Matt L - Before I die...

My favorite photo so far is a picture I took of a blackboard in the UAB quad.

It says “Before I die…” on the board, and people just walk over to it and write down something they want to do before they die. Some of the responses are really heartfelt and adorable and some are just funny. Some of the ones that stood out to me were “beat anorexia”, “see a revival”, “marry Chris from the bookstore”, and “love unconditionally.” Honestly, I wish we did something like this at Spain

Park because it just made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside seeing everything that these students wanted to do. I think it'd be good for us all to see.

Haley S

I took this picture when I was in Chicago  last summer.  This ferris wheel is one of the biggest in the country,  it is in Navy Pier. I like how the position  of the sun at this time comes through the

wheel and all the lines. It creates different  colors and almost an ombre effect in the sky.

Abby F - Ayaka

I took this picture of my friend Ayaka during snowpocalyse last year.  This photo is from the bird's eye view.  We went to the Spain Park football field and the entire thing was white from the snow. This picture is interesting  because  her hair is spread all around her, and she kind of looks like

she is floating.   I edited the picture to be black and white to add emphasis  to her dark hair.

Elizabeth P

The picture of the pink flower was my favorite photo. I used my levels, curves, and

brightness/contrast controls to edit the flower to the color I wanted it to be. The flower had been damaged  so i used the healing brush tool to get the color of the flower and recolor the damaged areas. I then used my burn/dodge tool to first darken the middle of the petals on the flower and

then lighten the ends to really show the ombre in the petals.

Lauren J - Lucky

This picture is a picture of a penny in my front yard that is landed heads up. I named the picture lucky because it is said that if you come upon a penny on the ground that is it is considered lucky. The first thing that I did to this photo was I cropped it. There was just too much grass in the background. The next thing I did was mess with the levels a little bit. Then I used the Auto-Selection Tool and selected everything in the picture except the penny itself. Then I changed the background to a black-and-white background. There are some different ways that I could have improved this photo. One thing I could have done is edited the penny a little more. I could have made it more clear looking to where you could clearly see all of the writing on the penny. I really enjoyed this first assignment. It gave me the chance to learn how to use my camera and also the basic editing tools I can use to enhance my photos. Some of my favorite things that I like taking pictures of are animals and just different, unglue looking things that I can find. I also like taking photos of funny things. I love photos that make me laugh.

Jazmain H - Carol

-This photo was made down by the Cahaba River. My friend and I were driving around and she stopped to take a picture. As she was moving around I thought that she looked pretty cool so I took a picture of her.

-I cropped the picture so that it followed the rule of thirds because at first she was in the center of the photo and she was really small. I also changed the color a bit until her hair color stood out. She has red hair and everything around her was green so I thought it would look better if I made it look like her hair was more vibrant. 

-Though I do like the photo as it is the angle of which i had chosen to take it wasn’t the best.

-It was much harder to take photos of things that start with the same letter than I had expected. I had written a list of things that I wanted to photograph down but my list, looking back on it now, was a bit unrealistic.

Jordan S - Samford Hall

I feel my best image was the one of Samford Hall. This is located on campus at Auburn University. I edited this photo by using the clone stamp to take away the people on the left staircase. I also used that tool to take away the sign that was in front of the building. I used it for the third time on the people that were waling in front of the building by the right staircase. I enhanced this photo and brightened it. This photo could be better by the left staircase. It does not look 100% real after taking out the people. I could also improve on the windows in between the staircases for the same reason. I choose this as my best photo because it reflected the most on who I am and I really liked all aspects of the setting. I really enjoyed the overall experience of this project because it really made you think. I feel if there were less photos to take then you would be able to focus on getting a small amount of high quality photos. 

Lindsey M - Cat

 I think the best picture I took was the picture of my cat. This picture was taken at my house as the cat was walking through the hallway. I edited it by increasing the brightness and decreasing the contrast. It would have been better if I had not taken the picture so close up because I was unable to crop/straighten. I have chosen this picture as my best because I think the texture and colors of the cat are interesting and unique. It felt really different to include the elements of art and principles of design into the photos because thats not something Ive ever had to do before. Overall I have really enjoyed this assignment. 

Mallory H

My favorite picture is a picture I took of my sister. This is my favorite picture because the focal point is her eyes. I used the dodge and burn tool to emphasize her eyes. I took this picture outside in my backyard, and the light hits her hair well. I think this is my favorite photo because her face pops.

Julian S - Ceiling

My Best Edited image is titled Ceiling, because that is what it is. I really didn’t know what else  would’ve called it. I was walking around my house thinking of things to take a picture of, then I looked up and noticed that my ceiling looked pretty weird, so I placed my camera against it to see what kind of texture i would get. The picture looked alright, but I thought it would look better if the texture started from the bottom of the frame rather than the top. Therefore I flipped my camera upside down and snapped my photo. After taking the photo all I edited was the levels of the photo and corrected the colors. If all of the texture in the screen was in focus it may have looked a little better. I chose this photo because it does not look like a ceiling at all, in my opinion it looks like another planet or a desolate field of glaciers with a sunset out of frame. This assignment was fun. Instead of it being stressful like projects for other classes usually are, this project helped me solidify my knowledge of digital photography and photoshop skills that I have learned so far.

Jack S - Seeds

I took this picture in my back yard, by moving seeds out onto bricks. I edited this picture by making the bricks black and white and using the sponge tool to make the seeds stand out in the picture. I also blurred the pine straw in the background. This picture could be better if the seeds on the edges did not turn black and white. I choose this as my best picture because the emphasis on the seeds makes the picture look excellent. My overall experience with this assignment was a difficult project, that could yield a big reward of great photography.

Gracie S - Dog

My favorite picture for the letter D was Dog. This was taken on my patio; I got her to sit after she drank from the hose and took this picture. I edited this by fixing the color, fixing the contrast, adding a little saturation, and removing any stray hairs and dirt from her tongue and nose. This picture could have been better if I had taken it on grass and not stone. It’s not very distracting and I took it because if she had moved, it wouldn’t have been such a good picture. Also, I took it from closer to her eye level. I chose it as my best because she was on the Rule of Thirds, and t’s a clear shot; you can see the water droplets on her nose clearly. Her eyes stand out and the background isn’t super distracting. I thought this was a pretty fun assignment, because I took most of my pictures downtown and there are so many opportunities for photos there. 

Libby S - Cat

My favorite picture definitely has to be the picture of my cat, Hank. I took when Hank was sitting on our kitchen table, and I thought the lighting was perfect so I decided to snap a picture. I cropped out the unnecessary background. Next, I fixed the lighting by changing the levels and curves, and I also used clone stamp to edit out a piece of fur stuck to his nose. I could make this photo better next time by taking it at more of a straight on angle, and by changing the aperture of my camera so it better suits the lighting. This is my favorite picture because I like that you can see the detail and coloration of his fur and eyes, and also because it shows just how cute he is!

Jakob C - Cash Stack

My favorite picture was the cash stack. I love the picture because i had little to edit and it was just a solid picture. The picture could have been better if i had focused on the middle of the cash but except for that it was good. This was my best picture because of all the elements of photography in the photo and the photo quality. My experience with the assignment was alright but i think i could have easily have done better!

Hayley W - Pens

I titled my picture pens. i took this picture in my basement by lining the pens up in a color pattern i thought looked the best then i put the camera on the table at eye level with the pens and then took the picture. i edited by cropping in on the pens then i used the burn tool to brighten the colors. it could have been better if it wasn’t so pixilated. i chose the picture as my best because i felt that it displayed more of the elements we learned. as i was taking pictures i found that this is harder and more of a challenge than i thought it would be but enjoyed it all the same 

Devin T - Road

The best picture I took is the picture of the road. This is Highway 41, or Dunnavant Valley, and it is taken on the side of the road where a hiking trail begins. I was not initially planning to take a picture of a road, but since I had my camera with me and no cars were passing by, I thought it would be a great time to take the picture. It was around noon when I took it, and it was a beautiful day that day. It’s as if the picture was meant to be taken at that exact time.

Emily L - Cardigan

My favorite photo is of my friend wearing a cardigan, it was taken at my house and I edited it by contrasting the darkness of the background with the lightness of her shirt and the cardigan. I also cloned out the fuzz that had been on the cardigan itself to make it look cleaner. It could be better if I had chosen a different background carefully because the white door in the background off sets it. I chose it as my favorite because I love the placement of her hands and the color contrast between everything. My overall experience with this assignment was one of joy because I love to photograph and it was a ton of fun. My interests in photography lean towards more natural things and close ups so I was surprised that I love this photo as much as I do.

Hunter F - Lake

My favorite picture was Lake. It was inside our neighborhood, down the street, then on the left. I went up and got a better viewpoint by lowering myself to ground level then I took the picture. In the original photo, reflections of several houses and light poles were in the shot, so I used the patch tool to get rid of the houses and I used the healing brush tool to get rid of the light poles. Next, I used the clone stamp tool to make the lake look a little less messy, because of some ripples and some algae and other things in the lake. I think I could’ve taken it better by getting some o the background out of the picture and also gotten a better lighting. I think this picture is the best because that this photo was the hardest one to capture, and it was also easy to edit, and it just came out the best. I think that the assignment was fairly easy, but a slight bit challenging. Easy in a way that the content was easy to do, but hard in the actual picture taking process. I decided to take this course because I knew very little about photography, and I was interested in what it was all about and how it happens.

Crew V - CocaCola

My favorite picture was the CocaCola can. I really wanted to put a lot of emphasis on the coke can so I used the magnetic lasso tool to select the entire can then i inverses the colors and clicked black and white to make sure only the CocaCola can had color. After this I cropped the picture to male to more like the rule of thirds so i put it on the left side of the picture. Then, i fixed the tone and contrast. 

Devin R - Abandoned

My favorite picture that I took and edited was Abandoned. I took this picture when i was visiting family down in Mobile. They have a big piece of land that i decided to explore and after a few minutes, i stumbled upon this abandoned house. I edited it mainly by taking out the big pile of wood to the led of the picture, and i changed the levels and color balance a bit. i think the picture would have been better if i had gotten a little bit closer to the house itself and not have the piles of wood in front of me in the shot. I chose this picture because it was the best edit job I’ve done out of all 5 of the pictures i edited, but mainly t was for personal preference. I have always loved photography that involves old or abandoned architecture. I did enjoy the project, however i do think I would have enjoyed it more if we were assigned to take pictures of every letter pot the alphabet instead of being only restricted to one. 

Rachel C - Telescope

My favorite picture is the picture I took of a telescope at Pier Park in New Port Beach, California.

The reason i love this picture so much is because of the vibrant color… the emphasis is on the telescope but if you look beyond it you can see the crashing waves, palm trees, and the activity of the beach. The dark blue of the sea and the light blue of the sky against the sandy colored beach creates a great contrast.

Drew H - Skyline

My favorite picture was the one I took of the skyline. I was on the golf course, and thought to myself, “Wow, that is a pretty skyline of Birmingham, Alabama.” I edited it by picking a building and using The Ruler Tool to straighten the image. I then cropped out all of the unnecessary trees or shrubbery in the way of the skyline. Finally, I put a filter on the image. I believe it could be better if I put more emphasis on the tree, rather than the trees in front. I chose it as my favorite because I think it is not only prettiest, but the best edited. I really enjoyed doing this assignment; although, I took this picture because I wanted to, not because of the assignment. 

Drew D - Station

The Image I selected was the picture of the fire station in mt. Laurel. I took the picture trying to get the sky in the background in focus enough to be able to see the detail in the clouds. when i edited it i make the sky bluer as well as brighten up the fire station to make it more visible. I chose this one as my best because i really like how the background of the picture brings out the best of the station in the foreground.

Brittany - C on flag

My favorite photo that I took is the ‘C’ on the flag. I took this photo at Lake Guntersville. We were out on a boat ride and this flag is at the front of the boat. When we anchored out to swim, the wind was blowing and i caught the flag at the right moment to were it cover up the other letters and just showed the C. There was not a lot of editing i needed to do. I took off a smug of dirt near the dashed lines on the flag, got rid of some dirt on the threading of the flag, and used the levels to darken the background and brighten the flag and and letters on it. I think it would have been better if the pole holding the flag was not in. I choose this picture because the lighting, the blur in the background, and focus on the flag emphasized the C perfectly. My experience with this assignment was great because I had a reason to take photos and look for thinks that had to do with the letter C. So I had to think out side of the box, i got play with the different angles of the object and mess around with my camera. I also got to mess around with the different tools of photo shop. 

Crosby - Coin

My favorite picture that I took was of a quarter that was standing up on a railing on my back porch. It was taken with the golf course in the background in the middle of the day. I edited this picture by changing the levels of this picture, straightening it, taking out the golf cart that was in the fairway of the course, and cropping the picture. This picture could have been better if the trees were a little more clear and if the sky was a little darker. This is my favorite picture because the quarter and the railing falls within the rule of thirds. I love how the quarter is very focused in and the background makes the picture by adding color to this picture. I liked this assignment and thought it was fun trying to take the best pictures that i could. 

Corbin W - Shipping Crate

I made the Shipping Crate picture, first by creating a duplicate of the background. Then I made the Duplicate Black and White with the black and white edit tool. AfterI put that filter on it I made a selection on the shipping crate I wanted to have color so I used the polygonal lasso tool. All I had to do at that point was erase the Black an white filter and I had the final product. I took this picture when I was near the Barons stadium and saw a way to get on the railroad tracks. 

all I did to take it was point and shoot with my Cannon camera and did it while the train was moving about 5 feet from me.

It could be better if there was a message behind the artwork instead of just making a photo look good in photoshop. I think art work should make people think and this really does not do that.

I chose it as my best because it had such a visible leading line and a really good amount of sunlight, along with the unity and variety in this picture. 

My goal by the end of this class is to be able to take high quality photo’s like this one and have an artistic message behind each and every one. 

Chris H - Chair

The image I considered the best was the Chair. I set up this picture in my backyard. I edited it by completely changing the colors in the background and setting the Hue very high and changed the Saturation and also burned the concrete around the photo and I also removed  the leaves inside the concrete slab under the chair. It could’ve been better if I set the chair facing the left instead of right for the rule of thirds. I liked the big color change I did cause its unusual and thats why I choose it. I liked this assignment and having the ability to take our own pictures and edit them.

Antoinette M - Clouds

I chose the picture that I took of clouds. I went jogging one morning around my neighborhood and saw how they looked and decided I liked the picture. I edited it by changing the brightness and contrast. I also auto toned and colored my picture. I think I should have chosen a better angle it could be better. I chose it as my best because I like how the colors in the sky and the clouds made a great mix. My overall experience was good, kinda. It was hard finding things that went with your letter. 

Bailey R - Gas Pump

The picture I took is of a old gas pump. This picture shows the changes from back then. The character of the wear and tear adds the composition to the picture. The emphasis is manly on the top half where the old letters and numbers are. I love this picture I took in downtown B’ham because of the antique look. 

Billy R - Basketball

I was outside playing basketball and bounced the ball and took the picture while the ball was in-midair. I first began editing this photo by cropping put the excessive background or area of the concrete. Then I used the clone stamp to get rid of some distracting leaves and fixed the smudges on the ball. If I  could make this picture better I would try to get more of the ball in the picture and try to use more of the rule of thirds. I chose this picture because I enjoy playing basketball and I like the way the shadow is casted on the left side of the photo. I enjoyed this assignment it taught me how to use my camera. I now look at pictures with a different view. I enjoy taking pictures with a lot of color I also like editing the pictures and making them look better to the eye. 

Caitlin L - Carwash

I think that my best picture is the carwash. It was taken at the chevron gas station on 119 and 280. I edited this picture by cropping  it to apply to the rule of thirds. i then changed the levels, and saturated the blue things to add a specific emphasis on the photo. To make my picture better, i would have gotten the top left side to be clearer and not as blurry. this is my best picture because i think that it is different and unique. this picture has a variety of different things that all tie into the main object. Overall, i think this project was easy and fun. it was a project that allowed you to be creative with choosing your pictures. photography may not be my strongest subject, but i think that it is fun and I’m excited to learn more and to become a pro photographer! 

Gillian E - Swing

My favorite picture is the one of the swing. I like this one because swings were always fun growing up! I also like it because of the color of the sky (my favorite color is blue)! This picture also reminds me of a scene from one of my favorite movies. I gave it the title “Swing” mostly because its a swing and I’m not very creative when it comes to making up titles… I edited it by taking off a smudge on the swing and I made it a little brighter. I could have made it better by putting more emphasis on the swing ( made the swing brighter) i had mixed emotions on this assignment. I wish there weren’t as many picture so i could focus on making them better rather than getting all 30 pictures. I also kind of put it off… oops! But over all it was fun! 

Noah P - Coins

My favorite picture that I took is the one with the coins. My little sister has been counting a years worth of loose change in our basement for the past couple of weeks and when I saw it I decided to snap the pic of the coins. I decided to brighten the picture up by adjusting the levels and I also used the burn tool a little bit to bring out the silver color in the coins. I also used unsharp mask to make the picture look less blurry.

I could have made this picture better by being aware of the shadow at the bottom left of the picture. I think it would’ve been cool if all of the coins were brighter and the same color. This one was chosen as my best because of the way the light bounces off the coins. This project was hard for me because I’ve never had to think about the Elements of Art while taking pictures, I’ve always just pointed and shot.

Rebecca P - Rainbow

My favorite picture is of a rainbow. I took this picture when my family and I were going up to St. Louis for Labor Day weekend. What i did to make it the way that it is was that I cloned stamped a part of a tower out and I played with the levels to give it the darker coloring. This picture could be better if I cropped it just a little but, not much just to its not so plain all around it. This picture is my favorite because it is unique. Yeah everyone takes pictures of rainbows, but the colors in it make it look cool and not like the normal pictures you would see everyday. This assignment has actually kinda lead me towards liking pictures. I now know when the right time to take a picture is, and that you have to go in different positions in order to take a good picture. Lastly, i learned that the better pictures are when you don’t put the subject in the center of the picture. 

Carolina M - Cat

This picture was taken in a friend’s house, I looked towards the cat’s tower and she was just laying there. I called her name and she looked at me and gave me the perfect opportunity to take a picture of her. I cropped the picture the picture to take away the unnecessary background. This would have been a better picture if it did not have so much noise. It the picture would have been taken with better lighting then it would have turned out better. I find this picture very interesting to look at because, she is looking right at the camera and it’s like she is looking at you; She also looks like she is posing for the photo. I also like that you can see the texture of her fur, and clearly see her whiskers. This assignment was very interesting because it made you think creatively of way to take the photo using just one letter. 

Meg M - Sky

My favorite photo that i took was of a skyscraper that was reflecting the sky. I took this picture in New York when i was touring the city with my mom. To edit the picture i enhanced the vibrance and the saturation of the photo. While editing the photo the thought to turn it black and white crossed my mind, but i found that the picture was more appealing with enhanced vibrance and saturation. The photo could be better if it followed the rule of thirds, but sometimes it is better to break the rules and see how things turn out. I have chosen this photo as my best because i really like the way that the building has reflected the sky and almost blends in with it. I also chose this photo as my best because I really enjoy photographing buildings. Overall I enjoyed this shooting assignment. 

Caleb G - Stream

My favorite photo is the one of the stream. I suppose this is so because of my affinity for nature and because of the pleasant setting. There are good, earthy tones in the ground, and sprightly, bright tones in the trees. This is pleasing to me. It is called Stream…because of the stream. If i could have gotten a closer shot of the rocks in it, the picture might be better.The assignment was somewhat difficult, especially in finding worthy subjects, but mostly with taking the pictures. I am pleased with this shot, though. It is good.