Photography

How can you travel around the world, view images of the past or peek into a person’s imagination? Photography is an art form that enables you to freeze moments in time and to view the world from another’s perspective. Learn about the history of photography and find out how to take better pictures and even make your own camera through the direct links on The Times’ Launch Point Web site, https://www.latimes.com/launchpoint/.

Level 1

Kids Framing Kids: More Than Just a Pretty Picture: What is a double exposure? How can you make it seem that someone is flying? See what some young photographers have to say about taking pictures and view six galleries of their work.

https://www.artsednet.getty.edu/ArtsEdNet/Images/Kids/gallery1.html

Composition: Alfred Eisenstadt put it simply: “If your pictures are no good, you weren’t close enough.” Learn how to take better pictures by being aware of the background and using the “law of thirds” to help you compose your shot.

https://www.goodpictures.com/composition.htm#goodpictures.com

How to Make and Use a Cartridge Pinhole Camera: Find out how you can make a simple camera using cardboard, aluminum foil, paper, rubber bands, masking tape and a nickel.

https://www.pinhole.com/resources/pinhole126/pinhole.htm

Level 2

Photo Interactive: An Odyssey Through Photography: Learn about f-stops, focal lengths and exposures through some online interactive simulations. Discover the technical and artistic aspects of photography through a reference library, glossary, question-answer section and gallery of student work.

https://library.advanced.org/11355/html/index.htm

American Museum of Photography: Explore the history of photography through daguerreotypes and the small portraits that people mailed to each other, which were called carte de visite. Experience your world differently by viewing the visions of such photographers as Julia Margaret Cameron and Shotaro Shinomura.

https://www.photographymuseum.com/

Oatmeal Box Pinhole Photography: How can a tiny hole make a picture? Learn about each stage of photography by creating your own pinhole camera and developing your pictures in a darkroom.

https://www.nh.ultranet.com/~stewoody/

Level 3

A History of Photography From Its Beginnings Till the 1920s: The word “photography” comes from the Greek words for light and writing. Trace the history of photography through this collection of articles, stories and photos that include explanations of photographic techniques and artistic movements.

https://www.kbnet.co.uk/rleggat/photo/

Ansel Adams: Fiat Lux: What is the story behind a great photograph? Hear Ansel Adams talk about photographing sites of the UC campuses, view some of his famous photos of Yosemite and the Southwest and learn about his life through articles and a chronology.

https://www.book.uci.edu/AdamsHome.html

Kodak: Taking Great Pictures: How do you avoid taking pictures of people with red glowing eyes? How can you take pictures of fireworks or comets? This helpful site offers practical advice on picture-taking for all types of situations and includes online tutorials on lighting, composition and basic darkroom techniques.

https://www.kodak.com:80/US/en/nav/takingPics.shtml

EXPLORER’S QUEST

According to the law of thirds, where shouldn’t you place the subject of a photograph?

CLUE: See Composition

The answer to this Internet quiz can be found in the sites at right.

Find What You Need to Know: Have a project on California history? Need help doing a math problem? Launch Point now covers more than 80 topics for getting your schoolwork done. Go to https://www.latimes.com/launchpoint/ for the full list of subjects and direct links to the best Internet sites.

Answer to last week’s Quest: Griots are important because they are storytellers/entertainers/historians who can recite the family history for an entire village.

Launch Point is produced by the UC Irvine department of education, which reviews each site for appropriateness and quality. Even so, parents should supervise their children’s use of the Internet. This week’s column was designed by Jakilin Munoz, Adriana Aguilera, Peter Soderin and Anna Manring.