Home Schooling
Photo assignment 1
The artist's self-portrait photo / (the selfie)
Although selfies can be found all around us today, that wasn’t always the case. Before the 15th century, self-portraiture was found here and there, but it didn’t become an established genre until the Early Renaissance, when mirrors became more widely available.
Artists have always experimented with painting themselves almost as a right of passage, first with paint and canvass, but eventually evolving to newer techniques and technologies. Now in the age of the smartphone, there are over 93 million selfies taken every day.
advantages to photographing yourself:
You are always available.
You are the easiest and cheapest model to deal with.
The face that you know the best is the best platform to study the human face.
Self-portraiture provides a safe place to experiment with new techniques.
When alone, you have all the time in the world and can work without people watching.
your assignment:
1 ) Take 2 self portrait photos of yourself with your phone camera using the directions below.
(You can have someone take the photo of you, as long as the idea is yours.)
(You can have someone take the photo of you, as long as the idea is yours.)
2 ) Scroll to the bottom of this page for ideas to use for your portraits.
3 ) The photo does not have to include your face.
PHOTO 1: Show Off Your Personality
When you’re shooting portraits of other people, the best self-portraits are ones that seem to capture a piece of the subject’s personality. Ways to achieve personality in your self-portraits would be through action,
facial expression, treasured objects, clothing, or location.
PHOTO 2: Use a Prop or Object / Hide Your Face
Partially hiding your face can make for a cool self-portrait with an eye-catching focal point. There’s plenty of options in terms of which object to hide behind; it could be an object that’s important to you, your hands, your hair—anything you want to place in the foreground, really.
Some Inspirational Ideas
Try putting something between your camera and yourself to create an interruption in the photo.
Use your cellphone to block your face
to become anonymous.
See if you can capture and photograph yourself
in a reflection or your shadow.
Use a mirror from 5 to 10 feet away.
Use a mirror from only 1 to 2 feet away.
Use a prop like a hoody or hat to highlight your personality through clothing or other
personal items.