Common, Yet Compelling

This week, I have the privilege of welcoming Ken Rockwell into my home. Well... not literally, but as I set about reading his article, I felt as if I was engaged in a casual conversation over a cup of tea. Of course, he set out sharing about his passion for photography, but I thought the article was amazingly applicable to education.

What would happen if, in the introduction, references to photography were changed to education? Would it make sense?

"EDUCATION is the power of observation, not the application of technology." Leslee Rupp

How have I made my best LEARNING MOMENTS? By noticing something cool and TEACHING THE TOPIC. The important part is noticing something cool. TEACHING THE TOPIC is easy.

Your TEXTBOOK has nothing to do with making great LEARNING MOMENTS. you have to master technique (AND CONTENT), of course, but that's just a burden to get out of the way to free yourself to tackle the really hard part. The hard part is saying something with your CONTENT.

EDUCATION is art. It's abstract. Therefore it's difficult for many people to grasp. It's easy and lazy to think a TEXTBOOK makes the LEARNING MOMENT. It's easy to blame bad LEARNING MOMENTS on a TEXTBOOK. When you get better you'll realize you would have been better off to pay more attention to your STUDENTS and less to your TEXTBOOK.

Adapted from Ken Rockwell's website http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/howto.htm

Perhaps it's a bit of a stretch, but... I think many of us do rely on texts and technology and technique when teaching rather than studying our students and seizing teachable moments that will excite and endure.

The notion of excitement is one Rockwell raised when he stated, "Photography is communicating passion and sparking excitement in te mind and body of another person." Once again, I think EDUCATION could be appropriately substituted in this sentence. This is certainly one of the greatest challenges teachers face, but how can we communicate passion to and spark excitement in our students? Even more, how can we identify passions and tap into the excitement of our students? Is this not a responsibility we bear? I don't recall seeing that class listed in the required course list for my teacher education program, though. Do you know a sure-fire strategy for accomplishing that in our classrooms? Or, ought we continue to follow the advice of Rockwell and, "Forget Technique!" "Follow Your Own Vision!" "See Don't Just Look!" "Convey Your Feelings!" and "Ask Not Why Something Is Here, But How To Make It Meaningful!"? Will this make learning more compelling?

And, what about the statement, "Brilliance doesn't work on a schedule." How often do we hear that certain subjects must be addressed within a certain time frame in order to "cover the curriculum"? Where is the wonderment in that? Brilliance doesn't even have time to begin never mind shine.

From Walls to Windows

Photography Module Project - Still Images (also on FB)



This is one of the first photos taken as my physical and photographic journey began. In taking this photo, my goal was simply to get a glimpse of the wall as it worked its way up the mountain. Rough and rugged, the wall resembles the rock on which it rests. From this angle, it appears that the wall is an extension of the mountain, rising up from the earth below. An indirect shot of this subject also accentuated some of the wavy lines that form the top of the mountain and then the top of the wall. I liked how they seemed to weave into one another. The mountain, largest on the left, diminished gradually as it sloped down to the bottom right corner of the frame. The wall, largest on the right, gradually tapered off into the top of the mountain. Taking the shot facing up the slope gives the wall an appearance of grandeur and endlessness as it extends into the sky. In addition to capturing the wall, I also wanted to include the clouds, which pebbled the sky early this morning. I liked how the pattern in the sky almost reflected the pattern found in the wall. Even with elements of line, texture, angle, pattern, this image lacked intimacy and intrigue. Nancy Hill says, “A good photograph stirs up emotion” (Hill, 2010: 3), and both she and Gwyn Calvetti emphasize the element of storytelling (Hill, 2010: 3; Calvetti, 2006: 4), which increases the potential of a picture from mundane to memorable. In the end, I concluded that this image is very common and sought something more compelling. I continued to climb.


As I moved up the mountain, I continued to capture pictures of the wall, with angles, lighting, and emotion in mind. On this hill, as I looked down on a still-sleeping city, I thought about the hardship and heartache experienced by so many, and I start to hunt for hope. My emotional perspective impacted my photographic perspective. I had been walled in by the wall before me, but now I was able to see a world beyond this barrier. Windows opened up everywhere, literally and figuratively speaking.

With windows as my frame, shape played a significant role in the shot. Lighting and shadows on the windows’ sills also affected the sentiment of the shot. With my field of vision narrowed substantially, though, I now had to focus more closely how hope was going to be communicated by looking beyond the wall. With the landscape littered with hills, slopes were a sure thing. Some shots centered the slopes, while others skimmed the tops with sky snatching up the bulk of the frame.

In the end, I stumbled upon a scene that I thought to be stunning. In the final shot, several sets of hills can be seen in fading succession, creating a crisscrossed corridor to the horizon line. In addition, a light layer of cloud shrouds the land, providing an intimate and intriguing illumination, qualities lacking in the first shot. To me, these elements work together to symbolize hope. While the journey is sometimes long and hard, and obstacles are sure to get in the way, hope hovers on the horizon.

As I worked with this final image, I applied a black and white effect, which I think helps focus on the shapes and shadows and sentiment. I also cropped the image, removing a large piece of the wall from the left side of the frame. Taking up a third of the picture, this dark portion of wall detracted from the picture seen through this peculiar portal. I cropped a couple times until an almost-square shot proved satisfactory. Finally, I applied an edge blur effect to the shot, which darkened the very outer edges slightly and seemed to bring the background blur a little closer… bringing that hope, which hovers on the horizon, within reach.

From Walls to Windows: A Compelling Climb

Photography Module Project - Video (also on FB)




Transcript

For the last three years, I had the privilege of living and working in Kabul, Afghanistan. While the mention of this place might bring to mind words like harshness, hostility, and hurt, Kabul, a place I once called home, generates in me a sense of history and hospitality and… hope. For many who live in this place, though, hope is hard to come by.

Early one morning, my colleagues and I ventured out from behind our compound walls in order to experience the freedom and fresh air found atop a rugged “rock” that rises from the center of the city. While many appreciated the opportunity this outing provided to exercise and explore, this climb compelled me to contemplate. In turn, contemplation compelled me to climb.

One of the interesting features of this mountain is a wall that runs along its crest. Captivated by its construction, I eagerly eyed the wall from various angles, anxious to snap a few shots that hopefully captured the crudeness and contrasts in its contents and configuration. As I continued to climb and compose, I came across cracks and crevices and corners that caused me to consider that which was beyond the barrier before me. At this point, I realized there was more to this scene than a few sticks and stones. This was not merely a mass of mud and mortar, but a medium through which to achieve greater meaning. The symbolism was staggering.

In a country ravaged by war for over 30 years, it is easy to understand why walls, literal and figurative, surround homes and hearts everywhere. As I studied the structure before me, I began to realize that this wall, designed to divide, could potentially draw together. Put up to protect, this wall had places through which to peer and, thus, was not impenetrable. This wall had windows, which compels on to ask... what lies beyond?

As my attention turned from the wall to the windows, focus and frames, balance and boundaries, shapes and shadows, lines and landscapes, came to the fore. Which window would warrant wonder? Which terrain would tell the greatest tale? Which picture would provoke one to ponder? Which sight would stir the soul? Playing with perspective, dappling with depth of field, and floundering to find a frame (and final photo) that evoked strong feelings was both fabulous and frustrating, but what is found in the final photo?

In the end, hope is what was heralded from the mountaintop. Hope on the horizon is what I attempted to capture and communicate in this final image.

A Glance at a Gerbera

Week 3 - Discussion Post (also on FB)



With this week’s assignment in mind, I decided to experiment with a bouquet of flowers that a friend brought last weekend. Since flowers are one of my absolute favorite subjects to snap, I enjoyed playing around with this particular bouquet. At first, I approached the subject in its entirety. I took pictures of the vase AND flowers from various angles, with inside and outside lighting, flash and no flash. The outside lightning was preferred. I then narrowed the field of focus so that sets of two or three flowers were included in the frame. Again, angles and lighting were a primary concern. Each time I shot a grouping of flowers, one served as the primary focal point, while the others, usually of contrasting colors or textures, filled in the background. Additionally, I tried to capture the center of the focal flower, focusing on the stamen / pistil, particularly if they were uniquely shaped or positioned. Still not captivated, I zoomed in further on a Gerbera daisy, which seemed to be the feature flower of the bouquet. At this point, I employed the help of some of my camera’s features including the close up button and the timer. I have found the timer especially helpful when photographing flowers (and other subjects) close up, as it helps eliminate any movement associated with the pressing the shutter-release button. With the timer, I managed to get a clear shot of the flower, which filled the entire frame. The center of the flower was slightly offset, which I wanted to accentuate in the editing phase. In an effort to further offset the center of the flower, I chose to crop the photo. This put the center in the bottom left hand corner of the photo frame. I am tempted to crop a bit more off the bottom of the photo, but I like the almost-square shape of the photo. Using iPhoto, I applied the black and white effect. I was surprised by how removing the color drew out the contrasting textures of the flower’s center and petals. The black and white effect also added a sense of depth / dimension that I did not sense when the photo was in full color. I like how the dark center of the flower ties in with the sporadic dark spaces near the edge of the photo (bottom left & top right). When in full color, the dark portions are actually different (potentially distracting) colors, but in black and white, there is a subtle sense of unity. It is this sense of unity I cherish as I think that this flower originated as a gift from a dear friend with whom I was able to reminisce over lunch.

The original image

Vertical Lines in Venice

Week 3 - Discussion Post (also on FB)




While I certainly do not consider myself a photographer, I do love to take photos and have a vast archive of snaps. Contrary to the advice of Ken Rockwell (from one of our readings), I keep EVERYTHING. He is right, though, when he says, “Most of what I shoot is…” (Rockwell, 2008: 13), well, let’s just say, not-so compelling. Despite encouragement to “create a new photo from scratch,” I really wanted to go through my collection and examine sets of photos I’ve taken that have become progressively artful. I managed to find a set I thought demonstrated the process fairly well. The set I chose was taken during a trip to Venice, Italy. From there, I proceeded to edit the final image using iPhoto.

After reading through the articles and reflecting on my approach to photography, I realized that I tend to follow the Rule of Thirds fairly religiously, although, I usually only attend to the vertical divisions. With the camera I have, I always center the subject to get it in focus, and then I shift to the right or left to offset the main subject or some other element of the photo. In this photo, I wanted the sun in the background to be offset, a decision I made consciously. As it happens, though, the horizontal thirds seem to play a bigger role, something I noticed in the editing phase. Initially, the horizontal divisions included sky (top), background buildings (middle), and gondolas (bottom). In an effort to place greater emphasis on the gondolas, I cropped the photo, reducing the amount of sky and elongating the look of the photo. Now, the main subject (the gondolas) takes up the bottom two thirds of the photo. Lines are also an important consideration. I tend to be drawn to diagonal lines, which, in this case, were found in how the gondolas and posts were lined up. In addition, the pier / dock create diagonal lines in the mid-ground of the photo. This element of the photo also creates somewhat of a natural frame for the gondolas, something else I purposefully seek out when I look through the lens. In this case, though, that might be one element of the photo that is either distracting or adds clutter. If I was to take this photo again, I might try to take it from an angle that minimizes the presence of the pier / dock. One other element of the photo that I worked hard to incorporate was the lightning. The very first photo taken at this venue was with my back to the light, which illuminated the gondolas and boosted the overall color of the photo. I wanted to take advantage of the fact that the light was low in the sky, though, so I turned around and shot into the sun. This created a silhouetting effect and also allowed me to capture the sun and its reflection off the water. This detail factored strongly in to my editing decisions.

In the editing phase, the first thing I did was apply the black and white effect to the photo. I didn’t like this, so I reverted back to the original photo and moved on to cropping (as described earlier). Once cropped, I tried to apply the black and white effect again. It was a little more palatable with the cropped photo, but I wasn’t satisfied. I tried a few other effects before arriving at “antique,” which is seemingly a more-subtle version of sepia. I thought this accentuated the overall mood of the photo and the element of lighting. With a warmer look, I then began to play with the exposure and contrast levels. I thought the image was a bit dark and attempted to bring more light to it. I liked the golden tone and the way the sun’s rays became more visible and distinct, but too many details in the gondolas were illuminated, which was not what I was looking for. In the end, I reverted back to the original settings, which highlighted the warm, shadowy subjects and the silhouettes in the background.

This entire set of photos shows how the pictures changed.

Wave Riders

In analyzing the two photos this week, I couldn’t help but think about the waves of wonder that well up in my classroom. I was forced to ask, “What do those waves look like?”, “Where are they taking me and my students?”, “How can I help make the most of the ride?”

Sometimes the crests of curiosity carry the rider calmly across the curriculum. There is little need for courage as students rarely collide with the content in a meaningful way. These placid peaks propel the pupils along without providing them with a “righteous ride”. What must I do to help stir up the seas and show students that they must not only show off skills, but strive to be stretched? What must I do to shape the swell in a way that causes the surfer to thrive, not merely float along without any passion?

Then, there is the surf that surges with scholastic strength. As it smashes into the shore, the spray soars high into the air creating a stunning sparkle in the sky. This is a surfer’s dream! Only the deft dare to take on the treacherous tower of water that looms large. As students ride the raging waves, what must I do to help them maneuver and maintain momentum, without succumbing to the surge? What must be done to help them overcome and not be overwhelmed? In addition, what must be done to help develop will and not just an appetite for the thrill?

Whether flat or fierce, those waves of wonder must be watched. As the shape, strength, and speed are studied and the surf subsequently seized, depth and dexterity will develop.