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I want to back up a little this semester and talk a bit about my first years of teaching to encourage those of you who might be in that situation currently and provide a little nostalgia for my veteran teachers!

I’d like to roll the clock WAY back for you, let me take you before my art teaching career, to the beginning of my journey. I always knew that I would be doing something in the arts after high school. I thought about being an actress, then a vocalist, finally finding true passion in the arts. I have always valued creativity and I love the way that art can allow people to release and create something that they maybe didn’t think they could previously do. Thus, my clear choice was art education.

I had a typical college experience, the university taught me how to technically become an art teacher, but when it came to actually teaching…let’s just say that I think I can speak for many teachers of all fields when I say that I learned more in my semester of student teaching than I did in 4 years of school. They should really get teachers into the classroom sooner, I think, but that is a topic for another day…

Toward the end of my college career, I entered the completely foreign land of job searching! I got the suit (and/or borrowed one from my sister) and started sending out my resume. I interviewed at every possible opening that spring. It didn’t matter if it was somewhere I specifically wanted to teach; every interview was an opportunity to get some experience.

Maybe it has not been your experience, but I found that art teaching jobs were few and far between, although, there were some jobs that stayed open for a while due to the fact that the school was located in the middle of nowhere…which was undesirable, to say the least.

I finally did get a position after about a month and a half of searching at a small 3A school about 30 minutes south of where I was living. I was really excited, even if it wasn’t exactly what I was looking for, I’ve really enjoyed working there for the past 7 years.

So since this is the time of year that people might be job searching, I thought I might put my thoughts out there for best tips in an interview (even if my experience might be a little limited). Here we go:

1. Be professional. I know that this is one that they always say, but it really makes a difference. Not only in the eyes of your potential employer, but also for you. If you feel the part, you will be more likely to act the part.
2. Map out how to get there at least the day before. Not just the location on the map, but also which door and room that you need to meet at. I was almost late to my first interview because I didn’t know which building in which I was to be interviewed. I wandered around the wrong school for about 10 minutes before someone found me and helped me! I felt so silly!
3. Know your strengths and come with visuals. I put together a little portfolio not only with my artwork, but also with student artwork that I had compiled from my student teaching.
4. Lastly, be yourself! They want to know who they will be working with for the upcoming year, make sure that you don’t promise things that you can’t perform on or pretend that you are more or less than you are. Be truthful, but be confident.

I am sure that my list is not the most professional of lists that are available, but these are the things that I believe landed me my first position in teaching and I hope that you find them helpful! 

Stay tuned for my next installment next week when I talk about how I prepared for that first year of teaching. I’ll discuss some dos and don’ts and what I learned along the way.

If you found this post helpful, leave a comment below, I would love to answer any questions that you have or even hear some of our stories (horror or success) when it comes to interviewing for a teaching position.

It’s ALIVE! So you have taken still life photos, are you ready to delve into photographing something that moves?!

For portrait photography, we will be using similar lighting techniques as we did with the still life photo assignment. You’ll take a photo outside, inside in front of a window, and in studio light. Check the Still Life Photography blog or lesson for a few lighting tips. For starting off, I use the same techniques for both Still Life and Portraiture.

Below are a few points for taking successful portrait pictures. This is not exhaustive by any means, but it should be a good list to get you into the door.

1. Do whatever you can to make your subject comfortable. Choosing someone you know will help you with this.
   • As much as possible you want their smile and movements to seem natural. Making them laugh would be the best way to make their smile most natural.
   • You could give your subject some gum or something to hold in his or her hand to make them feel more comfortable.
   • They don't have to look at the camera. You could give them fixed points to look at in the room/wherever you are.
   • Remember that the more relaxed you seem to be the more relaxed they will feel. 
2. Check the background. Make sure that you check the surroundings so that nothing will distract from your subject. If there are bright colors behind them, shift yourself or them to omit them. Check for mergers.
3. Check your camera. If you are just using a point and shoot camera, set your mode to portrait. If you are using a DSLR, try setting it on the manual mode Av and use a low F-stop. This will make for a fast shutter and a shallow depth of field (so your background will be out of focus. You should also use a longer focal length lens if you have one available. You will have to back up from your subject a bit more, but it will also help to blur the background and control the light.
4. Set the white balance. Be sure that your whites are white so that your colors are true. Use a white card and have your subject hold it in front of him/her to check for a good white balance (HINT: the card should be white :).
5. Focus on the eyes. This is essential. The subject’s eyes must be in focus. They say “the eyes are a window to the soul” and as such, they are incredibly important to your portrait. Their eyes should not only be in focus, but they ought not to be shadowed because we want the focus to be on the eyes, no matter how you choose to pose your subject.

Keep all these points in mind as you take your portrait pictures and remember all the lighting tips given for still life photography can be used here too. Take pictures outside, in front of a window, and in studio light with one lamp and a good reflector.

This Week’s Assignment:

Take 3 good pictures or your subject using 3 different lighting situations: Outside (either in the sun or in the shade), inside next to a window, and in a darker area with one studio light. If you feel proud of your pictures, choose your best shot and post it to Instagram with #DigitalArtTeacher. Take at least 10 photos for each subject. Remember, focus on the eyes!

Finding texture in photography adds a certain appeal to your images. Everything you see has a texture, and photographing to capture that texture can make your images much more relatable to the viewer.

For example, instead of taking yet another cute picture of your nauseatingly cute house cat, what if you zoomed in on the nose or eye to capture the texture there. Or instead of taking pictures of the brick wall, try focusing in on the metal grate that protrudes from the side of the wall. Would that make for a more interesting image?

There are two topics that we will discuss here: capturing only the detail of the object and using the texture to convey information about the object(s) in the scene.

Detail: 

This type of texture photo is focused entirely on the texture of the object. The viewer may not even be able to tell of what object you have taken a picture. It is quite similar to the macro-mode challenge I wrote about in an earlier blog post.

When you are simply capturing surface detail, the object itself is unimportant, the texture is the main thing. You will need to use your macro mode for this shot. (see examples 2 and 4)

Information:

Another technique for capturing texture would be to choose an object with a texture which gives the viewer information about the object. For example, the tiny edges of the edge of a feather blowing in the wind or an abandoned rock query used for light rock climbing and hiking. In these examples, the texture is helping to tell the story of the object. It tells us what it has been through and it's purpose.

Light:

In order to capture the texture most effectively, you will need to consider the light you use. Usually, a side light helps to emphasize the texture. The shadows cast across the texture helps to emphasize the details in it. Whether you use hard or soft light is up to you, it depends on how dramatic you want the end result to be.

Texture really is everywhere, but you may have to look closely to find it. Remember to use your macro mode! Try to find texture in unlikely places!

This Week’s Assignment:

Take 2 good pictures demonstrating texture. One should focus entirely on the detail and the other should use texture to give information about an object. If you feel proud of your pictures, choose your best shot and post it to Instagram with #DigitalArtTeacher. Take at least 10 photos for each subject. Feel out some texture!

Still life photography can sometimes be seen as an ancient, lost art, but you see still life photography everywhere today. Whether you are trying to sell your own homemade items (like at https://www.etsy.com/) or looking for a specific still life stock photography website (like https://www.istockphoto.com/) still life images are still widely used in marketing and advertising.

For our purposes, let’s start with some basics. First, you need to choose some items to photograph. No…they do not have to be a bowl of fruit and a vase of flowers! Not that it’s bad, I just want you to be willing to stretch yourself and to know that still life photography can branch away from what might be considered “traditional”. 

Choosing Subjects

You want to choose items that tell a story. They should be related in some way. One tip to help you choose a song or a book title and find items that would illustrate said title. Another tip might be to walk around your house and choose related items, such as a bible, a pen, and an old lamp. Or you could look for sentimental items, like items that belonged to your grandparents. You should also avoid reflective objects when you are starting out, as they can be hard to work with.

In the example to the left, I have chosen to center my items based on the song "Turn! Turn! Turn!" by the Byrds. The song is about the passing of time, so I used items that were/are used by my children, me, my mother, and my grandparents.

Choosing a Background

Your background should be SIMPLE so that all of the attention can be given to the subjects of your still life. If you use a cloth background, be sure to iron it, nothing drags the attention away more than a wrinkly mess behind your subjects. It is also usually a good idea to choose a muted color for the background, again, so that we don’t steal the attention away from the subjects.

Choosing a Location

You can take a still life image anywhere, but we will talk about 3 general locations that you can take pictures. First, remember that natural light from last week? Well, we aren’t going to forget it anytime soon. You can take your items outside and place them in a location that makes sense for them, for example: if you brought tools for your subject, you might place them on a workbench. Whether or not you put them in the sun depends on whether or not you want that hard or soft light. 

Another location would be that natural light next to a window. Again, you could go for hard or soft light. You could set these items on a side table and have a wall as your background, or you could construct a lightbox with white walls so that you can have a completely white background. (more on constructing a light box in the still life photography unit)

Lastly, you could decide to completely control your light by placing your items under studio lights in a completely dark room, which actually isn’t as hard as you might think. All you need is a lamp and a reflector (again, more on this technique in the still life photography unit)

So gather up some items and shoot yourself some still lives! Just remember, look for related items, simple background, and complimentary lighting locations.

This Week’s Photo Assignment

Take 3 good pictures of your still life objects using 3 different lighting situations: Outside (either in the sun or in the shade), inside next to a window, and in a darker area with one studio light. To get more information on these three lighting situations, see the PowerPoint on still life photography (LINK). If you feel proud of your pictures, choose your best shot and post it to Instagram with #DigitalArtTeacher. Take at least 10 photos for each subject. 

Being as the definition of photography is literally “to draw with light” (in Latin), you better believe that controlling light is really important! There are lots of different directions we could study when talking about light in photography, but for now, we are just going to study one category: natural light.

Natural light is the easiest light for a beginner to master. Below are a few different conditions in which you might take pictures and why you might want to take pictures there. 

Full Sun (Hard Light)

Taking pictures when the sun blaring down on a subject can result in some pretty dramatic photos, but sometimes it can be a little harsh. Perhaps that is why taking pictures in full sun is considered hard light. To an untrained eye, full sun may at first be appealing and would be appropriate for some situations, especially when you are trying to capture some texture (more on that in a later post). However, when taking pictures of people, the harsh shadows on the face can create the “raccoon effect" around the eyes, not to mention the likelihood that your subject will squint.

Shady/Cloudy or Dawn/Dusk (Soft Light)

Cloudy weather is a highly desired time to take pictures for most photographers because the lighting will be softer on their subject. The light will look different based on the time of day (due to where the sun is) and there are a lot of factors that might impact the way that light is portrayed (including your white balance). Taking pictures at dawn or dusk is considered the “Golden Hour” for most photographers because the light can really be magnificent in photographs. The color tends to be warmer and due to the placement of the sun, certain details can often be captured that may not normally have been caught. (This link gives excellent examples of the Golden Hour: https://www.apnphotographyschool.com/inspiration/gallery/15-spellbinding-examples-of-golden-hour-photography/)

Indoors by a window (Soft or Hard Light)

If you want to take pictures indoors, an excellent option is to find a window so that your subject can still be bathed in natural light, even without being in the great outdoors. If you place the subject correctly, you can get some excellent soft light with this technique. However, if the sun is streaming in, you could have a lot of hard light falling on your subject as well. When you take images next to your window, be sure to turn off your lights, that way your subject isn’t getting any artificial light mixed onto them.

A tip for directing light: An excellent tool for directing light is to use a reflector. This could be a large piece of white paper or a piece of foam core poster board covered in aluminum foil. Which one you choose will depend on how much light you desire to have in your shot. The reflector is used to reflect the light of the source (for natural lighting: the sun) onto the opposite side of the subject. This is how you can get an excellent even light on both sides of your subject.

This Week’s Assignment:

Take 3 good pictures using different locations (or times) to demonstrate natural light. Take one shot for each of the locations listed above: full sun, cloudy/shade/dawn/dusk, and indoors by a window. If you feel proud of your pictures, choose your best shot and post it to Instagram with #DigitalArtTeacher. Take at least 10 photos for each subject. Go “draw with light”!

Emphasizing negative space is an excellent tactic for a photographer. The negative space is the “not stuff” part of your image. It is what allows the viewer to really focus on the subject.

Using negative space in your image is really rather simple. The idea is that your subject has space to “breathe”. As a general rule, it is usually nice to have your positive space (or your subject) fill up anywhere from one third to two-thirds of your page (depending on your subject, of course). But if you are trying to emphasize the negative space, you might make your subject only take up one fourth or less of your image.

As you may have discovered when you applied the rule of thirds to your images, the subject was off center and you usually want the subject facing inward. This is also true for our space element because there is often so much negative space that you really want to see where the subject is going or looking.

In some images, having a lot of negative space gives the viewer some information about where the subject is. For example, if your subject is a hiker, the negative space might be a mountain scene. If your subject is a dog, it might be a grassy hill at a park. (In examples 2 and 3, you see some context about the location in which the objects are taken.

Another bonus of this negative space element is that you usually end up with rather simple photos, which also makes for rather dramatic photos. Since there is a lot of space around your subject, this makes it easy to focus in on the subject and what they are doing.

So here is a basic recap: back away from your subject so that it is smaller than you might normally have it so that there is a lot of space around them. Be sure that your negative space (or background) is on the simple side so that it does not steel too much attention away from the subject. 

This Week’s Assignment:

Take 2 good pictures that utilize this element of negative space. Remember, your subject will be relatively small (positive space) and your background will be relatively simple (negative space). If you feel proud of your pictures, choose your best shot and post it to Instagram with #DigitalArtTeacher. Take at least 10 photos for each subject. Go explore some space!

One of the most eye-catching things that you can do with your photography is use leading lines. These lines could look solid (like train tracks) or they could be “psychic”, like a person pointing across the picture at something. Whatever you choose to do, your lines should lead the eye into the picture.

There are 3 basic lines that you can look for: vertical, horizontal, and diagonal. Let’s look at each:

Vertical

Vertical lines can make your photography seem peaceful or powerful, depending on your subject, of course. The line(s) leads your eye upward. For peaceful, think about a still forest of tall trees. For powerful, think about a tall building taken from the worm’s eye view.

Horizontal:

Using horizontal lines gives a feeling of stillness, leading the eye from left to right or from right to right to left. There is usually not a lot of movement evident in the image. Use horizontal lines if you want to give stability to the image. 

Diagonal:

Diagonal lines have the most capacity to lead the eye. They make an image look “dynamic” and tend to catch the eye of the viewer. If you can find diagonal lines with the objects you take pictures of, it will really take your image to the next level. 

Whenever possible, make your lines lead into the image, possibly toward a subject of some kind. For example, if you take a picture of a person running along a path, have that person running toward the middle of the image instead of placing them facing the edge of the picture as if they were about to run off the image.

This Week's Assignment:

Take 3 good pictures using different kinds of line. See if you can cover each of the different kinds of lines listed above: Horizontal, Vertical, and Diagonal. If you feel proud of your pictures, choose your best shot and post it to Instagram with #DigitalArtTeacher. Take at least 10 photos for each subject. Let’s line it up!

Also known as close-up mode, macro mode is what allows you to get in super close on your images without getting blurry shots.

Most digital cameras (even the cheapest compact cameras) will have a macro mode function. What it does is make your aperture wider (small f/stop number) and your shutter speed slower so that the depth of field is very shallow. You will have to be sure to hold the camera very steady or use a tripod while using this mode because it will likely be blurry with the slightest movement.

This scene mode is usually represented by a little flower icon. This is likely because when you are taking pictures of a flower, you often want to get in close to get all the details.

But flowers aren’t the only things that a photographer might want to get close up and personal with. You can creatively use macro-mode for any number of subjects.

Close-up pictures have a way of grabbing attention and making your subject look more important than it really is.

This week's assignment:

Take 3 good pictures using macro mode. The challenge in this photo assignment is to take pictures in such a way that the viewer DOES NOT know what your subject is. See if you can fool your friends! BUT REMEMBER to keep the rules of composition in mind while you take pictures. If you feel proud of your pictures, choose your best shot and post it to Instagram with #MacroMode. Take at least 10 photos for each subject. Time for your close-up!

A NOTE FOR TAKING THESE PICTURES MANUALLY:

If you like, you can just change your aperture to a low f/stop number while taking these shots. You can switch to the “Av” mode or the “M” mode to make this happen. By doing this, you can control how much depth you get in your pictures. The lower the f/stop number, the shallower the depth of field. You may have to change to a manual focus setting to be sure that the camera focuses on what you want it to.

It’s time to talk about color…wait a minute…I thought we were talking about white balance, well we are! (Deceiving isn’t it?)

White balance has to do with what color your camera perceives to be white. For example, have you ever taken pictures in a gym (or similar lighting) and found that everything seems to be a little yellow? Or have you ever taken pictures outside, perhaps when the sun starts to set, and found that things or people seem to look blue? This is an example of wrong white balance.

Finding the right white balance isn’t really difficult, but it will take some trial and error before you find the right one. Of course, you could just set your camera to AWB (Auto White Balance) and be done with it, but sometimes…the camera just doesn’t know what color white is!

So let’s break it down a little. Essentially, finding the right white balance is all about finding the right color for white.There are a few settings on most DSLR cameras (and some compact cameras) for white balance. These are the settings on the Canon Rebels that I use in my classroom: AWB, Daylight, Shade, Cloudy, Tungsten, White Fluorescent, and Flash.

If you find the WB button on your camera, you should see each of these settings (again, for most DSLR cameras). When you scroll through each setting you may see it refer to a number followed by the letter K. For example, On the Daylight setting, mine says: (approx. 5200K). You see, each of these settings corresponds with a "Color Temperature” value (K). However, you don’t really need to know what that value is, you just need to know what each setting will do.

So, let’s talk about what they do and look at the examples. The names of each white balance setting give you a hint on when to use them, but let’s take a look at how much they change a picture. When you use the outdoor settings (Daylight, Shade, and Cloudy) your camera will add yellow to the image. (Did you know that sunlight is actually slightly blue? That’s why it’s SO BRIGHT!)

When you use indoor settings (Tungsten or White fluorescent) your camera will add blue to the image. (This is because most artificial lights have a yellow tint to it.)

Refer to the images on the right for examples of these settings used in action! Below, I have given more specific examples on when to use each setting. The images, however, were all taken in the same lighting, Daylight.

AWB - the camera chooses the white balance (and you hope that it’s right)

Daylight - to be used in FULL SUN

Shade - to be taken in shady areas, including enclosed areas outside (like a dugout) 

Cloudy - to be used when the sun is hidden, but you are in a place that the sun would shine if it were out

Tungsten - to be used in extreme yellow lighting, perhaps your gym lights

White fluorescent - to be used in most indoor lighting situations 

Once you practice and experience using your camera, you can get a better idea for when to use which white balance setting, but until then, I say: try them all! It won’t hurt you to take a few extra pictures (that is the beautiful thing about taking pictures digitally, you almost never run out of room on those multi-gig cards!).

This Week's Photo Assignment

Take 2 good pictures for white balance. Take one shot in outdoor lighting, and the other shot indoors. Test all of the white balance settings for each location and see for yourself how much "white" can change. If you feel proud of your pictures, choose your best shot and post it to Instagram with #whitebalance. Take at least 10 photos for each subject. Jump in!

What does your vantage point as a photographer have to do with taking pictures? A great deal! Where you stand in relation to your subject can make a big difference in how you subject is perceived. 

There are 3 different vantage points that I’ll talk about in this article: worm’s eye view, eye level, and birds eye view. Each view will change the way that you see the subject, so you want to choose the one that makes the most sense for your subject and situation.

Worm’s eye view:

This vantage point is taken from below the subject. When you take pictures from the worm’s eye view, it gives you subject a lot of power. Think of the term “looking down” on someone. It almost makes you subject look majestic, or at least very important.

Eye Level:

Most pictures that people take are taken at eye level. It is the most natural vantage point. It takes the least amount of effort and thinking. Eye level makes the subject most relatable. The viewer is on “the same level” as the subject.

Bird’s eye view:

If worm’s eye is below, and eye level is…well eye level, that makes the photographer above the subject in bird’s eye view. With this view, we are “looking down” at the subject. It can make the subject look small, and depending on the situation, less significant.

So, choose your vantage point wisely! There is a perfect vantage point for every subject. While these vantage points make a BIG difference when taking pictures of people, a fresh vantage point for an object can be the breaking point between a good picture and a GREAT picture.

This week’s assignment: 

Take 3 good pictures in different vantage points. Choose 3 subjects and dramatically display all three vantage points (birds, worm, and eye level). If you feel proud of you pictures, choose your best shot and post it to instagram with #vantagepoint. This is going to take a lot of pictures! Take at least 10 photos for each subject. Have fun!