School's Out

Wayne State University students stay active

Sports Photography is not as easy as it looks! Not only does the photographer have to deal with movement but also with poor lighting conditions! Indoor sports are absolutely my least favorite thing to shoot. For this assignment my schedule did not allow for me to catch a real game with fans or coaches so I went to the Wayne State gym to see if I could capture students playing sports. The basketball courts are always full of students like these in the photographs below. Eric Strange and Jamonte Horton practice with a game of one on one before the rest of the players gather into teams for a scrimmage.

Although there was no coach or fans to shoot, I did find another person of some authority inside of the gym. Richard Mendoza has been working at the WSU gym for the past three years. That night I caught him tossing a towel to a student when he was working behind the desk by the locker rooms. Although it is not a sports shot, it was a part of my sports shooting experience. I captured the stopped action of the interaction, which is what shooting sports is about. There was movement and a moment. So I diversified my photos a bit with this shot of Richard.   

Wayne State University students Eric Stange (Left) and Jamonte Horton (Right) play a little one on one before a scrimmage. (photos by Gabriela Aguirre)

Eric Strange and Jamonte Horton play a little one on one before a scrimmage.

WSU student and gym employee Richard Mendoza tosses a towel to another WSU student.

Learning lighting on my Feature photo hunt

To find an event was a tad difficult for me to shoot this time. I caught the tail end of the Art Achievement Awards so my chance for good photo ops was limited. The only thing left to photo graph when I go there were people talking in big groups so I decided to photograph the people working the event (Camera people, photographers, DJs) . I took pictures of them tearing down and putting away the equipment. I had some problems with lighting on my camera at the time. I was trying to use a wide depth of field but also capture any motion. Because my fstop and shutter speed were turned up my ISO was at the highest setting so many of my pictures came out with a lot of noise.

I decided to post a couple extra pictures from my enterprise photo experience because it made for more interesting pictures. I walked along Wayne State’s campus for a couple hours before I walked into the art building and found what I was looking for. I walked into a ceramics class where the students were working on Still life projects. Even though these projects seemed to be in their beginning stages the work was still enjoyable to shoot.

Jena Arslamn, a Wayne State student, works on her still life project for her ceramics class. (Photos by Gabriela Aguirre)

Another Wayne State student, Tiara Hill works on her ceramic still life. 

David Romas, the DJ for the Arts Achievement Awards, shuts down his gear as the awards come to a close. 

Camera woman, Lanise Pannell tearing down the camera equipment from the event. 

Camera man, Chris Scalice tears down his equipment.  

Camera Controls 2

On adventures we go. It's a dreary, cold February afternoon in Michigan. The Sun goes down by 5:30 and we struggle to get every shot we need before dark. Well, I struggle. I struggle with getting just the right settings using my ISO, Shutter Speed and Aperture to adjust to the changing light conditions. The secret is to set your ISO and then set either your shutter speed or fstop. Meter off of something grey to set the other setting and voila! Ready? Set? Shoot!

SHALLOW DEPTH OF FIELD                                                                                   ISO 1600, Aperture 3.5, Shutter 1/500

WIDE DEPTH OF FIELD                                                                                                 ISO 3200, Aperture 13, Shutter 1/20

SILHOUETTE                                                                                                                 ISO 6400, Aperture 5.0, Shutter 1/800

STOPPED ACTION                                                                                                        ISO 400, Aperture 3.5, Shutter 1/500

BLURRED ACTION                                                                                                         ISO 1600, Aperture 8.0 Shutter 1/25

PANNED ACTION                                                                                                             ISO 1600, Aperture 13, Shutter 1/60

EXTREME PERSPECTIVE                                                                                            ISO 800, Aperture 3.5, Shutter 1/500

RULE OF THIRDS                                                                                                            ISO 800, Aperture 3.5 Shutter 1/800

REFLECTION SHOT                                                                                                         ISO 800, Aperture 13, Shutter 1/40

EXTREME LIGHTING                                                                                                         ISO 800, Aperture 13, Shutter 1/40