Weekly Report 18: 01/21/2019 to 01/27/2019
This past week, in completing the Fall Semester Reflection assessment, I was forced to evaluate my progress in the ISM program and what I have learned. Looking back at the seven interviews I conducted and the five research assessments I completed, it became very clear to me that my work was quite unfocused last semester. In an effort to explore multiple topics and areas of study, I ended up mediocre-ly researching complex subjects that would require countless additional hours to fully comprehend and gain a thorough understanding of.
Through this experience, it has become clear that focusing on one skill, even if it ends up not being one which I enjoy completing, will provide extensive insight and essential practice that will ultimately lead to greater discovery and a stronger conclusion of whether or not mastering that skill developed an interest. To apply this new concept of honing my efforts in on one skill, I decided to outline monthly goals. This plan is loose and will evolve as I grow in my techniques and understanding of the creative advertising field, so at the end of each month, similar to the semester reflection, I will evaluate my progress and establish how to best continue growing in my independent research.
For February, my target objective is to explore the manual settings on my camera, the Canon Rebel t4i. In order to advance my videography skills, not only will I need to learn from shadowing my mentor with his professional equipment, but it will additionally be necessary to conduct independent research to understand how to adjust the ISO and aperture for increased blurred backgrounds, warm/cool toned shots, and clarity in darker settings, as well as operate any and all other functions that the DSLR provides. Looking into specific gear that may improve the quality of my videos may also be helpful in determining which pieces of equipment I will need to familiarize myself with and possibly purchase.
As I research this information, I will be practicing photography in varied locations, lighting, and colors before moving into video. This way I will have tangible samples of photos with the adjusted settings to reflect my studies, and this collection can be shared on my website as part of the portfolio that I am building towards for the end of the year. I am looking forward to getting started on improving my digital skills, and cannot wait to begin designing this photography collection to showcase my learning.