A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words

A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words

A Webquest for Grades 9 - 12

Digital Communication Systems

Introduction

Task

Process

Resources

Evaluation

Conclusion

Teacher's Notes

Introduction

With the push of a button and in a manner of just a few seconds, a picture can now be taken, previewed, and even printed. Digital technology is taking the art and science of photography to a new level. We can now have our photos in our fingertips without even leaving home. Dropping off film and waiting for our photos to develop is a thing of the past. Today, pictures can be captured using digital cameras, web cameras and camcorders, and even through handheld devices like PDAs and cell phones. One thing is for sure, the future of digital photography looks bright, so get your camera ready and say cheese!

Task

You have been selected by the North Carolina Museum of Art to participate in their annual Fall Photography Exhibition. Some of the greatest photographers in the United States have been discovered by participating in this event. The museum has requested that you submit a total of 10 pieces of your original work for this showcase and that you help evaluate other photographers work. Make sure you submit your best representations of your work and remember a picture is worth a thousand words!

Process

1. Use the web resources to research information about digital photography. You need to write a paper that defines these devices. Your paper should be 2 to 3 pages, double spaced,have 1 inch margins, and contain a header with your name, date, and class period. Your paper should answer all of the following questions:

2. Next, its time to learn more about taking good pictures. Go to the resources and visit the Kodak picture tutorial for a quick lesson on taking good pictures. Click on the interactive demo and then read over the tips. Also, look at HP's photo taking tips and the picture galleries at the Adobe Digital Kids Club site.

3. Based on what you've learned makes a good picture, you and 4 other photographers will develop a rubric, which will be used to judge the photographs that are submitted in this year's exhibition. Visit the resources and click on the article, "Rubrics: Out of the Wild and On with the Project" to learn what a rubric is and then click on the link Rubistar to make your rubric. When making your rubric, modify the Creating a Painting template. This is the closest one to our project. You might want to use some of these categories.

*Note that you will get a sneak peak of the rubric that will be used to evaluate your collection before you begin your picture taking process, so you will know what your judges are looking for.

4. Now its time for you to put what you've learned to the test. You need to use the digital camera to take 5 pictures. Remember to follow the tips given by Kodak and HP's tips for taking great pictures.

5. For your task, you also need 5 pictures that have been taken using a conventional camera and scanned using a scanner.

6. Next you should use an editing software, such as Adobe Photoshop or Microsoft Image Editor, to crop and add effects to your images.

7. When you are finished editing your pictures, you should place them onto your blog site.

8. Your not finished yet, Michelangelo. Each picture needs a description. This year's theme is, "A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words", meaning the museum is looking for a minimum of 1000 words that describe your collection. Each picture should be described using 100 words or more. Descriptions should be placed below the corresponding picture on your blog site.

9. After describing your collection, you need to visit the 5 photographers that your group has been assigned. You need to add positive comments on each of these photographers blog sites. Each member in your group will also need to complete a rubric for each of these photographers using the rubric created in step 3.

10. Scores will be calculated based on each groups' assessments. Prizes will be given to the best in the show!

Each student's collection of pictures will be judged by 5 other students. These 5 students will individually fill out a rubric, created by their group, to evaluate the student's pictures. The average will be taken of the 5 students' scores to calculate an individual grade. The teacher will also use a rubric to evaluate each student's work and group participation for another grade. The average of these 2 grades will convert to 1 project grade.

When you have completed this webquest, you will have a better understanding of the field of digital photography. You will have hands on experience using both a digital camera and a scanner. You will understand the basic technology aspects of these devices and how to use these devices effectively. You will also learn how to take better pictures by using techniques that professionals use to create great pictures.

Topic: In this webquest, students will read about digital cameras and scanners using various web resources. Students will write a report about digital photography, take pictures using a digital camera, and will use a scanner to scan pictures. Students will display their pictures on their personal web space, a blog site, and will be required to describe each picture and comment on other students’ work. Students also participate in the evaluation process. Based on what they have read, as a group, a rubric is developed to judge other classmates' picture collections. In addition to learning about the two input devices used for this task, students will also learn terminology that relates to digital photography, such as resolution and pixels, and students will learn techniques used to take great pictures.

This webquest has been designed to be used in a high school Digital Communications Systems course, which is part of the North Carolina Career and Technical Education, Business and Information Technology curriculum. After completing this webquest, the student will be able to meet the following goals and objectives: