, write a proposal for what you want to do and submit it to Mrs. Duncan for approval.

Create a blog using blogspot.com to post your best photos for each project.

Go to blogspot.com; create a username and password; follow the instructions on the screen to choose a template and create a blog; write down your username and password and give it to me.

Create a new post.

I would like you to post two of your photos on your blog with a 1 paragraph for each photo telling me why you liked or disliked the photo. What things about the photo made it a good or bad photo. Why did you pick that one? What things did the photographer do that made it a good photo?