New Enquiries Group

All enquiries : I have set up a new group for people interested in a City and guilds photography course. All I would like you to do is to visit; www.edmodo.com and click on student, then put in the group code. Then create a user name and a password for yourself. This system is very similar to facebook, but is secure and approved to use within the college to help be more connected and have total transparency at all times. This also allows everyone to interconnect with each other and the course tutor at all times whether in a class or on distance learning.


The group code is; 8w4950


The group is called new enquiries and will allow you to link with myself and any others who are interested in enrolling on one of the courses. On here I can post directly to you all the latest information and news about the courses and levels available.
The whole point is to give new enquiries a taste of how the course is set up and what is included. In turn we can find the right learner for the right course by discussing your current photography and images that you have taken.
Please remember that you can study these courses via distance learning if it suits your circumstances, but also we can discuss your options via Edmodo before the courses start.

LABELS AND TAGS

TAGS (labels) and criteria. Tonight's class is about TAGS (labels) and criteria as you need to make sure that the work that you produce has been produced for a purpose. If for any reason you haven't got your unit criteria please get them from the 'course handbook' folder on the right of this screen. 1. Knowing where you are within a course is vital as then you can time manage the weeks photography and Edmodo work that you produce. 2.In photography it can be very easy to be distracted and 'drift off theme' whilst you are out taking photographs, if you have a firm understanding as to why and what your work is aimed at you will be more efficient with your time on the course. 3. Also when you have TAGS on your work they are automatically stacked and quantity numbered directly alongside your work in brackets. 4. You will be the very nature of the learning cycle ( as we have been through before) repeat hit these criteria as you work through the course. I will prompt the session today using my paperwork, also all of this is available to view should you wish to use it to help you set your SMART TARGETS. There will also be time in this session to upload your images and post work on Edmodo. A full lesson plan is attached and will be used to direct this lesson


YOU WILL HAVE A SMART TARGET SHEET TO HELP YOU DO THIS.

This Tutor Support Website

As another resource for this course you can access this site to see future and past lessons, information and subjects. Some of these have been done over the years and are kept in the archive on this website.
this allows you to look at previous courses lessons and blogs that can help you in what you are doing.

Over the past 4 years alot of students have worked via Blogger and had their own websites to show their work, the upgraded and more secure Edmodo is now used. However I will be using this site to include certain other information that can be useful on this course.

As from today this site will hold some useful articles and information, also the gallery will be updated with new student images, so it will be linked into the Edmodo more often as I think they will work well together and allow this course and yourselves to benefit from using both.

It has taken a while to set up the use of Edmodo properly and to ensure that it ran well with a volume of students using it, but thought it a shame that this Tutor Support Website should go to waste.

Welcome Back...

Having had a break we now need to build momentum again, there are several areas that have to be up to speed. The Unit 211 is the main one that we are starting now, it is a fairly straight forward unit and looks at the various aspects concerning how to present your final images.
This will require you to compare and contrast the variety available from both high street suppliers and professional labs. Discuss how you could potentially use your images in a variety of different scenarios such as an exhibition, brochure, website, books, etc.

Within each of these areas you will also need to look at design, colour, print sizes, format, print surfaces (glossy / matt / semi matt / pearl etc...etc...) and clear evidence of a consistently coherent explanation for your choice of presentation method. Alongside evidence of considering all the possible alternative options for displaying your work. What type of printer could potentially be used against the types they use at professional labs will also need to be considered, contrasted and compared. You may have to consider the different stages of preparing an image for printing and the whole digital workflow from your camera profile  through to your computer and printer settings.

Think of this in the context of the research you have done in your own areas, how do landscape photographers for example display their work, where does reportage photography regularly appear, on what scale do they print and where could you get your work done in a similar way.
You also need to look at cost and differences from a variety of different suppliers both online and high street.
Remember that you are using one method all the time already with the use of your websites but you could explore that further into online galleries and photo libraries, Flikr, etc..

Also you do not have to produce printed work for this unit you can just display your work on your websites, but if you want to print as well thats fine all prints need to be sized at A3 (300 dpi).

If you are working on another presenting images unit other than 211 then read carefully as you may well have to produce printed portfolio work.

And lastly dont forget as part of this course and the presenting of images you are having an exhibition, which you all agreed to provide prints for. I will need to see the images you have chosen before they go to be printed from everybody. Please liaise with Ian Hey as regards the final printing as I believe they are all being sent off at the same time and to be printed the same size and print surface.

I need to check about the sizes and quantities of frames for the exhibition, I will need to confirm this once I know how much work is being collated. The frames usually take an A3 but I need to check this before any prints are ordered.

As mentioned before you will also have to prepare your images to A3 300 dpi for the final hand in of images, I will need both themes in their own folders one of original images and another of images that have been through photoshop, saved as PSD documents for EACH THEME.

Before Xmas Dinner (or after as well)

Can we all make sure that all images that are going towards your final units are selected, other images will then become apparent if you haven't got a broad enough selection. Extra photography over the xmas break should be done during breaks from too much food, film and drink. In this way you can make sure that you have all of your images ready for unit 211 or other final units that require to be done.

You should all be well on track to completing all research for each theme, if not this must be done over the break please. So when we come back its just finishing selecting images and putting them through photoshop.
Presentation of your work needs to be considered if you are considering printing your work and enough time to do this must be allocated. Please remember that for unit 211 you do not have to print but for other units you may have to so read carefully.

Time management for your work needs to match the end date of 26.1.12 as grown ups you will all find this easy I am sure. Some people have valid extension periods of 2 weeks beyond this and no more.

Also dont forget the exhibition you have all agreed to with Ian Hey, you need to liaise closely with him regarding this and make sure that you are all organised, I will not be doing this for you, I will sort the frames for you but thats it, you have to organise the rest to putting it up together and taking it down afterwards as this is all part of your unit 211 or other presentation unit.

Also can you use the xmas break to really add to your work whatever units you are doing, if you are doing portraits use the time to get images of family and friends. If you are doing landscape get out there for long walks and get frosty and snowy images as this will look great in your work. Wildlife, still life, fashion etc...etc..think laterally and add the images to your blog along with written work to support what you have done.

Happy Christmas/Holidays and New Year

Can I take this opportunity to thank all the students on the City and Guilds Photography courses for all their hard work since joining the courses in September.
Thank you for all the hard effort and commitment that you have all shown, and I wish all of your a very Merry Christmas and Holidays whatever your faith and also have a Happy New Year as we move into 2012.

Photoshop Session

From the images that you have shortlisted for this session we will be looking at how to post produce these and complete a digital workflow. This means looking at the software and its tools that you will come across more often than others.

Appropriate tools to suit each method mean that you will be able to select the most suitable one for your images. The cropping methods for your final images will allow you to work quicker will alot of images.

The photographs you have taken have to be shortlisted into 10 best images, I dont want to see anyone putting images through photoshop without first having their top ten approved. By definition as I said last week, if you haven't got enough then prepare to do more photography in that section.

All work in photoshop has to be screen grabbed to display what you have done stage by stage, this has to happen all the time for all images and methods used. Then these are uploaded to your blog work, and it will make your work easier to explain and evidence.

Plus don't forget all units need to be done before the end of the course, ie if you are doing unit 211 or others that they are started now and kept tracked and labelled as per all other units. You must time manage the weeks left on this course very well in order to complete and achieve high grades.