AP Photography AP Studio Art 2D Design

AP Photography/ AP Studio Art 2D Design Course Overview: AP 2-D Art and Design is an introductory college-level two-dimensional design course. Students refine and apply skills and ideas they develop throughout the course to produce two-dimensional art and design. The AP 2-D Art and Design course framework is made up of three big ideas/skills. ● Big Idea/Skill #1: Inquiry and Investigation ○ Investigate materials, processes, and ideas. ● Big Idea/Skill #2: Making through Practice, Experimentation, and Revision ○ Make works of art and design by practicing, experimenting, and revising. ● Big Idea/Skill #3: Communication and Reflection ○ Communicate ideas about/present in art and design. The AP Art and Design portfolios each consist of two sections: 1. Sustained Investigation a. 15 digital images; some may be details or process images | 60% of portfolio score b. Students will submit images and writing to document their inquiry-guided investigation through practice, experimentation, and revision c. Complete Submission Requirements for AP Exam: i. A minimum of 15 digital images that include works of art and design and process documentation. ii. Typed responses to prompts, providing information about the questions that guided their investigation and how they practiced, experimented, and revised their works, guided by their questions. iii. AP 2-D Art and Design: Sustained Investigation Samples and Scoring Commentaries, Scored with the 2020 Rubric 2. Selected Works a. 5 actual works | 40% of portfolio score b. Students will submit works of art and design and writing to demonstrate skillful synthesis of materials, processes, and ideas c. Complete Submission Requirements for AP Exam: i. 5 physical works or high-quality reproductions of physical works with written responses on paper identifying the materials, processes, and ideas used. ii. Works may come from the Sustained Investigation section, but they do not have to (may be a group of related works, unrelated works, or a combination of related and unrelated works) iii. AP 2-D Art and Design: Selected Works Samples and Scoring Commentaries, Scored with the 2020 Rubric Additional Overall Information and Helpful Tips: ● Images must be under 3 megabytes ○ May need to save a copy of each image so originals don’t get saved over with a smaller version ○ Go to Photoshop and save as a jpeg, then select quality 10 instead of 12 to get the file small enough ● Arrange images in the order that’s provided by the College Board, but don't place similar images next to each other. ○ Place the best image first, second best image last, and so on according to the image. (The psychology of presentation is very important !!!) ● Height and width will be 8x12 or 12x8 ● Material is Digital Photography ● Writing Tips and Tricks: ○ Explain what you did, but be sure to include a list of elements and principles covered in each photo (mention between three to five elements and principles) ○ May also mention type of lens (like fixed 50mm with a 2.8 aperture etc.), and the use of Photoshop to clean up the image ○ The writing prompts include: 1. Identify the question(s) or inquiry that guided your sustained investigation. 2. Describe how your sustained investigation shows evidence of practice, experimentation, and revision guided by your question(s) or inquiry. ○ Have a maximum of 1200 characters for both responses ○ Fully answer the questions and begin by repeating the question ○ Response template guide: 1. The inquiry that guided my sustained investigation was… a. and go on to discuss this and state that the inquiry had to do with whatever your focus is on (ex: architecture → geometry in architecture, etc.) AND WHY 2. My sustained investigation shows evidence of practice, experimentation, and revision guided by my inquiry by… a. use at least three elements and principles to explain a lot of specific pieces b. discuss the equipment used and how you experimented in some cases (ex: with a shallow depth of field by using a fixed 50mm lens with an aperture of 2.8, use of Photoshop, etc.) Some Other Useful Resources for the AP Portfolio: ● AP Studio Art 2-D Student Samples: Portfolio Exam Sections ● AP Studio Art: 2-D Design Past Sample Portfolios ● AP Art and Design Selected Works and Sustained Investigations Rubrics, Effective Fall 2019 ● AP Studio Art 2-D Exam Overview Important Terms and Phrases to be Familiar With (Elements/Principles): ● Elements and Principles: ○ This is the focus of the Breadth section of the portfolio, and this should always be used in photography in general. ○ For AP, you can’t do more than three of any one element or principle. ● Elements of Art: ○ The building blocks of art. ● Line: ○ Refers to a point moving in space. It begins in one place and ends in another. ● Shape and Form: ○ When a line meets itself, geometric or organic. A three-dimensional shape. ● Value: ○ Refers to the light or dark tones of colors or to the neutral tones in an image. ● Color: ○ An element with three properties - hue, value, and intensity. ○ In regards to color theory, there are Primary Colors, Triadic Colors, Complementary Colors, Analogous Colors, and a few others. ● Space: ○ Indicates an area in an image which can be positive or negative space. ● Texture: ○ Refers to tactile (touchable) or visual quality of a surface in an image. ■ This can be emphasized by dramatic lighting. ● Principles of Design: ○ The guidelines that are used to arrange the elements of art in a composition. ● Balance: ○ Refers to how elements are arranged to achieve stability; equal relationship of two or more things ○ Rule of Thirds – A system of composition or balance. The frame is divided into both horizontal and vertical imaginary lines like a tic-tac-toe game, and important pictorial objects/elements of the composition are placed either on one line or at the intersection of two lines. ■ Helps produce nicely balanced, easy-on-the-eye pictures. ■ As you have to position things relative to the edges of the frame, this also helps get rid of tiny subjects surrounded by vast empty space. ○ Symmetry – A mirror-image of a centered composition. ○ Asymmetry – Each side of a vertical or horizontal axis containing similar, but not identical shapes or forms. ● Unity: ○ All the individual parts of a composition come together and support each other to create one cohesive composition. ● Variety: ○ This occurs when different qualities of the elements of art and the principles of design are included in the image. ● Movement and Rhythm: ○ Movement refers to real or implied motion in an image/how the viewer’s eye travels through the composition or explores a photograph (also called dynamics). Rhythm is created by the organized repletion, alternation, or progression of art elements. ○ Panning – Moving the camera during an exposure to follow a moving subject. ○ Blurring – While making an exposure, the camera is static and the subject is in motion. ○ Zooming – While making an exposure, the camera is zoomed in creating a radial blur. ● Emphasis: ○ Uses value, shape, size, position, or color to add importance to an object or subject in an image. ● Proportion: ○ Refers to the relationship between the sizes of objects or components in an image. ● Pattern: ○ This is achieved by the repetition of any of the elements of art in a composition. ● Rhythm: ○ Created by the organized repletion, alternation, or progression of art elements. ● Depth of Field: ○ Refers to how much of the scene is in focus, both in front of and behind the subject or the point of focus. ● Composition: ○ Designed arrangement of objects within the frame of a photograph. ○ Made up using structure, balance, and dynamics. ○ Basic structural elements: line, shape, and position of object Camera Basics: ● Shutter Speed (S mode on a Nikon, TV Mode on a Canon): how fast the shutter opens and closes to allow light to hit the film. ○ Ex: 1/1000 of a second, 1/500 of a second, 1/250 of a second, 1/125 of a second, 1/60 of a second, 1/30 of a second, 1/15 of a second, 1/8 of a second, 1/4 of a second, 1/2 of a second, 1 second, 2 seconds, etc. ○ If you notice, each time you go from one to the next, you are either halving or doubling the amount of light that comes into the camera. ■ Each move is called a ‘stop’. ■ Faster than 125 is out of sync speed for the strobe ● Aperture (A mode on a Nikon, AV Mode on a Canon): works like the pupil of your eye → bright sun and the pupil gets smaller to let less light in; nighttime means the pupil needs to get bigger to let more light in) ○ Values: f/2.8, f/4, f/5.6, f/8, f/11, f/16, f/22 ○ A smaller number means a larger lens opening = more light. A larger number means a smaller lens opening = less light. ■ Ex: f/2.8 – more light – more depth of field ■ Ex: f/11 – less light – less depth of field ● ISO: All film has a speed rating, whether digital or traditional. You may see this number called ASA or ISO (both indicate the film's rated speed). The ISO/ASA rating describes how quickly the film reacts to light. ○ The lower the ISO, the sharper your images come out. Inversely, the higher the ISO, the more ‘grainy’ your shots will be. ○ Values: 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, etc. ■ 100 ISO is used for normal everyday use. ■ 400 might be used for indoors or at night. ■ 800 might be used for a football game, where the action takes place very quickly. ■ You can up the ISO settings to 800, 1600 or even 3200 which makes the sensor a lot more sensitive to light ○ If you notice, each time you go from one ISO value to the next, you are either halving or doubling the amount of light sensitivity that comes onto the ‘film’ or sensor. ● White Balance: ○ 5600K is the measure of sunlight ○ Types of artificial light: Tungsten, Fluorescent, etc. ○ Have different Kelvin values so the white balance needs to be set accordingly. ○ When using strobes, set the white balance to 5600K as that is the appropriate light produced by the strobes. Recommended Equipment: ● To Use Strobes: ○ Set both strobes at a 45 degree angle from each other on all axes (x, y, and z). ○ Set one to full power and the other to half power, as you want a 2:1 ratio of light. ○ Take test shots and look at the histogram to make sure that the whole graph is represented. If not, move the aperture larger or smaller. ■ Be aware that as people move closer to the strobe or further away from the strobe, the histogram will change and a new aperture should be set. ■ Camera Setting: ● Set the camera to M and the shutter speed to 125. ● Set the ISO to 100. ● Set the White Balance to Flash or to 5600K. ● To Scan an Image: ○ Open up Adobe Photoshop and go to File/Import. ○ Find the appropriate scanner and answer the questions it asks you. ■ The appropriate scanner varies based on the particular scanner installed. ○ Once scanned, go to File/Save As and name/save the image in the appropriate folder. ● Optimizing an Image: ● Adjust Levels ○ Go to File/Open Image/Adjustments/Levels. ○ Select the drop down button and adjust each appropriate color level separately (Red, Green, and Blue values) from the graph. ○ Slide the right and left arrows to where the information starts. ● Crop into new compositions ○ Select the Crop tool in the tool palette. ○ May set dimensions (such as 4 by 6 inches) in the bar at the top of the screen. ○ Click and drag out a box now to select the area you wish to keep. ○ Double click inside the selection to resize. ● Sharpen (if image has been scanned) ○ Go to Filter/Sharper/Sharpen. ● Dust Bust ○ Healing Brush (clean up the image, scratches and/or blemishes) ■ Select the Healing Brush in the tool palette. ■ Select an appropriate brush size. ■ While holding Alt, click on the area you wish to sample. ■ Then go to the area you wish to fix and click. ● Can also use Clone Stamp but Healing Brush smoothes out the adjustment. ○ Red Eye ■ Select the Red Eye tool. ■ Click and drag out a box over the infected eye. ■ Photoshop will then fix Red Eye for you.