EDTC 5315 had us examine digital media closely. This course taught us how to think more critically about digital media and how to be creators or our own media rather than just consumers. This course covered a wide variety of topics where we discovered new, easy to use, and affordable tools for creating digital content.

I have always been interested in photography having taken photography courses in high school and pursuing it as a hobby. I was excited to learn more and to find some new tools to help improve my photography skills. We learned both basic photography skills, such as how to take a good photo. Thinking about lines, perspective, balance, color, texture and more. This was a nice refresher for me to help moving forward. We also played with free editing tools and learned the basics of editing photos as well. Below is a photo that I took while teaching, I considered line, perspective and color as I took this photo and edited it using Snapseed. I love the way this photo turned out, it is a good example of the skills I have developed as a photographer.

We also looked at some more advanced photo editing as well. The photo on the left is an example of that work. I took this picture on Rainbow Row that I took and I used Polarr to edit it in this fun way. I wanted to make it look like it was not a picture at all and instead a painting of sorts. I used liquify, buldge, warp and contrast tools to create this effect.

Not only is having these skills great for my personal benefit, but to also think about how learners may benefit from this creative form. I have never used photography in the classroom and can now see that there are many ways to use this form to empower learners to create.

ISTE Standards

Leader

2c Model for colleagues the identification, exploration, evaluation, curation and adoption of new digital resources and tools for learning.

Citizen

3b Establish a learning culture that promotes curiosity and critical examination of online resources and fosters digital literacy and media fluency.

Facilitator

6d Model and nurture creativity and creative expression to communicate ideas, knowledge or connections.

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Empowered Learner

1d Students understand the fundamental concepts of technology operations, demonstrate the ability to choose, use and troubleshoot current technologies and are able to transfer their knowledge to explore emerging technologies.

Digital Citizen

2c Students demonstrate an understanding of and respect for the rights and obligations of using and sharing intellectual property.

Knowledge Constructor

3c Students curate information from digital resources using a variety of tools and methods to create collections of artifacts that demonstrate meaningful connections or conclusions.

Innovative Designer

4b Students select and use digital tools to plan and manage a design process that considers design constraints and calculated risks.

Creative Communicator

6b Students create original works or responsibly repurpose or remix digital resources into new creations.