February 20, 2015
Friday 45 min
10:15- 11:00
Will and I spent the class time working out how to find a subject, and making sure it has importance in an image. I suggested that he make sure his subject has space all around it in a photo. We also worked out what I meant when I said, take pictures from different angles’. I used a protractor to show him what an angle was. He was quick to identify a right angle. So I asked him to hold the camera at an angle to a marker, which I identified as the subject. I showed him how that worked, by taking a picture of the marker from straight on, and then from above. He seemed to understand and I gave him homework to photograph a ‘subject’ from ‘different angles’.

February 17, 2015
Tuesday 45 min
10:15 - 11:00
Today, despite not having a camera, we decided to have a photography class. We had downloaded his work to a desktop file, during last Friday’s class. Will showed me the photos he had taken for his homework, and we discussed the subject, focus and point of view of each. I explained the concept of determining his subject and making sure that it is prominent in his photos. I also introduced the idea of changing the angle of the photo. We played a game, where Will had to guess the subject of photos we found online, and I had to show the angle the photographer used.

February 13, 2015
Friday 45 min
10:15 - 11:00
Today we used the new cord to attach the camera to a computer. Together Will and I worked out how to download his images using iphoto. This took some time as neither of us had used iphoto on this computer before. I showed Will how to save the images to a thumb-drive, and erasing the card in the camera. This allows him to have plenty of room to take, and store, pictures as opportunities arise. It took some convincing for Will to understand that the thumb drive is his back-up storage, and by erasing the card, he was not losing his photos.

Cal and I discussed the goals of photographers and other artists, including the attempt to show others what is often hidden or not otherwise easily seen. We also discussed sentence structure and incomplete sentences.

February 06, 2015
Friday 45 min
10:15 - 11:00
Today for Photography class, Will was tasked with his first photo shoot. The Spanish class was staging a store, where students could earn money purchase sweets by answering questions. I tasked Will with photographing the array of fruits, cookies, and candies that were available at the student market. There was a lot of activity in the lunchroom, as students were all eager to ‘earn’ money for the market. Will did a good job working around the people, and followed my direction to get closer and isolate just one item in each photo. When he had accomplished this project, we moved to the playground, where Will had a practical lesson on ‘focus’. I asked him to focus on the tree across the parking lot, and then focus on the fence, which is between him and the tree. Will noticed a lizard, so we retired to his room for a discussion on focus, and finding the subject of a photo. I asked him to take photos of any subject over the weekend. We will talk about what he intended a the subject and how he conveyed that intent though his art.

February 03, 2015
Tuesday 45 min
10:15 - 11:00
Today we decided to make up the photography class from last Friday. Will was given a lesson on focus. I placed four beakers, each with a different color liquid, in a line on his desk. I asked him to photograph them, and to focus first on the yellow, and then on the blue one. We discussed what he sees in the view finder when he is taking a photo. How the several small squares are arranged across his view, and when he lightly presses the shutter release button one or more of those square turns red, and the camera beeps. I explained how the camera is asking if this is what you want to focus on. I told him to lightly press the button repeatedly, and see how different squares turn red. The focus changes, from one subject to another. If he does not hear a beep, then the camera does not find more than one subject to focus on. I then asked him to look at the colored beakers on his desk, and take a picture of his stereo, which is situated behind the beakers. This took some practice, but he was able to accomplish the task. Will had time to properly turn the camera off, prepare it for transport, and return it to the camera bag before the session was over.

January 30, 2015
Friday 45 min
10:15 - 11:00
Will was unavailable for this class

January 23, 2015
Friday 45 min
10:15 - 11:00
We had gotten the back lens covers for Will’s lenses, andI showed Will how they are used. I quizzed Will on changing the lenses, and setting up the camera for use. He did very well. We then cleaned each lens, and attached a UV protective filter to each. I explained that these were to be kept on the lenses at all times, and will protect the very expensive lenses, from being getting dirty or scratched. After he had attached the filters to both lenses, we journeyed into the parking lot to experiment with the longer lens. I tasked Will with taking three pictures of the handicap sign across the parking lot - one with the lens zoomed in completely, one with the lens zoomed out as far as it would go, and one with the lens extended somewhere in-between. I asked him to do it again, this time focusing on the top of the trees. We returned to his room, to see his images (as it was very bright outside, and the camera screen is hard to see in bright light). He did a good job. Next week we will work on taking photos, now that the camera is protected.

January 16, 2015
Friday 45 min
10:15 - 11:00
First Will reviewed holding the cameras correctly and turning the camera on and off. Will spent this class examining the menu feature of the Nikon d5000. This feature provides a means for Will to set the correct date and time, determine the size of his photos and format the SD card. We then addressed the photos that were stored on the camera. Will was shown how to download the existing photos on the SD card. Once the photos were safely loaded onto a thumb drive, Will used the menu function to format the SD card. This was a little scary as it warns the user that all photos stored on the card will be erased, but Will verified he had saved them, and proceeded to format. With the few remaining minutes, Will practiced inserting the battery and SD card.

January 09, 2015
Friday 45 min
10:15 - 11:00
This was the first photography class. Will is using a Nikon D5000. The battery was empty, so Will set up the charger. He was instructed on how to correctly hold the camera, turn it on/off, change lenses, zoom, and focus manually.