Folsom Lake College • El Dorado Center
Spring 2009 •  Room A211 (lecture)
Photography 260 • Eastern Sierra Landscape, Yosemite Valley: 31251
Lecture: Tuesdays/Thursdays 5:30 p.m.-6:20 p.m.
Lab: Field trip to Yosemite Valley: May 8-10

Instructor: Betty Sederquist
Voice Mail: 1 (800) 486-8156x15071
E-mail:  betty@sederquist.com
Office Hours: Tuesdays 5:00-5:30, Room A211 or by special arrangement. Website (contains all assignments, handouts, extensive photo links, many tips): http://www.sederquist.com/class.html. Also: http://www.sederquist.com/yosemiteclass.html

Text: None required. An excellent book, however, for beginning photographers is the National Geographic Photography Field Guide 2nd Edition: Secrets to Making Great Pictures, by Peter Burian and Bob Caputo. (Other books in this series, including a guide to landscape photography, are also excellent.) Also: The Photographer’s Guide to Yosemite, by Michael Frye. Materials: You are responsible for your own film/processing and/or digital media/digital printing capabilities. You must also supply SLR, DSLR, medium or large-format camera or good-quality rangefinder camera capable of manual adjustments. Some film loaner cameras are available. Both film and digital cameras 6 megapixel or larger) are acceptable. A tripod and cable release are strongly recommended.

Field Trip: You are responsible for all costs incurred on the Yosemite field trip, including accommodations, food, transportation and photography expenses. Detailed information on the field trip will be presented in class later.
Los Rios does not carry medical insurance on students. Any costs for medical care are the responsibility of the student.

Student Learning Outcomes: Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:
* demonstrate an understanding of basic digital or film camera operation.
* explore and synthesize the dynamics involved in making a high-quality landscape photograph.
 * examine, observe and evaluate high-quality landscape light in order to successfully capture the essence of this landscape.
    * apply and practice various photo processes and techniques to make high-quality images.

Course Description: This course prepares students for successful photography in Yosemite National Park. Lecture topics include shutter speeds, depth of field and other photography basics. Special attention is given to critical exposure and light balance information necessary for top-quality photography. Also included is composition, and landscape photography.

Grading: The instructor reserves the right to adjust grades based on class participation and assignments turned in a timely manner. The instructor also reserves the right to drop students from the roster if they are absent for three consecutive classes. Students are ultimately responsible for dropping the class. Students must complete three assignments.

Assignment 1: Due 4/16 (10 points) Photograph “Trash to Treasure,” (specific guidelines to come) using the principles and techniques discussed in the first lectures to achieve a high-quality image. Make prints 5”x7” or larger, and they need not be mounted. You will be graded on sharpness, exposure and composition. You may turn in one to five photos. If you are a beginning photographer using a film camera, we suggest that you use a photo log sheet, available online at Betty Sederquist’s website (www.sederquist.com/class.html--a downloadable Adobe Acrobat file). This data is embedded in digital camera files.

Assignment 2: Due 4/28 (10 points). To fulfill a requirement for a class written component, you will be asked to complete a written analysis of a photograph of Yosemite taken by a famous landscape photographer. Specific guidelines to come.

Assignment 3: Due May 12,14 (80 points, with 5 extra credit points given if print is ready on May 12). Produce at least two high-quality prints, 8”x10” or larger, in a quality matte plus backing. Inexpensive mattes/backing will be made available to students prior to the field trip. The photos MUST be of the Yosemite area or of the route to/from this region. Grades will be broken down as follows: Presentation: 10 points; sharpness: 20 points; exposure: 20 points; composition: 20 points; general impact: 10 points. Arrangements are being made to display the matted photos at a EDC campus venue during the summer and first couple of weeks of the fall semester. After the end of the semester, photos will be available for pick up in the administration office, (2nd floor, Building B, El Dorado Center)
Grades are assigned as follows: 90-100%=A; 80-89.9%=B; 70-79.9%=C; 60-69.9%=D; 59.9% and below=F.

March 17            Lecture: Introduction, course review, legal forms, class expectations and student questionnaire. Begin review of trip logistics.

March 19            Lecture: Shutter speeds/depth of field/camera stabilization.
Lab: Following the 50-minute classroom lecture, beginners may wish to meet in the area between "A" Building and “B” Building following class for one hour for some hands-on, one-on-one work with others who might have equipment similar to yours. Bring your camera plus the camera manual.

March 24            Lecture: Camera basics, continued. Several suggested workflows.             Lab: Repeat of March 19.

March 26            Lecture: Exposure. For digital users, Levels/Curves, Camera RAW,             Shadow/Highlight features of Photoshop,  (and if there’s time, HDR)

March 31          Lecture: Composition

April 2                Lecture: Film/filters/color balance

April 4            Lab: Saturday field trip, 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Spring flowers in the Coloma Lotus Valley. Meet at the Sutter’s Mill replica in the state park and we will walk to our destination(s). Wear hiking boots, and bring snack/light lunch and water in addition to camera gear. This date could change depending on flower conditions.

April 6-12          Spring Recess; no classes

April 14               Short quiz on previous lectures (10 points);
            Lecture: Lenses

April 16               Lecture: Landscape photography 
            Assignment #1 due. Class review and critique

April 21            Lecture: Special techniques: digital near-infrared b&w, panoramics, medium-format, presentation considerations, etc.
           
April 23            Lecture: Flower and closeup photography
                       
April 28            Lecture: Film: The Spirit of Yosemite. The natural and human history of Yosemite 
                                                Assignment #2 due.

April 30           Lecture: Natural and human history of Yosemite (continued)
                                    .
May 5           Lecture: Great Yosemite photographers and top locations for photography in the Yosemite Valley.

May 7             Lecture: Last-minute preparations and tips; weather considerations

May 8-10       Lab: Field trip to Yosemite Valley via Highways 49 and 120. Highlights include the valley itself, especially during the “magic hours” of sunrise and sunset, spring flowers, waterfalls and more. We will have a full and exciting agenda, with specific information to come in the week prior to the trip.

May 12, 14      Lectures: Reviews and class critiques of field trip work.