Take a look and vote

I have created a Google form so that students can vote for their favourite photos.  Click on the link below and it will direct you to the form.

Vote Here

Let's Have a Contest

Now that the seriousness of the yearbook is behind us, let's have a little fun...  

Our first challenge is going to be a photo editing contest. There will be prizes, so trying your best is recommended.

Here are the steps to follow:

1. First, create a folder in your student folder.  
    Name it Photo Contest.

2. Find the following photos in our collection of 
    yearbook photos.  You can search older folders 
    (2015) and signature folders if you want.  Be sure 
    to copy (not cut) and paste them into your new 
    folder.

Close Up - close up of a face
Action Shot - an action photo (not posed at all)
Still Life - an object (no people)
Landscape - the playing field, the mountains, etc.
Relationships - people doing something together
Decisive Moment - captures an interesting moment
Angles - a shot taken from an interesting angle

3.  Once the photos are collected, open them up in 
     Picasa.  Now it's time to have fun.  For each 
     photo, follow these steps:

Crop - use the cropping tool to reshape the photo so it is interesting and attention is drawn to the subject.

Adjust - use the tools in Basic Fixes and Tuning to adjust the photo to your liking.  This includes Red Eye and Retouch.

Use Effects - try different Effects.  Some photos will come alive with the right effects while others will be better without.  

Right Click and Save - as you finish with adjusting a photo, right click ON the photo and save it.  DO NOT go back to the library and save it there.  By saving each photo separately, we usually avoid the disk error that comes up sometimes. 

4.  Once all photos are saved, go into your student folder and rename each photo using the headings above (close up, action shot, still life, etc)

Yearbook - Photography Lesson 1

Which part of the yearbook does 

everyone look at first?  

The photos, of course.  

Taking good yearbook photos is essential for developing an appealing and interesting yearbook.  Taking good yearbook photos can be difficult.  Often the lighting is bad, students are moving, and other students are getting in the way.  This lesson will help you to start thinking about how to take interesting photos.

Start by opening up a new tab and visiting the following webpages.  While you are there, take the time to read the information - don't just look at the pictures.

1.  Rule of Thirds

2.  Geometric Shapes and Lines

3.  Camera Angles

4.  Decisive Moments

NOW that you've looked at these different pages, your job is to look through your magazines and find two good examples of each concept:  rule of thirds, geometric shapes and lines, camera angles, and decisive moments.  Each photo should be labelled for the rule if follows (if it follows more than one rule, then give it more than one label).

Here are some example I found by looking on the internet:

Rule of Thirds:

Geometric Shapes and Lines:

Camera Angles:

Decisive Moments:

Now, for the real challenge:  
Over the next two weeks, you need to take photos at least one lunch hour per week.  You should take LOTS of photos of LOTS of different people OUTSIDE.  In your collection of photos, you should have examples of all of the techniques described above.  Here is the specific criteria:

1.  Take photos during two lunch hours over the next two weeks.
2.  Take many photos of many different people - especially people you don't know.
3.  Have at least two photos for each technique described above to put into your portfolio rename them like this:  Nikki Rule of Thirds 1 Photo.
4.  All of your photos must be saved and sorted onto the computer.
5.  Photos for your portfolio should be COPIED and saved into your student folder.

Yearbook lesson for 26 November

Here's what's up for Tuesday 26 November...

Brayden and Quin - I'd like you both to cover this week for the yearbook.  Please see the TOC about getting the camera.  Take some time this block to check out what's going on in different classrooms and maybe take some pictures here and there.  In particular, check out the band room, the art room, and the other elective classes like cooking, sewing, metal work, wood work, etc.  ARRANGE WITH THE TOC TO RETURN THE CAMERA AT AN APPROPRIATE TIME.

For the rest of you, here's what I'd like to see you accomplish today...

1.  Spend a few minutes getting your layout ready for photos and captions.  Please DO NOT place any photos until I have approved your layout.  Is there a spot for a bit of copy or maybe a mention of important current events?  If not, where could you fit it in?

2.  Go back over your week and ask yourself these questions...

• What were the main events that took place during my week? (or your month if you're doing a month page)
• Do I have photos in my signature folder that are representative of these events?  Is anything missing?
• If I'm not going to have a large copy on my layout, how will I communicate the details of these events?

3.  Once you're sure you have the right photos and you've thought about communicating the details, open up an Open Office document and save it into your signature folder.  Write a detailed caption for each photo you plan on putting into your layout.  Remember, these need to have the following elements:

• Start with a lead in phrase.
• Write the first sentence in the present tense.
• Write 2-3 more sentences giving more information about the event.
• Include the names of EVERYONE in the photo (but never start your first sentence with names)

4.  This should keep you very busy today.  If you get done, be sure to index your mug photos in the red index binder. 

PLEASE MAKE SURE ALL MUG BOOKS AND THE INDEX BINDER ARE RETURNED TO THE YEARBOOK CABINET AT THE END OF THE CLASS.  ALSO TURN OFF MONITORS AND COMPUTERS.  

Yearbook Lesson for October 10 and 14, 2013

This is a two-day lesson because there's enough here to fill up two classes.  Please follow these instructions so that the class runs smoothly...

The first part of his lesson begins with this link:  Caption Writing lesson

Read the lesson - or go through the lesson with your teacher - and then complete the assignment at the end of the lesson.  You will need to type some captions, so you should open up an Open Office document and save it into your 2014 Yearbook student folder.

IF YOU COMPLETE THE CAPTION WRITING ASSIGNMENT...

Continue to work on the layout you were creating last day.  Once you have a layout you like, place photos that show RELATIONSHIPS and that have subjects looking INTO the gutter of the layout.

IF YOU FINISH OUR LAYOUT AND PUT PHOTOS INTO IT...

Try to write captions for our photos using the rules you learned during the lesson.

Creating a Guidebook for Future Yearbook Staffers

Staff Guidebook

Now that you’re an expert on yearbook creation, it’s time to pass on our knowledge to future yearbook students.  What have you learned that you wish you knew earlier?  What would you do differently or better?  What advice would you give to a new yearbook student?

Create a guidebook to pass on to a new staffer for next year. Your guide to yearbooking should include a list of duties and deadlines, a section outlining the different yearbook tasks and tips on how to complete assignments, with specific instructions on caption writing, cropping, photography, organization, etc.

It should be presented in the form of an original layout that is visually appealing and that includes at least three photos.  Consider having a headline and several sub headlines for different types of information.  

This assignment will use all of your yearbook skills, tap into what you have learned about creating layouts and pages, and give you an opportunity to tell others what you have learned.  

How to Write Captions

Yearbook Lesson - How to Write Captions

(Some of you started this last day.  Today you will continue with this lesson.  If you finish early open up your layout from last week and see what you can do to it.  Try putting in photos and text boxes.)  BUT before you do that...

For this lesson, you will be learning how to write captions for photos.  This skill is critical for yearbook production because EVERY photo must have a caption.  

The link below will take you to the lesson.  After going through the lesson, you will find the assignment.  

Be sure to READ THE LESSON before starting the assignment.

Complete the assignment by typing your captions in an Open Office document.  Once you're done, print them off and hand them in.

Here's the link:
https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0B-UEmddlb6SWN2Y1NzZiOGEtMGY5OS00NTJiLTk1MWYtMTA1NzE2ZGZiMTM1&hl=en&authkey=COanyvsG