Reflection on Assignment 1

I found that writing this article was much more difficult than i originally anticipated. However it has made me realise what i need to do in the future to improve. For example, writing a plan for an article will make it SO much easier to write. I found my self wasting too much time pondering on what point to make next. This has made me feel like the article i have submitted seem a little muddled. Also, making the article more precise and focused on point will make a better article. I found myself constantly getting confused with what i was actually writing about! I changed the topic of the article at least 3 times! At first my article was to be about the popularisation of social media. This is a good article however there was way too much to write about. So i narrowed it down to the positives and negatives of social media. This again however i found was difficult to do as I was siding more with negatives which would make the article imbalanced. This made me reconsider the topic, again. So i finally decided to write it about the negative side effects of social networking.

The things i would do to improve my article is to be more concise. Also to include more primary research. I have included my own however it is difficult to depict what is my own and what is secondary. Primary research should be done prior to writing the article so integrating it would be easier. However as i changed the topic so many times i was unable to start with primary research.

The thing i like most about the article i have written is how it promotes how dangerous social networking can be for some people. It is often brushed under the carpet and SO many people are in denial about it.

I really enjoyed writing the article once i had specified that it will be about the negative side effects of social networking. However I am quite disappointing with how it is written. I find it difficult to adjust to online writing however practicing this skill will make me more confident with writing.

Reflection on Assignment 2

I was much more in my comfort zone with writing this article. For this article my plan was so much more concise and i knew exactly what i was writing which made me more confident. I hope to use this skill in the future to write better articles overall. The best thing about this article is how short and snappy it is! I also found that writing an article which relates to myself made it easier to write. The information used will be more informative and true because it is coming from personal experience. Which is another positive aspect i have learnt whilst writing this article.

To improve the article, though, i could have done some primary research from other students in halls to giver a better perspective of living in halls. Rather than just my point of view. However after getting my flatmates to read this article they agreed with every point i made.

The things i could have done better was better images. I find that editing them would have made them more aesthetically pleasing to the eye. Although i really enjoyed taking pictures to relate to the point in the article.

 

Reflection on the Bradford trip

This was my first time visiting Bradford and I was pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed it. The museum was fascinating and the gallery was a good experience. From visiting Bradford I had hoped to learn more about photojournalism as a career and seeing how the use of photography can impact on peoples lives. The Impressions gallery was perfect for showcasing both of these ambitions. The exhibition “Roads to Wigans Pier” was a sociological investigation into the bleak living conditions of the working class in Yorkshire and Lancashire, six newly graduated students of photography were commissioned by Impressions to record and document social aspects of the North of England. Each worked independently and each took a personal viewpoint. It was really interesting so see how each student views the same subject but in a different light. The investigation demonstrates how different people have different perspectives on things. Each of the sets were so original to the student. Work from Russel Boyce however really did stand out to me as he focused on how the bleak working conditions from the 60’s effected one person. This perceptions however is a true indication of what life was like then. Boyce included quotes from Tina, the woman featured in some of his photos.

A quote from Tina

One of Russels images stood out to me the most because it showed a bored Tina, smoking due to the fact that she has nothing better to do. Which is the harsh reality of Tina’s life. The quotes from Tina make the images more emotional and realistic which is why i admired Russel Boyces work. I really like the image. Although the meaning of it is to show depression i feel as though it could be used in a fashion magazine but in doing that it would strip the emotion from it. The camera is looking ever so slightly down on her which could indicate how upper class people may view Tina’s life.

Photograph by Russel Boyce

The National Media Museum made me feel like i was in my history of image acquisition time line. It was so interesting to see all that i had researched in real life and i managed to get a few images (shown below). After completing the task 2 list we found the time to have a look round the rest of the museum which was so much fun.
All in all the trip to Bradford was really useful! It helped me to understand the job of photojournalism more and the museum helped me envision what photography was like when it was first invented.

Task 1 – The impressions gallery

Task 1 – The road to Wigan Pier

Task 1 – Choosing an image

Task 1 – Russell Boyce

Task 1 – Some of Russell Boyce’s work

Task 2 – The Giroux camera (The first camera produced for the public)

Task 2 – Camera obscura

Task 2 – The Kodak camera

Task 2

Task 2 – Spice Girls Polaroid camera

Task 2 – Daguerreotype portraits

Task 2 – Hannah with a pigeon

31st October – 2nd November – Reflection

This week I had missed Mike’s tutorial but luckily Hannah gave me her notes to catch up on. From her notes I learnt about storytelling and also a bit of history behind it. I particularly liked researching about Bayeux Tapestry as it looks like the very first comic book! You can compare so easily how comic books have developed over time. In digital journalism we were taught how to create a list article which I loved because I am ALWAYS reading them myself! I found it easier to write this type of article; probably because I read them so much! Shutter speed was the main topic of photography this week.
Applying how to create a list article will be particularly good for when whipping up a quick yet effective piece of writing. I love how you can base it on pretty much everything! It also seems that women’s magazines take a particular interest in these types of articles. Although the shutter speed topic was interesting I didn’t learn too much from it as I have already mastered that skill from previous attempts. Although I did learn that spinning the zoom creates a brilliant effect and I will definitely be trying this out myself!
Going on xtream to find the slideshows is so useful because sometimes I can miss on the odd thing, especially because Karl goes through the slides so quickly! I like to use them so I can refresh my brain so often and reflect back on what was said during the tutorials.
With improving how to do a list article I find that actually writing them out is good practise. Also finding some on the internet is a good way to get used to how they are written professionally, the internet is also a superb way to get ideas on what to write about.

24th – 26th October – Reflection

I found that the history of photography topic of ‘social comment’ was quite difficult to understand initially. Although after researching the topic outside of the tutorial made me understand it easier meaning I was able to complete the work set. With digital journalism I learnt about Secondary and primary sources. Whilst photography was focused on use of light. Both very useful concepts which will be used in life.
Applying knowledge from digital journalism will be easy as they are both common phrases within the media. So knowing these will definitely help in a career to do with journalism. Knowing about the two different source is extremely important when set a task. It prevents you from collecting research from an incorrect source leading to a badly constructed article. So applying this knowledge is really important! With learning about use of light in photography this is broadening my photographic skills which will definitely give me and upper hand!
I have set out to practice taking photographs with different light (available to view on my flickr page). This is to show examples of how light can be used and how effects the mood of an image. Improving photography skills is particularly important as it is all new stuff to me because I never was taught how to do it in me A-level photography course. I felt because of this I was at a disadvantage but I found that the majority of the course also didn’t fully understand how to take good pictures without being on auto! Improving all skills learnt in photography will take a lot of practice!
Learning about common media phrases is really useful as it is a brand new topic that the majority of us haven’t really looked into before. I really enjoy learning to phrases as well, surprisingly! But it makes me feel that I really have learnt something and I can then take it away with me to use in the bigger world.