Mara's edited take

 Just for fun:

Feature - my unedited take

Hard news

With the bad rep for free speech Dixie State University has accumulated, to my knowledge, there isn't anything being done to combat the image or make it better.

Students and groups on campus are required to get all fliers "approved for posting" before they are tacked onto the bulletin boards. However, when I was observing some of the boards, I noticed that some (mostly from DSUSA) don't have the stamp that says it has been approved. Why do they get away with it when others have to jump through all the hoops?

To me, it's obvious that our free speech is restricted and the university wants us to be exposed to certain things and others, not so much.

For Diversity Week, the Gay Straight Alliance club had three canvases circulating around campus all week where students could write whatever they wanted. It was a free speech exercise. While this is a great initiative, more can be done. I attended the University of Utah for a year and in front of the library, an extremely popular and well-trafficked area, there were semi-permanent chalk board like structures where students could exercise free speech anytime they wanted. There was chalk provided, and there were very interesting things written! Compared to the three, comparatively small canvases that were displayed at DSU for only a week, the U of U chalkboard seemed to be more effective because there seemed to be more freedom.

The canvases are now stored on the ground, in the MCDC, in a corner, and in a storage room.

Portraits

This shoot was incredibly fun for me. As I was talking to some other students while we were participating in the activity, we all suggested this should be the first assignment in the class because it's a good way to get to know each other while at the same time getting guidance from Eric.

Assignment No.1 - Axioms

Sunday evening outing with my fiance. Images shot with my Sony DSC-H9. My mom also gave me an old, wide-angle lens of hers to shoot with.

Deep depth of field
F: 8 S: 1/200
He's passively watching a family play ball in the distance.

Shallow depth of field
F: 2.7 S: 1/1,000

Shallow depth of field
F: 2.7 S: 1/2,000

Fast shutter speed
F: 2.7 S: 1/400
Glad I used fast shutter speed on this one, or else you would have proof to think he's a pervert.

Slow shutter speed
F: 6.3 S: 1/20
One of my mom's old lenses that she gave me to experiment with. Unfortunately, I don't have the adapter to make it fit on the camera that I have. Hopefully I can find one soon.

About a random student in your class

Although I'm a scribbler, I hope to become a skilled photographer by the end of this class. I am the news editor at Dixie Sun News, and the position comes with lots of responsibility not only make sure good stories are being written, but that we also have good photographs and art to accompany said stories.

I am very aware of the looming cloud above my head that keeps telling me that I need to break out of my comfort zone in order to succeed in the career path that I've chosen. While I enjoy writing, I have always had an interest in shooting. I used to be an art major and decided that writing would produce a more promising future than some canvases and empty paint tubes. That being said, I have an eye for art. I know basic principles. The hardest thing about shooting for me is controlling the camera to make it my puppet--to make it do what I want it to do.

I look forward to leaving this course an expert photographer. I hope that's not too much pressure for you. :)