Written Reflection

Before I took Photo 1, I had a film camera that I hadn’t used in around eight months. I would look at wonderful scenes in front of me and think about taking a picture with my phone, but never really did. I had a light appreciation for the images they showed on Good Day Maine between the news segments, and I didn’t think twice about what exactly made the pictures look good. Coming into the class, I was nervous that I wouldn’t be able to know all the fancy terminology and would just take photos of trash cans just so I had something to pass in. But I was proven wrong both over time and on that first week, when we were assigned the composition project. We needed to take one picture depicting each composition rule respectively. Instead of being a tedious task, as I worried it may be, it actually produced what I now think are some of my best images. The amount of travel around the time of the assignment helped, I think, but regardless the variety of pictures still impress myself today. Form that starting point, I only started to get better. With all the composition rules in mind I went on to utilize them in all my images. I played with the different settings on my camera to get the best shot. One of my favorite photos came near the end of quarter one, the silhouette assignment. It was the image I chose as my best work and the one I submitted to the Scholastic Arts competition. I used editing and real time photography skills to improve my images and used prior experience with that skill to improve myself for future assignments. I think this progress over the semester shows how I have grown as an artist and person.

Along the way I found myself stuck in some places and excelling in others. To get the bad out of the way, photoshop was a real struggle for me. Using a touchpad to edit photos was particularly trying and the problem was only exacerbated by the detail needed for the image I chose and my own clumsiness. Besides that, I had my troubles in the darkroom, as I think everyone has had at some point. I did my best to get around them, however. In test strips where the image turned out almost completely black, I adjusted the aperture knob and lowered the exposure time and vice versa for white images. I learned to make new batches of developer, stop, and fix, without (much) help from others. For each challenge and weakness I faced, I found my way around it. I am most proud of my silhouette photos. Both the project and a handful of the black and white film photos. I know it’s cliche to take pictures at Fort Williams, but I’m a sucker for shorelines and water. A lot of my silhouettes were taken there, specifically on a day when a storm was coming. The photo I got showed the stirring waves breaking on the rocks, and I edited it to make the rocks almost look like a void. It is far and away one of my favorite photos I have taken. Some of the enlarged photos in the film unit are also a point of pride for me. I love my last print, the one from the independent roll called ‘Casco Pack’. I love the softness of it and the reflecting water and gradient suggesting the sunset. My black dog, Anubis, makes a perfect silhouette and subject for the image seeing as she stars in more than a few of my other photos. Overall, look at my portfolio, I think I have improved as a photographer and artist.

Going forward in my own life, I think I will be taking more photos, both with my digital and film cameras. I am incredibly grateful for all the experience I gained in photo 1 and cannot wait to continue photography as a hobby from now on.