The Center of Attention

Something I found interesting in today's reading, "Reading Images: The Meaning of Composition," was the idea of where an image should be placed on a page. Basically, the most important feature of an image is supposed to be placed in the center of the image.  Surrounding this center image are what is called the margins. This is where secondary images are to be place or other relevant factors to the image.

The center image is what is supposed to draw in the viewers attention. Being the main point of the picture, it is generally larger and more detailed than other objects in the image. Everything within the picture is centered around the idea of that center image.

What is placed in the margins comes into play when thinking about how to support your center image. The main purpose of the margins are to play off of the center image and convey further meaning within a picture about the center image. How an artist wants to use the margins is up to them though.  You can either us a square grid format, or, there is a way to give your margins a more circular form around the center image. Whichever way an artist chooses to format their picture, they must always make sure the images in the margin positively relate to the image in the center.

However, this idea of having a center image with margins somewhat contradicts another form of picture formatting. According to the rule of thirds one should create a grid within their picture and have the main focus lie on one of four main focal points in each quadrant of the image.  This style is suggested because it is said that the human eye is immediately attracted to one of these four points.

Determining which style holds more merit is up to what the artist is trying to show the viewer. In both cases the viewer is being attracted to a main point in the image and is instantly shown what the artist wants to convey. In the end, the main image will end up being the center of attention.  



Discussion Questions to Ponder:

1) Is the center image or rule of thirds style used more professionally?

2) How do you decide the size of your center image compared to your margins?

True Beauty

Something I pulled from the article, "Viewers Make Meaning," was the concept that images are judged by two values, aesthetics and taste. Aesthetics is how visually pleasing an image or thing is according to an individual. Taste is the cultural perception of what beauty is based on experience, social class, background or education level. It takes a combination of these two values to truly interpret the beauty of an image.

The general aesthetics of an image is left up to the interpretation of an individual.  For instance, mountain landscapes with colorful rainbows are more aesthetically pleasing than most things to me, however, a sandy beach right before sunset may be more aesthetically pleasing to someone else. People are attracted to things that are aesthetically beautiful. Most would rather see a happy couple holding hands than a murder scene for instance due to the graphics of each image. Which brings us to the second value of taste.

Based on our societal acceptance of certain things and our being averse to others, our taste is shaped to view certain images more than others. Like in the previous example of the couple holding hands and the murder scene, in our society, love is supposed to be beautiful and murder is supposed to be looked down upon. For this reason, we find the couple holding hands more aesthetically pleasing because that's what our culture accepts.

Now that we have a criteria like taste when deciding the beauty of an image, society always has some sort of influence when interpreting how aesthetically pleasing that image is through our eyes.



Discussion Questions to Ponder:

1) Can we determine the aesthetics of an image in the modern day without the influence of taste?

2) How does the taste of Americans in art compare to those of the people in Africa?

Changing the World One Photograph at a Time

It's easy to forget all the uses of photography.  People tend to forget that with all the entertainment shots taken by the paparazzi and the high importance we place on celebrities and athletes that photography plays a much larger role in society. For instance, just a few examples of how photography is used includes for surveillance, medical diagnosis and studying populations.

The reason photography became so popular when dealing with celebrities dates back to the 19th century with carte de visites, or visiting cards. Many people in the early 19 century began getting portraits of themselves and their families after the invention of photography. These photographs were then placed upon calling cards, often by the middle and upper class that became known as a carte de visite. The most desirable of these carte de visites were those of famous people such as the British Royal Family and American General George Custard.  

Those carte de visites played a major role in the development of celebrities in the upcoming centuries. What was once a simple calling card developed into numerous magazines and newspapers covering the lives of our society's most famous citizens. However, although this form of photography brings us the entertainment we desire in today's society, their are much more important uses of photography the purely for celebrity reasons.

We also use photography to watch over our prison systems and streets to make sure illegal actions are taking place. We use photography to check for disease within people or to check on our teeth.  And, we use photography to better understand various cultures and societies around the world.

Even though people primarily consider photography as a means of entertainment, it has advanced our society in ways many people seem to forget. Photography has helped change and improve the lives of people since its invention back in the early 19th century.    
 


Discussion Questions to Ponder:

1) Without the invention of photography would we be able to reach the scientific accomplishments we have in the past few centuries?

2) In what ways have the carte de visite changed over time? In what ways have they stayed the same?

Women Play Sports: Fact or Fiction?

One thing that caught my attention from the article, "Framed and Mounted," was the way the media treats women athletes.  If you open any sporting magazine at random, it's likely you will find article after article of men's sports only to be broken up by pictures of women models or athletes in provocative clothing or situations that have little to do with sports.

This is something I have never consciously noticed but can easily reflect back upon.  I am a big fan of fantasy football magazines and I'll buy one or two every year the league draft comes around.  The magazines are packed with pictures of male football players often framed in the most athletic plays they made the previous season.  However, every twenty pages or so is a picture of a women dressed in skimpy clothing advertising something that has little to do with football.  The only time women seem to get attention in sports is when they look sexy, have a personal life story, or break a world record.

Whatever the case is, rarely does reporting and pictures regarding women's sports have to do with sports.  While men are made to look fierce, women are subjected to a subservient athletic role and appear emotional or are being embraced by a male after a game or event.  It's almost as if the media doesn't want women athletes to be viewed as athletes when photographing them.

As long as the media continues to portray women athletes more as models or focus on their personal lives primarily, society will continue to struggle to view them as true athletes.


Discussion Questions to Ponder:

1)Why do women athletes subject themselves to this kind of treatment?

2) What will it take for women's athletics to gain respect?

A Picture Says 1000 Words

Photography has gone through many changes over it's long history, from Roger Fenton's wagon full of photography equipment to modern day digital cameras.  The capabilities digital cameras can achieve are exponentially better than the original technology.  When it used to take days to print a photograph onto paper it now takes a matter of minutes. The entire process now includes snapping a picture, uploading it to a computer and printing off the final copy.  Additionally, real time photography was impossible in the the early version of cameras in the 19th century. Now, with the technology of modern cameras, actions shots are not only possible but relied upon for today's journalism and reporting.

Sporting events have come to rely on action photography due to the live action nature of the industry. As new technologies begin to replace old ones, photography remains valid and crucial in the realm of sports. Through voice clips and videos, nothing compares to the quality and emotion of a well timed photograph.  Photography can catch every moment of ecstasy and despair expressed by an athlete in the heat of battle at the exact moment it occurs.

 Although photography has its own special niche, especially in the world of sports and journalism, there may come a time when video or other technologies over run this form of media.  In an ever growing nation of over stimulated people, everyone wants more instant gratification and spends less time observing what's in front of them.  However, the emotions a still picture can convey are too great at the moment for society to write off that form media as a whole.


Discussion Questions to Ponder:

1) Will women's sports ever earn respect in photo journalism?

2) Will professional photographic equipment ever become small enough to carry in one hand? 

The Wonderful World of Blogging

As new technology as improved and become more appealing to users, blogging has turned into something more than just a hobby for many people.  What was once a fun pass time can now be viewed as a profession for some accomplished bloggers. Beyond that, blogging has also become another outlet for journalism.

At first, blogging was viewed as an unreliable source of journalism. However, after the 2004 court case that said if a blogger "engages in journalism" they are protected by journalistic rights, blogging has become more and more of a legitimate source of journalism.  In fact, a majority of people look to blogging for their news now over professional journalists because of the transparency in their opinions on a matter and the tendency to report news honestly.

Even if bloggers may never be viewed as professional journalists, some have certainly been able to make a profession out of blogging. Whether it is by finding a niche market or gaining mass popularity over the years, blogging has become somewhat of a lucrative industry for those who can harness a following.  Now you may be wondering, "how can someone earn money by simply writing a series of blogs." If you are lucky, or talented, enough to secure a dedicated following, businesses are willing to pay you to put advertising on your blog page. Although this may cause some inconvenience for your viewers, it is impossible to avoid ads if you want to make money. But, if your content is desirable, a few ads shouldn't make your viewers deviate from your page.

Blogging is both revolutionizing the world of journalism and expanding the job market at the same time. However, not all blogs are well written or deserve attention, but that is bound to happen with the sheer number of users who have the capability of blogging. If you know where to look, who to follow or what to write about, blogging can be valuable tool in your life.http://express.howstuffworks.com/gif/wq-money-woman.



Discussion Questions to Ponder:

1)  Is journalism losing or gaining credibility in the blogging realm?

2) Are advertisements helping or hurting blogging?

Connecting the Past and Future

Over the course of history new technologies have changed our society.  As discussed by Rettberg in chapter two of his book, the invention of the printed word increased literacy in society from 20-30 percent to 70-90 percent in nearly less than 200 years.  Now we have evolved from the printed word to digital text and while at the time the printed word allowed for so many more people to access texts, the internet and more specifically blogs have the ability to reach an exponentially larger number of people.

Along with the increased literacy the printing press brought to society, it also brought an increase in an isolationist mentality among people.  Since people no longer needed to listen to someone read literature aloud and they could silently read text on their own, there was less reason to gather in public.  Plato feared this occurrence for he believed discussing oratory in public was essential to society and literature only made people forgetful.

The internet and blogging has certainly opened new windows whiles closing others after its invention.  Although the public forum has become more private, blogging allows everyone with internet access to communicate at all times with the entire world.

When blogging, it is important to understand the best way reach out to viewers. Mark Granovetter came up with a theory called the "social network theory" that states rather than maintaining strong ties with limited acquaintances it is better to find weak ties with many people because that is how new opportunities present themselves.

From the early limitations of creating and finding texts to the easy access of writing and viewing a blog, society has developed and changed exponentially in just a few hundred years.    



Discussion Questions to Ponder:

1) With all the modern technology we posses, would Plato be able to give any merit to resources like blogging even though the interaction isn't face to face?

2) Are weak ties in the social network theory really that valuable considering the fact that your acquaintance may not know you well enough to try to help you.?

Media Critique of CNN.com

What is your first impression of the site? Think of the "3 second rule."

First impressions of the cnn.com site: It looks easy to navigate, it does a good job of using big pictures to pull the reader in, and it is very political.

How does this site establish credibility? How does it establish trust? Or does it?  It is easy to use and navigate with high quality graphics.  It also uses links that are relevant to the site, and because it's easy

 to use and the journalist seem credible that makes it easy to connect with and in turn more trustworthy. Due to the transparent nature of CNN to discuss more liberal themes it makes the site seem more genuine.

What is the general writing style? CNN tries to maintain a certain level of objectivity but at the same time it has more liberal biased. For example when looking at the headlines most involve democratic issues.

Does the writer IDENTIFY with his or her readers, or not? How (or why not)?  CNN is a more general news oriented site so it is a lot harder to identify with its readers as opposed to a blog or more opinionated text.

Does the writing style get to the point?  Yes, because there is an introduction paragraph that tells the reader the premise of the article and the author immediately goes point by point on his or her facts.

How is it arranged? Is it arranged in inverted pyramid style?  It is arranged in inverted pyramid style which helps capture the reader allowing him or her to receive the most important information first.

Is content shaped for scanning? How is the content layered?  It is easy for scanning the way the article is laid out with many bold subtitles and bullets.  It uses much of what Nielsen recommends for scan-ability so it is layered well.

Is the tone or rhythm of the site consistent throughout? Yes, because CNN has "naturally practiced journalist" which means they know to use short sentences, direct statements, and inverted pyramid style to keep the reader interested.  There aren't many if any outrageous claims to turn off the reader.

How does the use headlines?  CNN uses headlines for the various topics like politics or entertainment with a list of headlines related to those fields within their respective section so it doesn't cause the reader confusion.

How does it use links? Effectively or not? They use links effectively for the most part but there were a few curious links that were not related to the specific story.

How is multimedia used? Is it distracting? How is it displayed on the site? Does the multimedia tell the same story as the text, or a different side of the story?  Multimedia is used down both sides of the page during the articles so it is kind of distracting to see links to other articles and videos when trying to read an article.  It does not tell the same story as the text.

How does the site "package" stories?  Every story starts with a big picture but remains text for the rest of the article.  It has hyperlinks sparingly in most articles.  It includes story highlights and each article comes with related articles and pictures down the side bars.

How are the graphics used? Graphics are cluttered throughout the site but the are consistent. It can encourage use because they help a reader read more in depth into a topic but it's also distracting because there are so many.

Can each page stand on its own? Yes, because each page has a big picture and headline that draws you in.

How is the navigation?  Do you get lost? Do you always know where you are? How (or why not)?  It is easy to navigate and hard to get lost because they have separate categories for the reader to look through and it always has the navigation bar at the top of the page.

How does the site incorporate/interact with its audience? How does it embody the social aspect of the internet (or does it)?  It always has a picture and it has many categories that try to appeal to a broad audience.

Being Hyper on the Internet

The internet has created a realm where users are able to navigate through and find information at speeds never before capable.  For this reason, people have begun to expect quicker, easier access to the content they desire.  The information gathered from my reading of Chapter 4 of, Writing for Digital Media, shined light on how hypertext and hyperlinks can assist in the quick navigation of online media.

Hypertext and hyperlinks are text with the capacity to bring the reader either to a different part of the page or to a related source with one click.  This capability allows the reader to gather more information on a topic faster while still being able to remain focused on the topic their researching.

It's important to remember a few key points when using hyperlinks according to Brian Carroll and they go as follows:

1.  They bring the readers to supporting evidence and primary sources without disturbing the flow of the main body of text.
2.  They help readers predict more or less where the link is taking them.
3. The hyperlink uses the fewest amount of words possible so it doesn't clutter the Web page. 

 Furthermore, the same rules apply to hyperlinks as they do to the main body of text.  Consistency and clarity is key to good hyperlinking. If the link sends the reader somewhere confusing or disrupts their ability to navigate the Web page, the reader is likely to leave your page.  If text and link color of your hyperlinks don't maintain consistency, your page will look poor aesthetically and possibly confuse the reader.

Hyperlinks and hypertext are valuable tools to use when writing online.  It's crucial you understand how to use them properly and are positive they contribute to the navigation of your page and do not hinder it.


Discussion Questions to Ponder:

1) Does a hyperlink in the middle of a body of text distract the reader from the main purpose of the text? 

2) Can bad hyperlinking ruin a good article?

Transformers: Rise of Digital Media

In, Writing for Digital Media, by Brian Carroll, chapters 2 and 3 discuss the changes occurring in writing when moving from analog to digital media.  For example, you have a much better opportunity to express your thoughts and opinions online than you would through print media.  Because of this, it is necessary that readers understand the credibility of the author and not assume every piece of work is truthful or of high quality.

Additionally, when online your writing style has to change.  Everything needs to become more to the point  and shorter paragraphs are necessary to maintain attention.

Of course, the more we become accustomed to new media the more visually stimulated we all want to be.  So, when creating your website, blog post, etc, it's necessary to make content easy to find, easy to read and have your display be aesthetically appealing. You may also want to consider the inverted pyramid style of writing to catch the reader's attention. This is where you present the most important or interesting facts first. 

Easy navigation of your content is crucial so the reader doesn't get frustrated or bored. You want to orient users towards the important information and messages you are trying to convey while maintaining consistency and repetition with your text and format so they don't feel lost. 

Although digital media has changed the field of journalism in many ways, some aspects have remained the same.  No matter if you're working through digital or analog media, your writing needs to stay clear, concise, complete and correct.



  Discussion Questions to Ponder:

1) Can non-professional journalists become considered credible journalists on the internet or will their writing forever be viewed as opinion pieces or "hogwash" by the professional journalistic world?

2)If a website or blogger only posts once a week could they ever become popular, or will our need for immediacy prevent them from ever becoming relevant?