- Great depth of field
- Natural light
- Perspective: far
- Natural back light
- Rule of thirds
- Editing: cropping
- Leading lines
- Perspective: low
- Symmetry
- Rule of thirds
- Natural light: golden hour
- Perspective: close
- Leading lines
- Natural side light
- Perspective: low
- Layering
- Perspective: high
- Great depth of field
- Rule of thirds
- Natural side light
- Framing
- Great depth of field
- Perspective: far
- Leading lines
- Rule of thirds
- Leading lines
- Natural back light
- Rule of thirds
- Leading lines
- Great depth of field
- Foreground/middle ground/background
I am content with my final portfolio. This was very enjoyable and rewarding to work on because it truly allowed me to reflect on all I have learned throughout this course, such as photography basics, exposure, and light (just to name a few). It also helped me capture my photos to the best of my ability, edit them, and curate my portfolio thoughtfully.
My greatest challenge was figuring out my focus for my final portfolio and what I wanted it to showcase. As I looked through the photos I had taken during this quarter, not only did I notice a trend of photos shot outdoors and/or in nature, but also that many photos were of some of my favorite places to visit in the Bay Area and its outskirts. From Mendocino County to San Francisco to Carmel-by-the-Sea, my love for these places was evident through my photos. I decided to focus on this and took it as an opportunity to capture more for my portfolio. I think my greatest success was sticking to my focus, or theme. I feel like all of the selected photos create a cohesive aesthetic. While I was tempted to edit these photos to black and white for a more polished and professional look, I ended up keeping them in color. My reason for this was because all of my photos were taken outdoors and captured nature to some degree so I thought they would each present better with their original color. I was happy with my decision, as I think they turned out pretty well.
One favorite technique of mine that I used frequently was leading lines. The ones I captured in nature were mostly through trees and branches. However, a few photos incorporated this technique in a non-natural way, with one sunset photo featuring transmission towers and wires as the leading lines. Another technique I liked was the rule of thirds. An example of this is my photo of the church - I tried to position it right on the grid to create visual interest.
This was such a fun final to work on! I am happy I had the opportunity to create photos I am proud of and am looking forward to applying the knowledge I have gained from this course in my future photography.