Lesson 8

DIGITAL ARTS

Intended Outcomes/Learning Objectives

At the end of the lesson, the students must be able to learn to:

1. Discuss the history of photography.

2. Identify the elements and types of and photography.

3. Determine the function of photography.

4. Apply basic skills and creativity in the Art form and submit an output.

Motivation

1. I know some of you here love to take selfies and photo of the many things in our
surroundings. Can you share to us your ideas or photos that you feel worth sharing in
the class?
2. Are you fascinated in photography especially when using your mobile phones?

Inculcating Concept
Art historians often categorize digital art as twofold: object-oriented artworks and
process-oriented visuals. In the first scenario, digital technologies are a means to an
end, and function as a tool for the creation of traditional objects like paintings,
photographs, prints, and sculptures. In the second case, the technology is the end itself,
and artists explore the possibilities entailed to the very essence of this new medium. This
latter category — often associated with the term “new media” — refers to all computable
art that is digitally created, stored and distributed. In other words, while some works rely
on digital tools to magnify an already-existing medium, others use digital technology as
an intrinsic and indissociable component in the making of the artifact.
Digital photography includes the use of images taken from reality through
photographs, scans, satellite-imaging, and other possible records of what exists. This
segment often mixes what is and what is not, blurring boundaries and distorting our
understanding of truth. Traditional techniques of collage and the assemblage of
elements, as well as the overlaying and blending of visuals through morphing
technology.
History of Photography

The first permanent photograph was captured in 1826 (some sources say 1827) by
Joseph Nicéphore Niépce in France. It shows the roof of a building lit by the sun.

“View from the Window at Le Gras” by Joseph Nicéphore Niépce”

Heliography Inventor

Nicéphore Niépce (born Joseph Niépce 1765 - 1833) was an

inventor from France. He is considered inventor of
photography although he had other inventions.

Niépce was born on 7th March 1765 in Chalon-sur-Saône,

Saône-et-Loire in France. His father, Claude Niépce, was
wealthy lawyer there and his mother was Claudine Josephe
Barault. Niépce had two brothers and a sister. He studied at
Oratorian College in Angers where he changed his name
from Joseph to Nicéphore in honor of Saint Nicephorus the
ninth-century Patriarch of Constantinople. He served as a
staff officer in the French army in the time of Napoleon and
after that as administrator of Nice. In 1795 he decided to do
scientific research with his brother Claude and he resigned.

There is no precise date when he started experimenting with photography but he was
inspired by his interest in the new art of lithography and by camera obscura. In 1816, he
used camera obscura and paper coated with silver chloride to capture small images.
They were in negative and were not fixed so they would turn completely black when
exposed to the light. Experimenting with other substances, he found Bitumen of Judea -
asphalt that can be found in nature and that artists used to make etchings. This bitumen
had a characteristic to become less soluble after it had been left exposed to light. He
dissolved bitumen in lavender oil and covered a metal plate with it. When it is dried,
plate was covered with paper that had a drawing on it and left on sun like that. After
some time, unshielded bitumen would harden while the shielded was still soft and could
be removed with solvent. Bare parts of plate could then be etched with acid and plate
used for printing. Niépce called this method heliography, meaning "sun drawing". First
images that he made with this method were made in 1822 but they didn’t survive to this
day. In 1825 he made copies of a 17th-century engraving of a man with a horse that
survived. They represent the oldest photocopies. In 1824, Niépce used, for the first
time, bitumen plates in camera obscura to take a picture. This picture of the view from a
window in his house didn’t survive but he made another like it in 1826 or 27 and that
photography is considered the oldest surviving photography. It was considered lost in
early 20th century, but photographic historian Helmut Gernsheim found it in 1952. Time
of exposure was at first thought to be 8 to 9 hours but some researchers that used the
same technique think that a picture like that that used the same materials needs severel
days of exposure to produce the same results.

At the same time, Louis Daguerre also experimented with photography so, in 1829,
Niépce entered into a partnership with him. They together improved the method and
their partnership lasted until Niépce died in 1833. Daguerre continued experimenting
and developed his process that he called "daguerréotype". He managed to persuade
French Government to purchase daguerréotype process and reward Daguerre (with
6,000 Francs a year) and Nicéphore’s son Isidore (4,000 Francs a year) with lifelong
pensions. Isidore wasn’t too happy with this because he thought that Daguerre was
reaping all the benefits of his father's work. Later historians rectified this error and
reclaimed Niépce from relative obscurity.

http://www.photographyhistoryfacts.com/photography-inventors/nicephore-niepce/
Invention of Daguerreotype

Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre (1787 - 1851) was French artist, painter, photographer,

and a developer of the diorama theatre. He
is the most famous for development of
daguerreotype which is one of the earliest
successful methods of photography.

Louis Daguerre was born on November 18th,

1787 in Cormeilles-en-Parisis, Val-d'Oise, in
France. He collected his knowledge through
apprenticeships and he did it in architecture,
theatre design, and panoramic painting.
Inspired with camera obscura he tried to find
a way to preserve the image that it creates.
He heard about Nicéphore Niépce who also
experimented with photography and they
partnered in 1829 with idea to improve
photographic process. Niépce invented
heliograph which used plate covered with
Bitumen of Judea which hardened when
exposed to light. Soft parts were easy to
remove but the plate had to be exposed for
hours or days and the whole process was
not too practical. When Niépce died in 1833,
Daguerre continued with experiments and
shifted his focus from bitumen to silver salts
which are also light sensitive. He used a thin
silver-plated copper sheet and exposed it to
the vapor given off by iodine crystals which gave him a layer of light-sensitive silver
iodide on the surface. This process he called daguerreotype and at first it also needed
long periods of exposure to show an image. Later he found out that an invisibly faint
image (called “latent image”) that is a result of a much shorter exposure can be
chemically developed into a visible image if it is exposed to vapors given off by mercury
heated to 75°C. Image is fixed after that by washing the plate in a hot saturated solution
of common salt. With further experimenting Daguerre found that a mild solution of
sodium thiosulfate works better and is much less poisonous. Resulting image is
mirrored and dark parts of an image have reflective surface and have to be held in a
way that they reflect dark color. They were often cased in glass to prevent tarnishing
that appeared if a daguerreotype was exposed to air for too long. At first exposure had
to be 10 minutes or more but in a few years Daguerre managed to shorten it to just few
seconds by using different chemicals and “fast lenses”.

Daguerre went public with his invention in 1839 but at first without explanation how his
process works. He presented it to the French Academy of Sciences on 7 January.
Academy's perpetual secretary François Arago received full explanation about principle
but only under strict confidentiality. French Government was given rights for
daguerreotype in exchange for lifetime pensions for Daguerre and Niépce's son Isidore.
On 19 August 1839, the French Government gave rights for daguerreotype “free to the
world” together with complete working instructions. In 1939, National Academy of
Design gave Louis Daguerre title of an Honorary Academician.

Beside photography, Daguerre worked on dioramas and in fact invented them with
Charles Marie Bouton. They were scenes that when illuminated from front showed one
scene and when illuminated from back showed another. For instance, trains would
move and then crash or scene would show landscape before and after earthquake. The
first diorama theatre opened 11 July 1822 and showed two dioramas - one Daguerre’s
and the other Bouton’s which in time became standard and one would always present
interior while the other present landscape. These dioramas were not toys but large
scenes. Some scenes where 20 meters wide and 14 meters high and were watched by
audiences of around 350 people. Bouton eventually withdrew, and left the diorama
theater to Daguerre.

Louis Daguerre died on July 10th 1851 in Bry-sur-Marne from heart failure.

http://www.photographyhistoryfacts.com/photography-inventors/louis-daguerre/

The first ever selfie in 1839

“It’s a bright, cool day in October, 1839 and when Robert

Cornelius decide to take take a selfie.”
First ever Colored Photograph

This image is the first ever color photograph produced in 1861 by physicist James Clerk
Maxwell. This is the time where he advanced photography sufficiently called “Maxwell’s
Demon” thought experiment. This color photograph did not immediately fade or require
hand painting. The Scottish scientist chose to take a picture of a tartan ribbon,
“created,“by photographing it three times through red, blue, and yellow filters, then
recombining the images into one color composite.” Maxwell’s three-color method was
intended to mimic the way the eye processes color, based on theories he had
elaborated in an 1855 paper.
Sources:
https://medium.com/digital-art-weekly/what-is-digital-art-definition-and-scope-of-the-
new-media-f645058cfd78
William Henry Fox Talbot
Born February 11, 1800, Melbury
Sampford, Dorset, England.
Invented the calotype in Great Britain in the
1830s. He is an English chemist, linguist,
archaeologist, and pioneer photographer.

Calotype
An early photographic techniques and was also called talbotype. In this technique, a
sheet of paper coated with silver chloride was exposed to light in a camera
obscura; those areas hit by light became dark in tone, yielding a negative image.
Source; https://www.britannica.com/technology/calotype

Sir John Frederick William Herschel

A British scientist born March 7, 1792 in Slough, Buckinghamshire, England. He is also
an English astronomer and successor to his father, Sir William Herschel, in the field of
stellar and nebular observation and discovery.
Sir John Hershel is the one who coined the word “Photography” in 1839. The term is
from the Greek words phos (genitive: phōtós) which means “light” and graphe meaning
“drawing or writing.”

Source:
https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Herschel
George Eastman

He was born on July 12, 1854 at Waterville, New York, U.S. He is

American entrepreneur. He is an inventor whose introduction of the first Kodak camera
had helped to promote amateur photography on a large scale.

After his education in the public schools of Rochester, New York, he worked briefly for
an insurance company and a bank.

In 1880 he perfected a process of making dry plates for photography and organized the
Eastman Dry Plate and Film Company for their manufacture.

The first Kodak (a name he coined) camera was

placed on the market in 1888. It was a simple
handheld box camera containing a 100-exposure
roll of film that used paper negatives. Consumers
sent the entire camera back to the manufacturer
for developing, printing, and reloading when the
film was used up; the company’s slogan was “You
press the button, we do the rest.”

https://www.britannica.com/biography/George-Eastman
Elements of Photography

1. Line – This element can be vertical, horizontal, curved or jagged.

Examples: roads, sunsets, bridges.

2. Shape – Two-dimensional representation of objects.

Examples: silhouetted photographs of birds.

3. Form – Three-dimensional representation of objects, usually through the use

of lighting and shadows.

4. Texture – The use of lighting to bring out details of an object, making it easy
to see whether a surface is smooth or soft.

5. Pattern – The use of repetition to create an interesting photo.

Examples: photos of gardens or flowers.

6. Color – This type of element is very crucial in setting a mood; utilizing warm or
cool colors to set a mood.

7. Space – Either negative or positive space can be used to make a statement.

Often seen when using the rule of thirds.

Source: https://www.techwalla.com/articles/7-basic-elements-of-photography
Types of Photography

1. Portrait Photography

 One of the most common photography styles and is sometimes called as

“portraiture.”
 It aims to capture the personality and mood of an individual or group.
 Images may be candid or posed, full body or close-ups. Either way, the subject’s
face and eyes are typically in focus.
 Lighting and backdrop help to convey tone and emotion. Popular types of
photography portraits include senior portraits, family portraits, engagement photos,
and professional headshots.
 The best portrait photographers make clients feel completely comfortable, so that
their expressions are natural and relaxed.

2. Photojournalism

 Photojournalism is a way of telling the story of a newsworthy (perhaps even historic)

event or scene through photographs.
 It should be as objective and truthful as possible and capturing candid moments as
they happen is more important than getting picture-perfect shots.
 Generally, photojournalists attend planned events with the hope of capturing
unplanned, unscripted moments. Their work is routinely published in magazines and
newspapers.

3. Fashion Photography

 This photography showcases and glamorizes fashion clothing, shoes, and

accessories to make them more desirable to consumers.
 It is commonly published in magazines and online. People may choose this niche
over different types of photography because of the opportunity to be highly creative
in making photographs eye-catching and appealing.
 Fashion photographers take a lot of full body shots and work in an array of locations,
from fashion shows to studios with full lighting setups to city streets and open fields.
They utilize many of the same skills as portrait photographers and must practice
good teamwork and communication when working with shoot stylists, creative
directors, and models.
4. Sports Photography

 Sports photographs can depict the passion, drama, and emotion that fuels sporting
events by catching athletes, coaches, and even fans at the perfect moment
 Sports photographers must aim and shoot quickly to keep up with the action around
them, and it’s best practice to use a higher ISO to shoot at a faster shutter speed.
They usually use long, heavy lenses for zooming in on the action.
 Interesting angles can help make your work stand out in this competitive genre.

5. Still Life Photography

 This type of photography features inanimate object may it natural or manmade.

 Still life photography can be artistic or commercialize.
 It is commonly used in stock photography as well as product advertising. (Think of
the product images shown in catalogs, magazines, and billboards.) For still life
photographers, object selection, arrangement, and lighting are key to getting a great
shot.
6. Editorial Photography

 This type of photography is taken to illustrate a story or article, typically for a

magazine or newspaper.
 The subject of editorial photography can vary widely and is entirely dependent on
the topic of the text it accompanies.
 For editorial photography, you’ll want to get shots that work for a variety of layouts,
including horizontal and vertical compositions. When working in editorial
photography, you are likely to work closely with writers and art directors, and
demonstrating good communication skills and professionalism will help you succeed.

7. Architectural Photography

 Both the interior and exterior design of buildings and structures are the subject of
architectural photography. From warehouses to city bridges to old country barns, this
genre encompasses diverse structures.
 This type of photography often photograph showcases the structure’s most
aesthetically pleasing parts, such as a particular beam or archway. Interesting
materials and colors may also be emphasized.
 Lighting can be challenging in architectural photography and, for exteriors,
photographers must know how to work with natural light.
 Gear such as a tilt-shift lens, a tripod, and a panorama head is often useful.
Architectural photographs can be of value to designers, architects, leasing
companies, and building investors.

Source:

https://www.artinstitutes.edu/about/blog/38780-v2-7-types-of-photography-styles-to-
master

What does the Rule of Thirds says?

The Rule of Thirds posits that a visual composition is most pleasing to the eye when its
compositional elements conform to an imaginary set of lines that divide the frame into
equal thirds, both horizontally and vertically. Furthermore, the “Rule” suggests that the
human eye naturally gravitates to the four intersecting points of these lines, and that
these points are the ideal spot to place objects in the composition.

John Thomas Smith

An 18th Century painter, engraver, and writer who lived in London from 1766 to 1833 He
was known to many as “Antiquity Smith” after his work Antiquities of London and its
Environ.
John Thomas Smith is the first person to cite and name the “Rule of Thirds.”
Let us visualize rule of thirds!

Example no. 1:

Example no. 2:

Example no. 3:
The Rule of Thirds is really about two things:
1. Balance
By positioning key elements at rule of thirds intersections or gridlines the photo
becomes more balanced. The key element is to create a visual interest in a third of the
composition while also balancing out the empty space in the remaining two-thirds. As a
result, it will look great and feels right to the viewer.

2. Dynamism (Movement)
Compositions that include key elements smack-dab in the center of the frame often feel
very static and boring. There’s nowhere for the viewer’s eye to wander instead the
viewer looks at the shot and sees the subject at its center then leaves.But the rule of
thirds encourages dynamism, where the viewer sees a key element off to the side, then
takes a visual journey throughout the rest of the image.

Take Note that:

 A rule of thirds composition provides a more engaging photographic experience.
 Rule of thirds draws on the way humans naturally view images. Studies show that
people’s eyes usually go to one of the intersection points rather than the center of
the shot – so the rule of thirds works with this natural way of viewing an image.

Source: https://digital-photography-school.com/rule-of-thirds/
Mobile Photography

Definition of Mobile Photography

It is an art of photography with the utilization of the camera technology like smartphones
or android phones to produce photos where individuals can instantly post on social media
platforms.

Mobile Photography simply means making pictures with a mobile phone. Nowadays, it is
the easiest way of producing pictures that mostly all people does especially the younger
generations. The camera technology is more than adequate for taking photos and
publishing them online.

This is otherwise known as iphoneography, mobile street photography

or smartphone photography. This relatively new form of photography has firmly
established itself as the visual vanguard of the 21st century.

Phone Camera Capabilities

Advantages
 Compact size
 It’s always with you
 Strong daylight performance
 Easy to use
 Constantly improving

Limitations
 Limited zoom power (can’t change lenses)
 Limited or poor low light performance

Source: https://www.digitalphotomentor.com/mobile-phone-photography-tips/
How to do Better Mobile Photography
By Matt Chesebrough

1. Stability equals better photos

Because of the limited low light performance of your cell phone camera, keeping
it steady is really important. Ensuring that the phone is stable will improve your
image quality. Here’s how you can achieve this for yourself.

Shooting from a standing position

 Step 1 – Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart.
 Step 2 – When shooting from a standing position, hold your mobile phone
camera with both hands and tuck your elbows into your body.
 Step 3 – Use the volume button to snap the shot. This will help minimize
camera shake, which causes blurry images.

2. Setting exposure and focus

We don’t have to give control over to the

camera all the time even shooting with our
phone.

If we want to adjust the brightness of the

photos we are taking, the process is pretty
straight forward. Tap the screen in the area you
want to be in focus and set the exposure for
that area.

For iPhone, this will bring up a yellow box

around the area you tapped and a slider. You
can move the slider up to brighten the scene or
down to darken. I’ve not used Android in a
while, but the feature should be similar.
Raised or increased exposure. Lowered or decreased exposure.

3: Improve your Composition

This one of the easiest and most important things you can do to take your mobile
phone photography to the next level is to improve your composition. Here are a
few tips than can help:

A. Rule of Thirds

In general, you will create a pleasing composition if you place the subject of your
photo at the intersection of two of the lines (one
horizontal and one vertical) on the grid.

So consider subject placement within your frame,

and work on putting the subject off-center.
Basically, the simplest thing to remember is to
get it out of the center of the shot and your image
will instantly be better.
B. Leading Lines

Leading lines are any elements in a photograph

that draw your eyes in a certain direction. They
can be straight, like in a road heading to some
distant point. Or, they can be meandering, like the
stream in the photo below.

Use leading lines to direct the viewer’s attention to

the subject. Leading lines without a subject at the
end just take the eye out of the frame. So be
aware of and avoid that situation in our images.
Ask yourself, “Where do my leading lines point?”
and make sure there is an answer.

In this particular photo, the brightest

area is the mountain gleaming with the
first light of the day. This is likely where
your eyes were first drawn when you
saw this composition.

However, look at the stream in the

frame. Do you see how it tapers off into
the distance? The reflection of the light
hitting the mountain and clouds
brightens the water as you move
through the scene.
Including the grasses in the foreground
is another compositional element that
helps to add a bit of depth to the scene.
As your eyes travel into the frame you
are aware of the grass, then you travel
down the stream to the gleaming
mountain or vice versa.
C. Get closer

There’s an adage that I’ve heard more than a few times from photographer
friends of mine.
“If the photo isn’t interesting enough, you’re not close enough.” – The quote is
actually by famous war photographer Robert Capa.

With that in mind, what do you think is the most important thing in this image? If
you said the bird, then you would be right.
Now, imagine if I had taken this photo from 20
feet away. What would I have captured? You
would probably be looking at a picture of four
people, a couple of giant trees, and a snow-
covered hillside, and maybe you would see the
bird in her hand.
However, would you have known that the bird
was the subject of the photo?

Probably not.

The point of this series of questions is to get you

to think about what you really want people to see
as important in your images. Then, it is your job
to cut out unnecessary parts of a scene to
accomplish your goal.
Less is more!

D. Change your perspective

A habit that many photographers get

into is always shooting from a standing
position, with the camera held at eye
level. For a large vista, that may not be
a big deal. However, there are plenty of
cases when changing the position of the
camera relative to the subject can
create a completely different result.

Does this photo of the birds remind you

of some superhero movie poster?
There is a reason that a low camera angle, shooting up at the subjet is called the
“hero shot”. Looking up at a subject can make it appear larger and more
powerful.
Similarly, shooting down on a subject from a high position creates a smaller,
more diminutive result.
Because of the cell phone’s size and weight, changing you r vantage point is
quite easy. So try different angles for more variety and storytelling.

E. Repeating patterns

Repeating patterns are all around you. Sometimes

you have to look harder to find them, but they are
there, nonetheless. In cities, you can find repeating
patterns in most buildings. In nature, you might
overlook the patterns but they are there as well.

What is the pattern you notice in this photo from

Africa?

The next time you walk through your local park

challenge yourself to find an example of repeating
patterns in nature.

4. Shoot HDR

High dynamic range (HDR) is a term that may need a bit of explaining.

For every scene, there is an area with the greatest brightness and also one that
is the darkest. When you bring your phone out to take a picture the camera
attempts to expose the scene so you can see detail from the brightest to darkest
areas. Think of this exposure as somewhat of an average.
However, the sensor in the camera has a limit when
capturing the difference between the two extremes.
This is why parts of the scene might be completely
black or white. The sensor is just not able to capture
all the information in one picture.

5. Dealing with backlight

Backlight situations occur when your subject is positioned in front of a light

source or a bright background. Think about any photo you have taken of a friend
or loved one standing in front of a window, like the one below left.
If you expose for the person, the light from the window is usually just a wh ite
blob. If you expose for the window, the person is usually just a silhouette.

6. Capture action shots with burst mode

Burst mode is a great feature included with most modern cell phones that allows
you to shoot many photos in rapid succession. Just hold down the shutter button
(either the button on the screen or the volume button on your phone), and the
camera clicks away until you let go.

Burst mode is a versatile tool for many situations. From static portraits to
freezing motion, burst mode can be your friend.

Suggestions on how to get the most out of your phone’s burst mode:

 Action shots – Start shooting before the action starts

 Consider starting with the camera zoomed as well to keep the action closer
 Portraits – use burst mode to capture the perfect moment (singles and
groups)

Then simply select your favorite frames, edit the images and post to social
media.
Basic Techniques about Mobile Photography
By V.R.F. Encarnacion

1. Observe proper lighting or create your own lighting

2. Observe the Rule of Thirds and Golden Ratio
3. Use natural framing
4. Apply action shots
5. Check the quality of your background
6. Edit photos to enhance brightness, saturation, and contrast

Other things to consider:

 Clean the lenses of your mobile phone at all times most especially before taking
pictures. Always bring a lense cleaning cloth.
 Avoid zoom in function of the camera in order to not lose an incredible amount data
pixel .You just get the truly solid image out of your photography.
 When taking a picture, hold your hand with both two hands. Holding it with one hand
can cause the shakiness to the camera.
 Consider buying a mobile tripod because it gives you freedom to mount your phones
for quick hand-free shots.
 Embrace ‘negative space’ – simply refers to the areas around and between the
subjects of an image. This can take a photo from good to great.

Source: https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/good-pictures-phone-tips

Integration and Application

Activity/Output:
Using your mobile phone, create the following:

1) Portrait photography of your classic look (Must be wearing a Barong Tagalog or a

Maria Clara dress)
2) Still life photography of your favourite breakfast.
3) A photo of nature around you. This photo must put emphasis on the “Rule of Thirds.”

Note: Be artistic and creative as possible. Bear in mind that you will produce a photo that
will be posted in a famous magazine. Good luck!