Purpose: 

The purpose and intent of this project is to develop an on-line tutorial to help students develop a better understanding of photo composition elements and principles, as well as picture design. The topic is 'Basic Rules of Photography' which is a sub-topic in the elective course Photo Journalism 11/12 in British Columbia. Learning about photo composition elements, principles and design are important to recognize and master as the students will be expected to take great pictures for the yearbook.

Project Overview: 

The deliverable for this project will be a website. We intend to set the material in some sort of module fashion with assignments where students will need to search for pertinent information to complete the modules. We intend to create an interactive self assessment within the website to test specific objectives related to the elements and principles of photo composition.

Students will also create an electronic portfolio of their work as well as other people's work as part of the Photo Journalism 11/12 course. The evaluation will be in the form of a rubric.

The intended audience for our project are senior high students in grades 11 and 12.  This locally developed course is an elective which fulfills a 4 credit requirement for Applied Skills 11 according to the British Columbia Ministry of Education guidelines (IRP's - Integrated Resource Packages).

Course objectives taken from the course Photo Journalism 11/12 (Source: K. Kim course description)

General Computing Skills:

• employ the elements and principles of design

Organizational and Leadership Skills:

• be an independent learner and team person on a regular basis
• maintain all chosen and required written assignments in a portfolio
• keep the portfolio self-reflection and evaluation forms up to date

Yearbook Publication Skills:

• take creative and effective photography with school cameras

Learning Outcomes for Visual Arts 11 and 12 (Source: British Columbia Ministry of Education Curriculum Branch, 1995: http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/irp/curric/va1112lo.htm)

Image-Development and Design Strategies (Perceiving/Responding)

• Students perceive and respond to images in ways that demonstrate awareness of the sources, techniques, and strategies of image development and design.

Image-Development and Design Strategies (Creating/Communicating)

• Students create images reflecting their understanding of a wide variety of image sources, techniques, and image-development and design strategies.

Context (Perceiving/Responding)

• Students perceive and respond to images and the ways these images reflect and affect personal, social, cultural, and historical contexts.

Context (Creating/Communicating)

• Students create images that communicate understanding of and appreciation for the influence of personal, social, cultural, and historical contexts.

Visual Elements and Principles of Art and Design (Perceiving/Responding)

• Students perceive and respond to images in ways that demonstrate their understanding of the visual elements and principles of art and design.

Visual Elements and Principles of Art and Design (Creating/Communicating)

• Students create images that communicate their understanding of and appreciation for the visual elements and principles of art and design and how they are used to communicate.

Materials, Technologies, and Processes (Perceiving/Responding)

• Students perceive and respond to images from a variety of different types of artworks in ways that demonstrate their understanding of how the choice of materials, technologies, and processes affects images.

Materials, Technologies, and Processes (Creating/Communicating)

• Students create images that demonstrate their ability to communicate effectively using a variety of materials, technologies, and processes.

Project Specifications:

Preliminary Collaboration

• decide on topic based on interest and feasibility
• set timeline
• set roles and responsibilities
• decide on tools and material
• breakdown of topic
  • Basic Rules of Photography
    • KISS principle (Keep it Simple Stupid)
    • Fill the frame
    • Facial expression
    • Draw attention to the person
    • Use texture
    • Use close ups
    • Control the background
    • Use framing
    • Use leading line
    • Use rules of thirds
    • Add depth
    • Use comparison and contrast
    • Use unique angles
    • Use patterns
    • Use other Elements and Principles
      • shape
      • space
      • contrast
      • balance
      • rythmn
      • form
      • movement
      • emphasis
      • unity

Instructional Design

• create sitemap
• decide on layout and design
• find resource
• create instructional pages
  • discussion board
  • survey
• create assignments
• create interactive assessment

Presentation

• upload to host - beta test
• tweak
• web unveiling
• celebrate with a virtual toast

Instructional Unit Draft Proposal - February 14, 2003
Instructional Unit Final Proposal - February 28, 2003
HTML Content and Flash Content Creation - March 3, 2003
Photoshop Graphics Creation - March 3, 2003
Assignments, Quizzes and Self-Assessment - March 24, 2003
Upload to the Internet (Beta Test) - April 1, 2003
Deadline - April 5, 2003

Resources: