Camera Club question

[The Barbarian]

I agreed to do a camera club for a middle school, kids 11 to 14. Most have a P&S, or just a cell phone for cameras, but they have a lot of enthusiasm.

Anybody done this before? Any ideas?

 

[Light Guru]

Give assignments that get them to lean to see and look. I remember an assignment once in highschool to photograph the alphabet, we could not actually photograph any actual letters but only things that resembled letters in the alphabet. The assignment did a good job at making you aware of shapes and lines.

 

[Mr. Innuendo]

Have them shoot only things that are square, or round, or blue, or tall, or short or... well, you get the idea.

 

[JoeW]

Give assignments that get them to lean to see and look. I remember an assignment once in highschool to photograph the alphabet, we could not actually photograph any actual letters but only things that resembled letters in the alphabet. The assignment did a good job at making you aware of shapes and lines.

Ding, ding, ding, ding--we have a winner Don Pardo.

Kids will likely have a low attention span, won't want to hear you talk and have already been playing with their phone cameras and instagram or pinterest. So give them specific assignments that will illustrate key compositional points. I'm assuming you can't give assignments involving shutter speed or aperture since many of the kids won't have those options. Also, many of the kids will already be dabbling (or much more) with post-production so if you go in that direction, it opens up a whole can of worms (with some kids already using photoshop and others adding goofy balloon comments to portraits or distorting noses or boobs) so the class really becomes "playing with software."

Here are some ideas of photo assignments that should work well with kids:
--shoot 30 pictures of a common household object (like a pencil) and get 30 different perspectives but all of them have to be "in camera" (i.e.: no post processing to achieve different looks).
--find natural "S" curves and shoot them.
--shoot a subject that is framed (i.e.: in a door way or window or box).
--shoot high key and then low key (and then use that to explain how high key isn't about overexposing).
--shoot interesting shadows (and to kick off this assignment, use the iconic poster from Star Wars of the young Anakin...who's shadow is that of Darth Vader).
--have them shoot their pets...at pet level...how another dog sees their dog.
--convey "movement" in a picture (I didn't say "freeze" movement but shoot something that captures the sense of movement or looks fluid rather than looks frozen or still).
--show them the work of Salvador Dali and tell them to create a picture as Dali might have taken it.
--show them the work of a famous photographer and then their assignment that week is to go shoot photos either similar in feel or in subject to that photographer (i.e.: show them Ansel Adams and then have them shoot landscapes in B&W, show them Easton and have them shoot interesting vegetables, show them a famous portrait like Karsh or Leibovitz and then shoot portraits in that style).
--combine with another school club (like a fashion and design club, or a sports team, or a musical group performing a concert, a chess club, a service club) and do a shoot of them performing (i.e.: shoot a mini-runway or fashion show, a concert, a chess club practice or faux tournament, a team practice).

 

[TCampbell]

A camera phone may severely limit control over exposure and point & shoot models aren't much better. I'm sure you'll have the occasional student who may have access to a camera that does allow for full manual control, but you probably cannot count on it.

As such, you might "cover" the concepts of exposure, but assignments based on controlling the exposure may not be possible for most club members.

But you CAN teach them quite a bit about light and composition.

I recall a high-school class that gave assignments to shoot for various points of view (e.g. "birds eye" view and "worms eye" view (looking straight up from the ground)). I recall having to find shots that could show "texture" (hint... learning that light from the side creates shadow and the highlight/shadow contrast creates a strong sense of dimension to show texture is helpful.) You can teach them to spot pattern & rhythm. There were lots of lessons about composition... use of balance, framing, use of leading-lines, etc. There are multiple ways to find balance, but I always thought it was particularly interesting to learn to look for balance through color. Designers use a color-wheel to show how certain combinations of colors create balance (e.g. 2 colors are "balanced" if they are located directly across from each other on the wheel. 3 colors are "balanced" if they are each located at 1/3rd of the way around the wheel relative to each other., etc.)

You can also discuss the concept of "white balance" and how various types of artificial light (or any light reflecting off a colored surface) will tint the overall lighting and how you can fix it (or why you might choose to leave it alone and let it happen.)

All of these are somewhat foundational in that they don't lend themselves to any particular area of photography (e.g. you could apply this to landscape, nature, commercial photography, sports, portraiture, etc.) -- they can be used throughout.

One other aspect of composition which I suspect is lost on many photographers... is that you don't have to photograph a scene "as it is". You can move things around. One of the FIRST things you might consider moving around... is you. While you might see a opportunity for a photograph... consider if you are standing in the best place for the photograph or if the shot might be improved by standing (or positioning the camera) in a different spot... or a change of angle (higher or lower for example), closer or farther away, etc. Consider the subject but also consider what you'll get with regard to the background because "everything" that ends up in the photograph counts as part of the photograph (I ding people when they submit nice looking subjects... and really lousy backgrounds... because the photographer didn't think about the background.) Another reason to consider changing the circumstances is to change the light. Moving a subject nearer to a window... or deeper into the shadows is often a possibility and another factor to consider (would it help the subject). If you are trying to convey emotion in your photograph... then use of light and shadow are very powerful tools.

 

[sm4him]

For a middle school??
RUN while you still can!!!!
Run FAR away!!!!

Never did a camera club; but I did teach the photography merit badge in our scout troop, and my son later taught it at our region's summer camp program for a couple of years.

One thing that I remember the kids always especially enjoyed was an exercise we did where they had to do a sequence of photos that told a story. They had to submit a certain number of pictures (I don't remember but I think it was about 6 or 8) that told a story as a sequence. It might be a skit involving the other kids, or it might be the "story" of a hike they went on, etc. It got them really thinking and they generally enjoyed it. Then they also had to show their photos and talk about what the "story" was. That was usually highly entertaining, because it ranged from "We did a skit. This shows the skit," to some kids who would get really INTO the storytelling part.

 

[sm4him]

Oh also--you can go here to see the requirements for the Boy Scout photography merit badge. You may not be working with scouts, but it may give you some good ideas for age-appropriate activities and learning goals.

 

[TJC]

The iphone is a great tool to teach photography. Teach them to SEE! get them low, get them up high. in close, do the worms eye view etc etc. As well, most smart phones are equipped with wide angle lenses. Great for composition!
You ask 20 kids to take pictures of bicycles and 19 are going to walk up to one and push the button. But one will lay down and shoot through the spokes, into the sun, capturing the next bike 10 feet away mostly in silhouette and boom instead of a snap shot you've got a photograph!
Use that to teach the other 19.

 

[Rick50]

I live across the street from a Middle School. I favor the RUN idea most.