PIXLR NOTES

Edit 5 of your best photographs (that need editing) to hand in after thanksgiving.

 Tip: Do step 7, Save your photo and rename it right after first open the photo in pixlr. Then you don't risk to loosing what you have done if the internet connection closes or freezes . If you "Save" regularly when you edit your photos, everything you have done up untill the last saving will still be there even if you loose your internet connection.

Go to Pixlr

The work flow:

1) Open your photo from Pixlr.com (advanced version)

2) Use Levels (if necessary)

3) Use the burn and dodge tools on the left to lighten or darken certain areas if needed.

4) Crop the photo

5) Sharpen

6) Save your photo


Step by step.

1) Go to the editor on Pixlr and choose "Open image from computer". And find the photo you want to edit on your flash drive.

2) Go to Adjustments at the top of the window and choose levels from the drop down menu. A window will pop up giving you your exposure adjustments black point, white point and mid-tone gliders. Make small increment adjustments to develop your photograph achieving the a correct exposure. (Not too dark and not too bright) Remember can increase the brightness of the whites only by use the white arrow slider on the right or make the black darker with slider on the left.

3) Burning and Dodging. These tools can be found in the tools palette on left hand side of the screen. Click the doge tool to lighted an area of your photograph that is too dark. The brush sizes can be found at the top of your screen (see photos below!) Make sure it is the same size or smaller than the area toy want to dodge (make lighter) . This way your dodging blends in on the photograph and does stand out by having area that got dodged that should not have. (think paint by number, you want to stay in the lines of the area you are dodging. Remember the statue in the photo I demonstrated on in class. I only wanted to make the figure of the statue lighter by dodging it and not the back aground wall behind him. The same applies for burning (make a specific area of your photograph darker). 

Next choose either shadows, highlights or mid-tones from the drop down menu next to the brush size. Depending on if the area you want to make darker is either too bright (highlights) or a shadow area of your photo you want to make even darer (chooses shadows).

Then choose the Exposure adjustment amount: Chose a low number like 10 (see below) at first and then you can increase the number if that is not enough of an adjustment.

4) Crop your photo. Choose the crop tool in you tools palette on the left. Then at the top of the window choose aspect ratio from the drop down menu to keep your crop consistent with the size of your photograph. type in the number 4 and 3 right next to the drop down menu as seen in the photo below for horizontal images. For vertical images type 3 and then 4 in the width box.  

 

Next drag the courser across your photo from the top corner to lower right corner and left go of the mouse. A grid will pop up on your photo. you can then use the blue boxes at each corner of the crop mark to drag the crop in to the desired cropping. Click enter on your key board when your happy with where the crop marks are on your photo to crop it.

5) Sharpen. Go to Filter at the top of the page and choose unsharp mask. Photos need to be sharpened a little be before they are printed. Amount should be 20 and no less than 10. Radius keep at 2 Threshold 10.

6) Saving. Go to file save. Change the Name: of your photo using a name that relates to the photo such as: kid playground. Or keep the orignal file name and just put the word edited after it. You'll be saving two versions of your photograph. Go to file at the top and chooses save. For the first version choose PXD for the format. (This file type is bigger but it saves all the steps you did above in case you want to go back and change what you did later or add to those edits). Next click ok. Choose where this photo will be saved. Select your flash drive. Then make a new folder and title it Edited Photographs. Next click save. Follow the same step to save again this time keep the files name as it is and choose jpg for the format. Save this also to your edited photo folder.

This week's class. Nov. 16th

This Friday we will be going to the media lab to learn about editing our photographs using Photoshop.

Please copy and paste 5 of your best images into a folder on your flash drive and titled that folder Photoshop. This way we can edit those images in class.

Architecture Assignment

Since class we canceled today (Nov. 2nd) You now have that extra week to complete the architecture assignment. Make sure you have your assignment ready to show for class next Friday Nov. 9th! Also you will be handing in your organized  images on your flash drive.

Storm Notice!

Due to the Storm if you were not able to complete this weeks architecture assignment you will be given an extra week to finish it. You are still required to have all your photographs organized on your flash drive for class on Friday.

Taking Portraits

Close Up Portraits

Reflections Assignment

Take at least 15 photographs for this assignment then edit them down to your 4 best to show the class.We will be sharing these photographs in class on the 19th. be sure you have all 15 photographs in a labeled folder on your USB flash drive and then with-in that folder have a copy of your 4 best shots!

Consider the work of Lee Friedlander below. Great surfaces to find/ create reflections are shiny walls, windows, mirrors, and water.

Photographs shared with the class - by Shaine!

Share your thoughts about these photographs in the comments section below!

Class Presentations: 10-5-12

Assignment: 

Create a 5-10min. presentation of the photographer you were given to read about. Working with the person you were paired with write a summary of the reading including basic information such as when the photographer was born and where they lived. Also talk about the type of photographs they took including what their interests and influences were/are. Look up the photographer at home to find other information about them to include in the presentation. Please note the source where you found it and bring it to class. Each student working on the presentation should also bring in two photographs by that photographer to share with the class. (the photographs you find should include the title and date it was taken). 

                                                   Eugene Atget, Paris, 1987

*If you click on the center of the photograph you want to share with the class and drag it onto your desktop it should create a copy of the image for you. Then put in a folder on your flash drive.

Take a look at books about the photographer at your library or most book stores will also have books on the photographer too. Here you will be able to read more about them and see a complete body of photographs they have made!