by Celina Laureta

Back drop and lightingBefore taking the pictures I used two different lights to create the desired lighting.

For example, the pictures of the model on the front cover’s skin is glowing, I achieved this look by using two lights so she had more light bouncing off her skin which made her look quite ethereal.

I then experimented with the lighting to achieve contrasts and a range of tones - I did this by turning off one of the lights and by changing the position of the light. I positioned the light closer to the model and rather than shining the light directly on her face I put it on one side to create an intense chiaroscuro effect. I used a white backdrop for some

of these pictures just to make it easier for me to crop the images on Photoshop to get rid of the background.

DSLR CameraThe specific DSLR I used was a Canon 5500, the high definition of the 15mm lens enabled me to take pictures of the models with clarity and ease. I experimented with a variety of shots like close ups, long shots, midshotsand group shots. I also experimented with different angles to see what would suit the articles I was planning to write I also took images more than once in case something was wrong with the focus I’d have a back up and so that I would have a variety of pictures to choose from.

Adobe Photoshop Elements 3.0Throughout this task I developed my basic skills of how to use Photoshop to enhance and edit the photographs to remove undesired backgrounds, brighten up an image and to edit blemishes. I also played around with different filters although none of them really appealed to me. However, to produce a successful outcome, Microsoft Word for me personally was easier to use and cut down construction time as I would have spent too long trying to figure out how things work on Photoshop.

WebsitesI learned about more interesting and different ways of presenting my research using a range of different websites such as prezi, slideshare, emaze and powtoon. I liked prezi and emaze the best because they were easy to use and there are many different templates to choose from. Slideshare was a standard software that publishes your PowerPoint online so it was not as exciting, however on the opposite scale, Powtoon is an animated software which made my presentations more dynamic. You can also record voice overs which is a handy feature.