Masters of Photography Project Reflection

1. How do you think your project represents your work as a student?
I think my photographs can give a pretty accurate description of myself as a student and person. I try to follow instructions as much as I can, to do a good job on this and other projects. However, I am not extremely artistic or creative, leading to my photos being sometimes boring to view, nothing much special worth noting. I do, though, try my hardest to make them at least fit any criteria.

2. How has your understanding of photography changed during this school year?
I used to think of photography more in terms of portraits in a studio. Now, I know about famous photojournalists from around the world, who did most of their work outside moving around, not cooped up inside a room. I also realized that even with the increase in photo quality, camera portability, and color images, most of the photographers we consider masters are still from the past. With simply better technology, we can't surpass them without the right subject at the right moment.

3. What are some of the benefits of working in a group?
Working in a group allows us to split up some of the work, such as helping each other with choosing locations and subjects, or tech support with different cameras. It's also much more enjoyable and relaxing when there is someone to talk to and discuss the project with. Also, it allows us to check each other's finished work, to catch any errors last minute.

4. What are some of the disadvantages of working in a group?
Although we are able to split  the work, there are sometimes those group members that do no work and try to freeload off the rest of the group. In addition, if we work as a group, we have to decide things - such as when to go out, or what part of the project to do - as a group. This can be difficult to agree upon if each person has their own ideas and desires.

5. Now that you have had more time to reflect, is there anything that you would have done differently with your recent project?
I think I should have tried to take more photos, instead of being satisfied with the ones I had. With more choices, I could have put more careful selection into my project, making it better than the average, rather plain one I have right now.

6. Is there anything else that you want to include?
I think this project was an extremely useful way to show us how great the masters of photography really were. From the uninformed modern perspective, it may seem like we should easily surpass them with our superior cameras. However, the technology doesn't take the photos; the photographer does. It's up to us to take photographs of what we find significant, and not rely on better digital images.