Digital narrative photography training program
A photography course is essential for any image lover who wants to learn the art and technique of expression without wasting too much time repeating mistakes, inherent in any beginning. At this moment, the photographic technique is at a level it has never known before in its history of a century and a half.
The ease of using a camera today can create the false illusion that a quality image is easily obtained. On the contrary, seeing the new aesthetic and editorial trends of the contemporary image, we can appreciate that a good image is made only by the one who can control the tool of capturing images – and this can only be done by having the necessary knowledge to make the useful selection.
This is why perfect knowledge of photographic technique is an important asset in photographic creation.
Photography is a direct visual representation of a subject or event. Today photography is considered universal. The more general a photo’s message, the more useful it will be. Photography is pictorial language. Language becomes useful if one has something to communicate, something worth saying.
“Reading” an image means more than grasping at a single glance, immediately and globally the entire amount of information provided by the image.
• What is characteristic of a portrait, what is superfluous and what should be eliminated?
• What is the most interesting or characteristic part of a man’s face? Is it the physical structure or the expression?
• What does the facial expression reflect: a happy, carefree mood, an inquisitive, thoughtful intellect, or a lazy mind?
• What meanings do the facial lines, the dark circles around the eyes hide?
• What is their cause, what do they tell the interested observer?
“To hold someone’s attention, a photo must have something to communicate, have content, be informative, educational, interesting, funny or mobilizing. Content can be embedded into photos in an almost unlimited variety. The refusal to look at the shocking photos is like the fear of facing reality. Some things have to be faced, whether we like it or not. A photo of content is one of the most powerful tools to arouse public reaction”.
ANDREAS FEIMINGER – Creative photographer, Meridiane Publishing House, Bucharest 1967
The digital narrative photography training program for Roma youth/students will be held once a week, will last 2 hours and will have the Roma cultural identity as its umbrella theme; within it, Roma youth/students will learn how to tell a story about the specifics of their ethnicity through photographic images.
• Creativity, sensory perception, observation, mental concentration and intuition will develop;
• Emphasis will be placed on the practical aspect and basic technical notions will be acquired: aperture, exposure time, ISO, camera modes, light metering and focusing modes, rules of composition, photographic genres and ways to use photography as a means of communication by creating a coherent narrative thread in images;
• Within the general theme, the sub-themes will be chosen by the participants in collaboration with the trainer;
• The photos taken will “tell” about the chosen sub-themes, through the image;
• Experiment and play will be basic methods in teaching knowledge;
• Non-formal training techniques and modern equipment will be used, the work process being a collaborative one: digital cameras will be used, and they will be passed from one participant to another (“leaps” type);
• Each participant will take their own photos and at the end of the sub-activity implementation period, a selection of the best of them will be made to be included in the traveling exhibitions that will be organized later.
• The photos taken will be posted in the online environment, on web pages and Facebook.
• 12 thematic conferences will be included in the program, carried out in a manner appropriate to the age and reception level of the participants;
• The sub-activity mainly focuses on creativity and digitization, the skills acquired helping the participants in their professional future.
