Photography Students: Week 1

I was asked to teach a beginner photography and Photoshop class to our homeschool group's yearbook staff (12yo+) this year. I am so excited and honored at this opportunity, especially since I'm such a newbie myself! The photography class began last week, with the photoshop class starting in November. Both are 6-week long classes.

As part of the assignments, I will be showcasing some of the kids' work here on my photoblog. Every Wednesday for the next 12 weeks or so, you will see a lot of their work here. So fun! :D

The assignment for Week 1 was to photography something or someone you love. Until we begin the photoshop class, most of the shots will be SOOC (straight out of camera). A majority of the cameras used are p&s digital cameras. The kids did a great job for their first assignment! I was originally going to showcase only 3 photos per week, but they all did so great for their first week that I HAD to showcase all of their photos this first time. LOL!

by Natalie

by Olivia

by Jordan

by Hollen

by Hope

by Jesse

by Taran

by Hannah

Feel free to comment on their work, as you feel led. I'm sure they would enjoy reading your comments and feedback on their work. :D

Homeschool Convention

Friday, we attended our state's annual Homeschool Convention & Curriculum Fair at the Phoenix Convention Center. AFHE celebrated its 25th anniversary! As always, we had an amazing time and came away greatly encouraged and ready for the upcoming school year.

All of these photos, with the exception of the b&w have been minimally post processed. My focus right now is pushing myself on consistently getting proper exposure in camera -- without a lot of manipulating with a photo editor. So you may notice that some of these shots do not have the best composition. My focus was on exposure. :)

These shots were actually a challenge to take because of the various indoor light sources that would affect exposure. If you read my last post on light metering, I was (still am) having a hard time trying to fully grasp this concept. Indoor lighting is one of the toughest environments to shoot if you're not familiar with how artificial light affects light metering. Many of my shots were actually underexposed and I had to constantly adjust the shutter speed and aperture values. This was a great learning experience for me!

Assignment: B&W (#2)

My second submission for the B&W assignment on the Christian Photographers' forum. What a precious little princess! I couldn't resist taking a photo of my friend's daughter. This is another photo taken at our homeschool p.e. class.

Assignment: B&W (#1)

"Lo, children [are] an heritage of the LORD: [and] the

fruit of the womb [is his] reward."
(Psalm 127:3)

The Christian Photographers forum's next assignment is "Black & White", which also includes sepia tones. We are allowed to submit up to 4 photos, which is nice. So, here is my first submission which I am titling "Kids at Play". I've given it kind of a vintage look, as well. This is another photo from my homeschool PE class photo shoot! :)

Post processing: converted color image to b&w, added sepia photo filter, added a texture layer.

Homeschool PE

Our son had P.E. class today with our homeschool group. The theme for the last two classes of the year is "wacky water games". Yes, it is already warm enough here to do water activities!

In trying to find a photo for the converging lines assignment, I decided to take some pictures during the class. I got a lot of great shots! The above photos captured best the overall feel of the class.