The mechanics and art of photography unveil an intriguing metaphor for thinking about learning and our world view. For a photographer, the operation of cameras-- exploiting apertures, shutter speeds, optics, -- coexist with the artistic skills of pre-visualization, framing, composition. It is no longer a field dominated by pros with expensive gear, we can all make photographic art.
Taking the metaphor farther, creating an engaging learning experience is much more than point and shoot or flipping the settings into automatic mode. Photography is a beautiful example of how you can get better at doing something just by regularly doing (and sharing) your craft. Regular acts of photography, such as the Daily Create, are a model of informal learning that works.
1. cc licensed ( BY NC SD ) flickr photo by Adam Melancon:
http://flickr.com/photos/melancon/2629905708/
Looking Through the
Lens
Alan Levine cogdogblog.com
Alan Levine cogdogblog.com
2. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by Martin Gommel:
http://flickr.com/photos/kwerfeldein/2104791931/
3. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by Hossein Ghodsi:
http://flickr.com/photos/mhghodsi/3049527437/
5. cc licensed ( BY ND ) flickr photo by Chuck “Caveman” Coker:
http://flickr.com/photos/caveman_92223/2866407172/
6. cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by Vincepal:
http://flickr.com/photos/vincepal/3750617746/
I Exist
7. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by rokoto:
http://flickr.com/photos/monkey_gastello/180031608/
I Exist
8. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by Felipe Morin:
http://flickr.com/photos/metabolico/442924577/
I Exist
9. "Also interesting is that the shots that people seem to post to
Instagram – graffiti, flying pigeons, stuff around the
neighborhood – are not the kind of photos you see on
Facebook. Instagram has created a new niche – making
photographers out of people who were not photographers
before.”
“More On Instagram (or why Facebook hasn’t won everything)”
(http://thenextweb.com/location/2010/12/30/more-on-instagram-or-why-facebook-hasn%E2%80%99t-won-everything/)
14. allenge!
Ch
• Find someone you don’t know
• Take photo with mobile device
• email to
island42words@photos.flickr.com
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
15. cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by 96dpi:
http://flickr.com/photos/96dpi/3371440496/
flickr.com/photos/cog
dogroo
16. “When it comes to the artistic value of images
and proclamations of self importance, let me
be very blunt: where there is no artist, there is
no art. No matter how beautiful or powerful
the feats of nature you photograph, if all you
do is record them using photographic media
without introducing your own sensibilities into
the final product, they are not art!Your images
should provide viewers with an experience
they could not have had, and would never
have seen or felt, if it were not for your
sharing it with them.”
Guy Tal, (http://guytal.com/wordpress/2011/05/dont-be-an-idiot/)
cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by jónr:
http://flickr.com/photos/jonragnarsson/280131282/
17. cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by cogdogblog:
http://flickr.com/photos/cogdog/5702001885/
Caught Checking In to Morrison
Hotel
18. QuickTime™ and a
GIF decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
http://cogdogblog.com/2011/10/19/animated-gifs-your-photos/
19. cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by Derek K. Miller:
http://flickr.com/photos/penmachine/2740346077/
cameras / metaphors
20. cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by Derek K. Miller:
http://flickr.com/photos/penmachine/2741115576/
aperture
21. cc licensed ( BY ND ) flickr photo by -=RoBeE=-:
http://flickr.com/photos/robertszlivka/2741653860/
22. cc licensed ( BY NC SD ) flickr photo by i k o:
http://flickr.com/photos/emiliano-iko/4748043421/
23. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by Paolo Margari:
http://flickr.com/photos/paolomargari/3484863724/
24. cc licensed ( BY SD ) flickr photo by mugley:
http://flickr.com/photos/mugley/2928281873/
25. cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by kevindooley:
http://flickr.com/photos/pagedooley/2787381665/
26. cc licensed ( BY NC SD ) flickr photo by deVos:
http://flickr.com/photos/devos/8250950/
27. cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by Derek K. Miller:
http://flickr.com/photos/penmachine/2741115576/
shutter speed
28. cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by Derek K. Miller:
http://flickr.com/photos/penmachine/3588299260/
29. cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by Chris_Moody:
http://flickr.com/photos/zpyder/1081930640/
30. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by L.Brumm Photography and Design: h
ttp://flickr.com/photos/lbrummphoto/4315487404/
31. cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by Liam Wilde:
http://flickr.com/photos/bean_baker/3893043940/
32. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by Express Monorail:
http://flickr.com/photos/expressmonorail/4314559132/
33. cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by angela7dreams:
http://flickr.com/photos/angela7/2781433789/
34. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by ohad*:
http://flickr.com/photos/ohadby/41058122/
35. cc licensed ( BY SD ) flickr photo by TheGiantVermin:
http://flickr.com/photos/tudor/664156379/
36. cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by Derek K. Miller:
http://flickr.com/photos/penmachine/2741115576/
iso
37. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by tomquah:
http://flickr.com/photos/tomquah/3915654642/
38. cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by greenkozi:
http://flickr.com/photos/themacinator/3334790211/
39. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by imNicholas:
http://flickr.com/photos/imnicholas/5013500139/
40. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by imNicholas:
http://flickr.com/photos/imnicholas/5013500139/
41. cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by Thomas Hawk:
http://flickr.com/photos/thomashawk/2354086423/
composition
42. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by L.Brumm Photography and Design:
http://flickr.com/photos/lbrummphoto/4278144872/
43. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by Andrea Costa Photography:
http://flickr.com/photos/ac_theart/3505959936/
44. cc licensed ( BY NC SD ) flickr photo by Michelle Brea (busy-away):
http://flickr.com/photos/itsallaboutmich/840084501/
45. cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by kevindooley:
http://flickr.com/photos/pagedooley/1905508309/
46. cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by kevindooley:
http://flickr.com/photos/pagedooley/2172001078/
47. cc licensed ( BY NC SD ) flickr photo by deVos:
http://flickr.com/photos/devos/86878315/
48. cc licensed ( BY SA ) flickr photo by cogdogblog:
http://flickr.com/photos/cogdog/8483752277/
49. cc licensed ( BY SA ) flickr photo by cogdogblog:
http://flickr.com/photos/cogdog/8484847046/
50. cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by cogdogblog:
http://flickr.com/photos/cogdog/5432699692/
If you mash up this photo a dog will bark at yoy!
what’s wrong?
51. "It has changed me more as a father than it has as a
photographer. There are lots of difficult things you go
through as the parent of special needs child. Yet to
see his photo showcased prominently on something I
care deeply about, such as Flickr, and to see him
being praised by my friends and colleagues gives me
a sense of pride for my son. Also his images has
been used for campaigns and posters for Autism.
This photo has produced some redemptive and
endearing qualities since I posted it online."
Kris Krug from “Story of a Portrait from flickr Homepage”
(http://madaboutportraits.blogspot.com/2011/02/story-of-portrait-from-flickr-homepage.html)
cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by kk:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kk/14443265/
52.
53. cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by pasukaru76 (out of town):
http://flickr.com/photos/pasukaru76/4218226857/
story
54. cc licensed ( BY NC SD ) flickr photo by Bill Liao:
http://flickr.com/photos/liao/154355830/
55. cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by pcgn7:
http://flickr.com/photos/21204781@N07/2501994750/
56. cc licensed ( BY NC SD ) flickr photo by chuck_heston:
http://flickr.com/photos/chuckheston/383386494/
57. cc licensed ( BY NC SD ) flickr photo by Juergen Kurlvink:
http://flickr.com/photos/kurlvink/2554907553/
58. cc licensed ( BY NC SD ) flickr photo by freestone:
http://flickr.com/photos/freestone/183376463/
59. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by Pay No Mind:
http://flickr.com/photos/paynomind/65010034/
60. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by AndWhyNot:
http://flickr.com/photos/andwhynot/2946734025/
61. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by ashley rose,:
http://flickr.com/photos/ashleyrosex/3042780224/
62. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by Felipe Morin:
http://flickr.com/photos/metabolico/460873307/
context
65. "Without a caption, without a context, without some
idea about what the picture is a picture of, I can’t
answer. I simply cannot talk about the photograph as
being true or false independently of beliefs about the
picture. A captionless photograph, stripped of all
context, is virtually meaningless. I need to know
more.And yet, this idea that photographs can be true
or false independent of context is so ingrained in our
thinking that we are reluctant to part with it."
Errol Morris, “Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire”
The Lusitania
(http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/07/10/pictures-are-supposed-to-be-worth-a-thousand-words)
66.
67.
68.
69. cc licensed ( BY SD ) flickr photo by Ernst Vikne:
http://flickr.com/photos/iboy/4532497884/
“I’m not a good
photographer”
70. cc licensed ( BY NC ND ) flickr photo by imNicholas:
http://flickr.com/photos/imnicholas/5013500139/
77. "Photography is an art and a craft. Getting better at
both requires practice—lots of practice. The Daily
Shoot is a simple daily routine to motivate and inspire
you to practice your photography, and share your
results! It’s not a contest and there are no prizes. It's
simply about encouraging you to pick up your camera
and make photographs.That's it. There aren't any other
rules. You aren't going to get demerits if you miss a few
days, nor will you get gold stars for doing every
assignment. We're just here to help you with a little
nudge every day. The rest is up to you!"
The Daily Shoot, (http://dailyshoot.com/)
81. "The intelligent, polite and talented DS
photographers expand my creativity by
showing so many possible good approaches
to the same photographic problem.
Commenting on other photos and having my
own photos commented on is yet another
enhancement to the learning.”
John King, (http://flickr.com/photos/johnking/)
cc licensed ( BY NC SD ) flickr photo by john.king:
http://flickr.com/photos/johnking/5251126461/
cc licensed ( BY NC SD ) flickr photo by john.king:
http://flickr.com/photos/johnking/5425668561/
John King
82. "Daily shoot has really forced me to look more
closely at my world and experiment more with
my photography. I am trying different angles,
lighting and composition. By shooting
everyday, I am also able to see when I fall into
a rut or a pattern thus forcing me to try new
things.”
Jabiz Raisdana, (http://flickr.com/photos/intrepidflame/)
cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by Intrepid Flame:
http://flickr.com/photos/intrepidflame/426620305/
cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by Intrepid Flame:
http://flickr.com/photos/intrepidflame/5380534348/
Jabiz Raisdana
83. "'Forcing' yourself to take a photo every day
means you have your camera with you at all
times and you start to look at objects and
events with a more artful eye. I find it that I
frame shots in my head even if I am not going
to actually press the shutter button.
I have always loved photography but this kind
of project actually made me fall in love with
photography all over again.”
Audrey Williams, (http://flickr.com/photos/ajwms/)
cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by AJ Wms:
http://flickr.com/photos/ajwms/292988246/
cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by AJ Wms:
http://flickr.com/photos/ajwms/306635688/
Audrey Williams
84.
85. “I remember walking around campus that day thinking about preparedness, looking
for preparedness, wondering what preparedness was. No luck.That evening,
though, I was thinking about how Leatherman’s were an example of preparedness,
and then I remembered an old pocketknife my grandfather had given me. I tried to
think of how I could make it interesting. It needed… atmosphere. It needed…
lighting. But just shooting it with a flash turned out bland, so I figured out how to get
the flash focused on a small area of the scene (it’s called a snoot).
It’s clear, I think, that absent the constraint of needing to take a certain kind of
picture that night, I probably wouldn’t have ever headed down the path which
resulted in the picture, nor would I have gained further practice in photography.”
Galagon Wagon, (http://galagonwagon.com/2011/02/the-daily-shoot-and-creativity/)
cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by Galagon Wagon:
http://flickr.com/photos/galagonwagon/5429505007/
86. “Despite knowing that photographing water is difficult, I
walked around our campus after school looking for it; I
should have been looking for liquids. Then I saw it.
Beautiful, dense, thick buckets of mud. A blend of earth
and water and gas and everything mushed together. I
have always loved mud, so with great pleasure I
snapped a round of shots. I am glad I didn't go with a
more traditional glistening form of liquid, and I tried
something a bit different.”
Jabiz Raisdana, (http://intrepidflame.blogspot.com/2011/01/state-of-matter.html)
cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by Intrepid Flame:
http://flickr.com/photos/intrepidflame/5348740810/
87. “I often see people and think that I’d like to take their
portrait. It sounds creepy in my head as I write that but
I promise it’s a fairly widespread idea (
http://www.100strangers.com). I just happen to think
certain people look interesting but I don’t ever do
anything about it. I worry my social skills are not up to
it.
But you see a photo at the top of this post. A photo I
took of a stranger. That may not seem like a big deal to
many of you but it took some serious psyching up for
me to do that. It’s not the best picture but it does
represent something I’m glad I did.”
cc licensed ( BY SD ) flickr photo by bionicteaching:
http://flickr.com/photos/bionicteaching/5436986582/
Tom Woodward, (http://bionicteaching.com/?cat=254)
strangers
88. “The assignment’s taken me on some pretty
unexpected adventures. Almost everyday I’ve
started with a completely different idea (or no idea)
of what I was going to photograph, then stumbled
upon something extraordinary. It’s forced me to
think about things in new ways and it’s shown me
that sometimes it’s easier to make art when you
take a more hands-on approach and don’t
overthink it.”
Matt Martin, (http://blog.electrovert.net/?p=69)
cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by electrovert:
http://flickr.com/photos/58873944@N07/5417153345/
89. cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by Faithful Chant [ back ]:
http://flickr.com/photos/chant3/3252597528/
motivation matters
90. cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by kennymatic:
http://flickr.com/photos/kwl/4555399660/
shared space matters
91. cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by teliko82:
http://flickr.com/photos/teliko82/2189579308/
learning with others
matters
92. cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by Thomas Hawk:
http://flickr.com/photos/thomashawk/155589939/
learning by doing
matters
93. cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by striatic:
http://flickr.com/photos/striatic/241843728/
daily ______ ?
94. lenge #2!
Chal
• Retake your photo
• Make it say “Excited to be here!”
• email to
island42words@photos.flickr.com
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
95. cc licensed ( BY NC ) flickr photo by 96dpi:
http://flickr.com/photos/96dpi/3371440496/
flickr.com/photos/cog
dogroo
96. cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by woodleywonderworks:
http://flickr.com/photos/wwworks/4759535950/
cogdogblog.com
97. cc licensed ( BY NC SD ) flickr photo by Ernesto JT:
http://flickr.com/photos/auggie/405845898/
make some art
Notes de l'éditeur
[twitter]Starting “Looking Through the Lens” presentation on photography as a metaphor for learning[/twitter]
Hi, my name is Alan and I am a photographer... of that is the wrong talk. Oh, wait, it is the right one.
For some, photography seems hard.
[twitter]So what is a photographer? Only for pros to say “I Exist”?[/twitter]
But this guy looks happy. He is a “professional” and as a pro-- he has the Big Lens, he is on some exotivc location... as a pro his photography says “I Exist”
Bullshit.
The only thing about being a professional is that you get paid to do something everyone else can do if they choose. Think of the oldest profession in the world...
This photo is not be a quote/unquote professional. It makes a statement. It says I Exist.
She’s not a pro, but look at her expression. Do you question her assertion of existence?
This guy to exists... in pain. Maybe the pain is because he is not a Professional?
[twitter]Instagram creating new niche of photographers http://bit.ly/gF7mdA[/twitter]
Mobile photography is opening up creative opportunities for people who might not have considered themselves a photographer. Photos like these from my colleague Kim Flintoff are casual, in the moment, intimate.
Who in the audience has a camera?
Not these kind, put your big guns away.
These kind. Every smartphone user has a device to take both bad and excellent photos...
[twitter]Best Camera = One That is With You (Chase Jarvis) http://blog.chasejarvis.com/blog/2009/09/the-best-camera-iphone-app-book-community/[/twitter]
[twitter]Make mobile photo of a person or thing, send to [email_address] [/twitter]
[twitter]Photos shared should end up on http://flickr.com/photos/cogdogroo[/twitter]
On Making art in photos- it is going way beyond just pressing a button.
[twitter]Used slow shutter speed, layering to create six word story http://flic.kr/p/9FSfvk [/twitter]
Easy to take a snapshot of this interesting photo gallery. But more went in to it, wanted to explore perhaps creating a scene or story. With camera knowledge, I forced a slow exposure to make cars blur, and thought the arrangement of people made for layers. In post (I tossed 4 that did not work) I decided to make this a six word story.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/cogdog/5702001885
[twitter]Creating Animated GIFs from a series of photos http://cogdogblog.com/7639[/twitter]
[twitter]Making big leap of comparing learning to cameras...[/twitter]
[twitter]Aperture... like how open attention is? wide open or narrow?[/twitter]
[twitter]Shutter speed... like how much time spent on task?[/twitter]
[twitter]ISO like sensitivity/perception? tradeoff for fidelity?[/twitter]
[twitter]Composition in photography, like learning, is framing, cropping, pre-visualizing[/twitter]
It’s All in the Eyes
[twitter]Cropping ordinary photos- creation by deletion.[/twitter]
But this was an ordinary photo I made better by deletion
[twitter]What’s wrong with this photo? http://flic.kr/p/9h51m5 [/twitter]
[twitter]Compare to @kk photo of son- beautiful! http://bit.ly/gVK9jb[/twitter]
[twitter]It is not hard to transcend from snapshots to well composed photos[/twitter]
[twitter]Like photos, learning is much more interesting when there is a story to draw us in[/twitter]
[twitter]Errol Morris “Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire” - importance of context http://nyti.ms/h5xKmY[/twitter]
[twitter]How to get better at something? Practice... 10000 hours (where Gladwell got it?)[/twitter]
[twitter]365 photos flickr group http://www.flickr.com/groups/366photos/ began in 2007 w/ @dlnorman[/twitter]
[twitter]Introducing The Dailyshoot http://dailyshoot.com/ as model of informal learning[/twitter]
[twitter]Get daily photo assignments by following @dailyshoot[/twitter]
[twitter]Daily Shoot and creativity, reflections from @galagonwagon http://bit.ly/gmypDd[/twitter]
[twitter]@intrepidteacher on finding novel ways to do dailyshoot http://bit.ly/es7p3u[/twitter]
[twitter]@twoodwar photos of strangers http://bionicteaching.com/?cat=254[/twitter]
[twitter]Matt M reflects on 7 days of daily shoot http://blog.electrovert.net/?p=69[/twitter]
[twitter]In learning and photography, here’s what matters- motivation.[/twitter]
[twitter]Learning in a shared space matters.[/twitter]
[twitter]Learning with others matters[/twitter]
[twitter]Learning by doing matters[/twitter]
[twitter]What else might work like photography for a daily _______?[/twitter]
[twitter]Redo that photo, make it show excitement. Email to [email_address][/twitter]
[twitter]Look for photos shared by audience http://flickr.com/photos/cogdogroo[/twitter]
[twitter]Preso resources at http://cogdog.wikispaces.com/thru-the-lens-2013[/twitter]