MMS 173 Blog 1: THINGS I'VE LEARNED SO FAR

I remember starting the MMS 173 course half-worried and half-thrilled. Worried because I might not be able to properly test my capabilities due to the lack of equipment and experience, and at the same time, I was thrilled and excited to properly learn about photography techniques and concepts. Moreover, a part of why I was excited was because I expect that by the end of the course, I would have decently improved my knowledge about picture taking. Carrying these emotions, I dove into the lessons with a delighted heart full of anticipation.

During the first assignment, I got the chance to take a look back at pictures that I have taken throughout the years. I was able to realize a lot of things, including the fact that despite taking a liking to capturing memories through pictures, I do not have that much in my phone gallery. This is due to factors that I am well aware of. Aside from having little opportunities to take pictures due to the lack of outside activity, my personality also holds me back. My introvertedness and shyness makes me hesitant to take pictures for a prolonged period of time, which means that I usually take them quickly without putting much thought into the angles and composition. All in all, the assignment helped me in forming an initial impression of my own skills.

Throughout the second assignment, I had the chance to take a look and get to know my classmates and how they stand in terms of their skill level. Due to this, I was also able to assess how my skills would compare to the others. I was able to see classmates that are still beginners and simultaneously, I also spotted classmates that range from being familiar with photography to being near professional photographers. Seeing those people’s works, I was filled with awe and slight envy at the same time. I found it admirable that they are able to take pictures that convey messages and evoke feelings onto the viewer. Concurrently, I also wish that I can become that type of photographer in the future. These feelings actually made me look forward to the lessons even more as I became more eager to grasp the concepts and use them to analyze how pictures are taken, not just by myself, my classmates and my professor but also by other professionals in the industry. Being able to correctly examine and interpret the technical aspects of photography thus became very interesting to me.

The enthusiasm that I had continued because the assignment included assessing and critiquing others’ works. The act of critiquing someone else’s work, in my opinion, helps me become more aware of the ways that one can use when taking pictures. Be it the angles, the lighting, the framing, and more, I am able to objectively identify what is great and what can be improved in a picture. Consequently, I can learn from my assessments of others and apply what was used as well as avoid making the same oversights in the pictures that I take. Evaluating more and more pictures from different people and perspectives can also make me more susceptible to my own mistakes and shortcomings. Furthermore, it gives me a deeper understanding of which types of compositions best suit specific types of pictures and subjects.

Carrying on with the course, I have been starting to feel the frustrations of not having certain equipment to test photographic techniques more thoroughly on. It sometimes feels dissatisfactory that I can only learn some of the concepts in theory at best. Nonetheless, I still expect to learn more about the technicalities of photography. This includes discussions of not just terminologies but also photography equipment–what is needed and what is great to have but not required. Moreover, I would like to learn about the different effects that one can achieve using different kinds of camera equipment. While I do not have the means to access such tech as of the moment, it will still be very helpful to take note of them. This is especially since I find it quite interesting how one can capture different moods and qualities depending on the camera used. On top of that, I also expect to pick up techniques and concepts that I can use, not just with photography but also with other multimedia subjects such as videography and graphic design. Despite a few drawbacks due to my lack of experience and tools, I will continue to try my best to understand the lessons as much as I can and produce appreciable results.

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