{"id":88,"date":"2014-05-18T06:27:00","date_gmt":"2014-05-18T06:27:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/beta.dminlgp.com\/?p=88"},"modified":"2014-08-11T21:32:58","modified_gmt":"2014-08-11T21:32:58","slug":"what-do-you-see","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/what-do-you-see\/","title":{"rendered":"What Do You See?"},"content":{"rendered":"

I bought a good Canon<\/em> camera in October after returning from the London Advance.\u00a0 I wanted one just like Ashley\u2019s since her pictures were so good!\u00a0 For the most part, for the past several months, my camera has remained in its case.\u00a0 This assignment, however, prompted me to take it out of the case and to learn<\/em> about photography.\u00a0 I had no idea what I was getting into and was absolutely surprised at what I came away with.\u00a0 I hope that what I discovered will be helpful to you as well.<\/p>\n

After reading Josh Kaufman\u2019s book[1]<\/a>, I realized that I needed a plan.\u00a0 If he could do it, I could do it.\u00a0 Here is the 20-hour plan I came up with:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Go out and take pictures<\/em> with what you know now.<\/li>\n
  2. Read<\/em> about photography and read about your camera.<\/li>\n
  3. Watch<\/em> the video that came with the camera.<\/li>\n
  4. Interview<\/em> those who know photography.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    So off I went to the park with the pond to photograph everything that looked like a good subject. I snapped and snapped and snapped photo after photo \u2013 trees, flowers, people, dogs, ducks, geese, water, sky, and my wife.\u00a0 So how did I do with round one?\u00a0 Frankly, I got some good pictures.\u00a0 But the problem is that I didn\u2019t remember what I did to get these good photos.\u00a0 I soon realized that I needed more than just practice; I needed a foundation of theory behind the new and complicated technology of digital photography.\u00a0 So I whipped out the manual and video[2]<\/a> that came with the camera.\u00a0 But, after reading and watching these, I became more confused than I was at the beginning of this project.\u00a0 Yes, I learned some new terminology \u2013 but I did not learn photography.\u00a0 Something was missing.<\/p>\n

    Next, I decided to set up my interviews.\u00a0 With all the busyness at work this week, I only had time for two interviews, one phone interview with \u201cmy buddy\u201d Ashley Goad and one face-to-face interview with a long-time film-photographer friend Mike Demkowicz.\u00a0 First I called Ashley, since she was the one with all the great photographs!\u00a0 So what did I learn from her?<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Take lots and lots of pictures!<\/li>\n
    2. Learn how to frame your subjects.<\/li>\n
    3. Shoot early in the day and late in the day (It\u2019s all about lighting).<\/li>\n
    4. If your subject is in the sun, take your picture in the sun; if your subject is in the shade, take your picture in the shade.<\/li>\n
    5. Use the \u201cAV\u201d (aperture priority) setting.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      So, I went out to take more pictures with my newly discovered wisdom and took a lot more pictures using all my camera\u2019s modes.\u00a0 Yes, I took some good pictures again \u2013 but I still did not really know how<\/em> I did it.\u00a0 Practice makes perfect?\u00a0 Perhaps.\u00a0 But was I learning<\/em> a new skill, or was I just running around in circles?\u00a0 I know \u2013 more reading!\u00a0 So next, I ordered the Dummies<\/em> book on my particular camera, the Canon Rebel T3<\/em>.[3]<\/a>\u00a0 Then I read and read and studied and studied.\u00a0 But, again, I was getting more and more confused.\u00a0 The more I read, the more complicated this whole photography project became.\u00a0 And time was running out.<\/p>\n

      I have been a teacher for most of the past 35 years now, and there is one thing I know for certain; when one is going through the learning cycle, a common part of the process is frustration<\/em>.\u00a0 It has been said that it is darkest before the light comes.\u00a0 I am not sure if this is always true, but I do know that often with my students, the light comes on only after the frustration, the confusion, and the temptation to quit and say, \u201cWhat\u2019s the point?\u00a0 What difference does it make if I learn this or not?\u00a0 Who cares?\u201d\u00a0 I am not used to having these same questions, but I did feel this in the process of trying to learn photography this week.\u00a0 But now for the last resort; it was time to talk with a professional photographer.\u00a0 Surely he could teach me, help me to understand photography, and give me what I needed to take good, consistent photos.\u00a0 I was ready to learn, but little did I know what I would actually learn from Mike.<\/p>\n

      I arrived at Mike\u2019s at 10:00 and left at 2:30.\u00a0 So what did I learn in these hours?<\/p>\n

      The first thing we did was to look at Vivian Maier<\/em> photos.<\/p>\n

      \"image\"<\/p>\n

       <\/p>\n

      \"image\"<\/p>\n

       <\/p>\n

      Vivian Maier\u2019s work is phenomenal.\u00a0 For thirty minutes I sat memorized looking at these photos.\u00a0 You can see some of her work at http:\/\/www.vivianmaier.com<\/a>.\u00a0 This kind of observation of great photography is the first step in understanding this field, this art.<\/p>\n

      Mike then asked a series of questions which we talked through for almost three hours:<\/p>\n

        \n
      1. What is a photograph?<\/li>\n
      2. Why do I like this particular photo?<\/li>\n
      3. What about it do I like?<\/li>\n
      4. How was it done?<\/li>\n
      5. What do I see?<\/li>\n
      6. How do I show that?<\/li>\n
      7. What would happen if\u2026?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Here are the highlights of our conversation:<\/p>\n