HW3: Cover letter of the Survey

November 28, 2012

Dear Respondent(s):

I am an undergraduate student under the direction of Professor Dustin Edward Celestino in Asia Pacific College, English Department. I am conducting a research study entitled Effects of Photography Technology on Youth Culture. The purpose of this study is to identify the effects of photography technology on youth’s education, social, emotional, economical, and psychological life.

Since youth is involve in this survey, people with age of 15 years old up to 24 years old, which are mostly high school and college students, will be asked in the said survey.

Your participation will involve answering the questionnaires that will be given to you and should only take about 5 to 10 minutes in answering it. Your involvement in the study is voluntary, and you may choose not to participate or to stop at any time. The results of the research study may be published, but your name will not be used. Your identity will not be associated with your responses in any published format.

The findings from this project will provide information on the persons concerned and involved with no cost to you other than the time it takes for the survey.

If you have any questions about this research project, please feel free to call me my phone number at (0939) 232-8490 or send an e-mail to stgeroche@apc.edu.ph.

By returning this questionnaire in the envelope provided, you will be agreeing to participate in the above described project.

Thanks for your consideration!

Sincerely,

Sheila Mae T. Geroche

BSA Student, Asia Pacific College

HW1: Background of the Survey

For about seven weeks of gathering information related to my research topic, I still have questions in my mind which have no answers yet. The only thing I know is about the impact of technology on photography. Honestly, there are many articles about photography and technology, but about the effects of it on youth, there are few. Moreover, the questions that I'm going to ask must be answered by professionals in the field of photography and common users of photography technology.
With my materials and methods, I have stated there that a part of the findings and discussions of this study would come from the results taken from the survey I’m going to conduct. Since I have five parameters, I have come up with this question about education: Do you learn new information when you take photographs? I come up with this question in order to know if youth obtain knowledge when using cameras to take photographs, or their purposes in doing this kind of activity. This is also for me to know on how they use or apply what they have learned in their everyday life. For the social aspect, How do you use your photographs in socializing? In terms of social media sites, of course they would upload their photographs but with this question, I may find reasons why they socialize and how they socialize using photographs. The third parameter is about emotional aspect which I intend to ask is What do you feel when you take photographs, edit it, and upload in your facebook or other social media sites? Somehow, youth has different purposes of taking photographs and one of them is in order to express what they feel about their environment, other people and even themselves. This question would be essential to finally identify their common feelings about this. In the economical aspect, Which do you prefer to us when taking photographs? Cell phones, digital cameras, or web cams? Others please specify. This is for me to know how they could attain this type of camera and find reasons why they prefer using this. And last is about psychological or the way youth think nowadays, What kind of photographs do you mostly take?

Youth has different perceptions and point of view about photographs. And with this type of question, I could determine how they think and what behavior they have by knowing the photographs they like to take.
With these type of questions, the people who might know the answers would probably be the common users of social media sites such as facebook, twitter, tumblr, and especially instagram and the youth who often use photo editing software. I may also know some information about these from IT professors or teachers and experts in the fields of photography.

I have already asked some of my friends and teachers about the possible effects of photography technology on youth culture, and it seemed to be that we have common answers. Of course, youth tends to abuse the application of technology on photography. With the software used in editing photographs, they somehow express their own artistic choices, but photography as a form of art is not anymore present. In educational aspect, it may be that at first, they do not know what they have learned, but suddenly realized it in the end as they look at their photographs. Accessibility and affordability may be the answer when it comes to economical aspect. With others, I don’t have yet any idea, but I’m looking forward to get positive answers. I still need to find articles about this and obtain opinions from experts.

HW2: Reasons in Taking Photographs

Have you been to Paris, France? Well if yes, I am sure that the first thing that came into your mind is the Eiffel tower. Paris is the birthplace of art that’s why many people would want to go there. Everyone is dreaming of seeing and visiting that amazing tower, and honestly, I am one of them.

When I was in third year high school, my best friend and I already planned that after we get a job in the future, we will travel around the world, and visit the beautiful places. And our most wanted in the list of places we want to visit is the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France. Aside from it is famous, this tower located on the banks of Seine river seemed to be a symbol of every person’s dream, a sign of hope and prosperity, and a star to be reached. This is the reason why many people want to take a photograph of that with their different personal styles in every angle just to show their artistic choices. Because of this, you would probably find thousands of photographs taken by millions of tourists around the world of that fantastic Eiffel Tower in the internet. But somehow, with the new advances in technology, I’m wondering what could be the other reasons of people in taking photographs granted, they surely often use high-resolution cameras, editing software, and social media sites.

And finding the answers to this question, I have read an article which somehow took away my anxiety about this. The article is entitled Types of Photography. I have listed the following which can be the reasons and purposes of photographers nowadays in taking photographs with the aid of digital technology.

·         Higher levels in freedom and in the variety of choices

·         Greater convenience for publishers and designers

·         Earning from downloads of their digital photographs

·         Lower costs of taking snapshots

·         Better preference of shots to print

·         Bigger satisfaction of their lifestyles, especially with the use of digital cameras in cell phones, web cams and others

·         Higher level of sophistication and automation

I have observed that photographers use technology because of its better accessibility, convenience and affordability unlike in the recent past. They have smarter choices and use this technology namely gadgets, software, and social media sites in the most functional way wherein they can be benefited. They tend to explore new things on what more can they do, and try to fulfill this. And in result, they often abuse the use of technology applied on photography that’s why as an art, it was suddenly not shown in the new generation. We can no more distinguish the real from edited ones.

Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION

A. Background of the Study

          Photography has already become an authentic memorial thing to the lives of people. This is a method of recording images by the action of light, or related radiation, on a sensitive material. Photography was derived from the Greek words, “photos” which means light, and “graphein” which means to draw. Basically, photography is also an art and now, a vast art form because of its types, features, and techniques used. (http://inventors.about.com/od/pstartinventions/a/stilphotography.htm)

          Technology, having a relation to photography, made more complications and advancements. Cameras have evolved from a pinhole up to the latest and accessible SLRs and DSLRs. Underwater, disposable, and film and digital cameras were also invented during that period. The increasing knowledge of people to photography and cameras contributed a lot in order to make more innovations through the years. Therefore, taking photographs, recording images and moments, and sharing the art formed became easy and fast. (http://www.photography.com/articles/types-of-photography/types-of-photography/)

          Since computers were invented, taking and storing photographs have improved. Nowadays, storage of countless photographs is not anymore a problem because of the invention of memory cards in which the files can be transferred into the computer. Also, software was made embellishing the photographs taken through editing (e.g. Adobe Photoshop, Photoscape, Instagram). This software has greatly developed a convenient and attainable way in expressing the art styles and techniques that photographers want to achieve with their photographs.

          With the application of technology to photography, this made an impact to the society. According to Roland Barthes, a pre-eminent theorist of photography, photograph is the “sovereign contingency” which means being dependent on something else happening. Photographs seize historical and real life events which help in remembering significant things and happenings. Photography has also contributed to Science in terms of space and underwater explorations, microscopic and wild species of animals and insects, and the changes in the environment itself. Employment also increased with the introduction of new cameras and jobs for photojournalists, reporters, editors, and even in films. And since photography is a form of art, artists find new modes of operation and seismic shifts in art production. (http://www.ehow.com/list_6982192_impact-photography-society.html)

          Above all, photography has greatly influenced the youth. With the use of new gadgets and inventions starting from digital cameras to the current high-resolution cameras in cell phones, iPhones, and laptops, photographer can now be a job of anybody, either amateur or professional. An editor is a free occupation to the ones who are good in editing photographs using software. Moreover, the newest part of a youth’s social life is the social media sites wherein sharing and uploading the photographs taken from their phones and cameras are very swift and comfortable. Youth’s accessibility to computers and other inventions is not doubtful because of the getting smarter generation. But the question is how does photography technology affect the life and culture of the new generation?

          This study is conducted to explain the effects of photography technology on youth culture with regard to their educational, social, economical, emotional, and even psychological aspects of living.

B. Statement of the Problem

This study aims to answer this question:

1.      What are the effects of photography technology on youth culture?

C. Significance of the Study

Parents. The discussion and findings of this study would greatly benefit the parents. Knowing the effects of photography technology on their children would help them understand their behavior and way of thinking. This will also help the parents to make the necessary actions regarding this issue.

New Generation of Photographers. Everyone knows that age is not a requirement to be a photographer. Anyone who has a camera can be a photographer and so, this study would benefit the new generation of photographers. The awareness about the effects of photography technology on youth culture would inform them about the specific results to a person using this.

Professionals in the Field of Photography. The professionals in the field of photography would also benefit from this study using the gathered information and inferences. Through the outcome of this study, a wider knowledge about the subject, and how it is affected by photography technology will be imparted to them.

Future Researchers. Because of the limitations of this study, and it focuses only on the effects on youth culture, photography technology can still be a good research topic to the future researchers. Other aspects and areas can still be considered and relate to photography technology rather, they could also conduct studies related to youth culture, and expound more on this through the findings from this research study.

D. Scope and Limitations

          This study focuses on the effects of photography technology on youth culture. Youth has been considered since they have more access and knowledge on the new gadgets and software, specifically, on photography. This study will emphasize the effects regarding the youth's educational, social, economical, emotional, and psychological ways of living with the application of technology on photography. This study will no longer discuss about the history of photography and other related areas of photography. Time constraints and inadequate resources also give restrictions to this study. This is due to insufficient related researches about this study, and youth is considered the most users of photography technology.

E. Materials and Methods

         This research uses a descriptive method in which the researcher's goal is the acquisition of factual, accurate and systematic data that can be used in averages, frequencies and similar statistical calculations. According to Alan Valdez, descriptive research is concerned with the description of data and characteristics about a population. And since this study will gather data from the youth, the descriptive method is very much appropriate to use.

         The information used in this study was gathered from the articles and other reference materials from online sources. A survey is going to be conducted for gathering opinions and insights from the youth which mostly come from high school and college students, and also to support the discussions made. The questionnaires will include questions regarding the following parameters which form the youth's way of living: education, social, economical, emotional, and psychological aspects.

F. Definition of Terms

Photograph. A picture produced by photography. (http://www.photographytips.com/page.cfm/2062)

Photographer. Someone who takes photographs, especially as a profession. It could be said that a good photographer is a combination of an artist, craftsman and scientist, since knowledge and skills from all three professions play a part in good photography. (http://www.photographytips.com/page.cfm/2062)

Processing. Producing an image (either negative or positive) from exposed film or photographic paper by developing, fixing and washing it. (http://www.photographytips.com/page.cfm/2062)

Card reader. A digital memory card reader used in transferring data, including image files, to a computer drive. (http://www.photographytips.com/page.cfm/1594)

Camera. It is a device that records images that can be stored directly, transmitted to another location, or both. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camera)

Youth. The time of life between childhood and adulthood (maturity). (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Youth)

Culture. The integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behavior that depends upon the capacity for learning and transmitting knowledge to succeeding generations. (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/culture)

Photography as an Asteroid

Have you seen a shooting star? According to Fraser Cain, a shooting star is another name for a meteoroid that burns up as it passes through the Earth’s atmosphere. Most of the shooting stars are known as meteoroids. If they’re larger than a rock, astronomers call them asteroids.

       

How about an asteroid falling from the sky? Well, a shooting star is also an asteroid, but the only difference is the shooting star or meteoroid already burn up as it enters the Earth and it is smaller. With an asteroid, this must be really big that may create an impact to the crust of the Earth just like in the movie Deep Impact.

       

Relating to photography, it is like an asteroid which created an impact to the society. Based from the article I’ve read entitled The Impact of Photography on Society, Dirk Huds mentioned six areas of the society where it had greatly affected.

       

First is about memory. According to Roland Barthes, a theorist of photography, a photograph is the “sovereign contingency” which means being dependent on something else happening. Photographers were used to preserve an event which in the past, it was only stored in our memory. Photography also records significant events in the history. It helps in saving real events happened in the past, for example, the assassination of Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino and EDSA People Power which freed us from dictatorship. Next is employment which gave jobs through the introduction of new cameras and professionals in the fields of film, news casting, editing, and photojournalism. Photography also became accessible because nowadays, anyone could be a photographer with the new gadgets and equipments used in taking photographs. With this, photography seemed to be the most widely used art form. Speaking of art, photography was the reason why artists now had to find new modes of operation and seismic shifts in art production. It has already developed and improved much faster than arts. And last, but not the least is science and other related fields. Photography helps in researches and taking photographs of the things which contribute to the advancement and innovations.

       

                With all these effects on our society, photography is not a small field anymore. As Dirk Huds said, “Photography has changed the way we view the world.” It affects the life of every person it will influence. In every aspect, it has a contribution and often, it creates development and changes that help to further add more information essential in our progress. And as an asteroid, once it landed on Earth, photography will continue to keep burning as it becomes a part of our modern society.

Seven Out of Thirteen

Great minds contain ideas, solutions, and reasons. Scientific minds contain formulas, theories, and figures. But a photographer’s mind contains wild imagination.

 When someone comes to a place for the first time, just with a photographer’s mind can create a change to that place. Looking from left to right, and then up and down, calculating every angle of that place will form your hidden ideas. Suddenly, just a click from your camera records that very moment that seems to have stopped. The clouds above your head, the blue sky, the sunset, the green grass, the butterfly on top of the flower, the calmness of river, and everything else stop in an image, and last for a lifetime. That’s how powerful photography is.

But did you ever think how vast is photography? Well, personally I have never thought of that, but when I read an article related to this, it caught my attention. The title of this article is Types of Photography.

While I’m reading this article, I just can’t imagine how many areas photography has dominated. And to give you the list, here are some few types of photography taken from the article.

·         Photojournalism- this type is more appropriate for professional photographers because there should be no change or editing taken place on the photograph. Photojournalism is also applicable for news writing in order to express the true emotion, wholeness, and original story of a certain scene or photograph.

·         Documentary Photography- this is the type of photography which records the historical events or significant happenings in politics, and other related areas. Any topic can be its subject.

·         Action Photography- this is related to sports since it is mostly done with actions. The photographer has to know and observe the actions of his or her subject to foresee the time he or she is going to take a photograph.

·         Macro Photography- this type is obviously about taking photographs at a close range, and photographers use advanced cameras and equipments in order to capture a subject in close up and full details.

·         Microphotography- it contrasts the previous one because it deals with smaller subjects such as microscopic insects, bacteria, and others. This type suits for science-related subjects.

·         Glamour Photography- its goal is to capture the model in the most expressive way with the curves and shadows. Therefore, most of its images are daring, sensual, and mysterious.

·         Aerial Photography- from the word itself, it captures images from the air. Aside from cameras, aerial photographers use planes, ultra lights, parachutes, balloons, and remote controlled aircraft to help them take photographs.

        Can you now conceive a wider field of photography? Above are just some of them, and others include underwater photography, art photography, portraiture, wedding photography, advertising photography, and travel photography. In the article, the author mentioned thirteen types, but for me, there are still more to add because of our advanced world today. People are becoming more intelligent and creative that’s why there are new inventions and fields created. If this continues in the future, types of photography will be countless as years pass by.

From Humble Beginning

            Concerning biological aspects, evolution is the alteration of genes in a specific organism from one generation to another. This resulted to hereditary and the formation of new traits of that specie.

            

            

            Based on the theory of evolution proposed by Charles Darwin, we all started from a single cell. The gradually, it developed and modified to be various species. And humans, originated from Homo’s or monkeys became sophisticated and more advanced over a period of time until we get to this stage.

            

            Maybe in some, there was no change happened but just like the theory of evolution; photography has also gone through this stage. And as I was doing my research, I have come crossed this article The Evolution of the Camera by Amanda White. It talked about the important happenings and persons involved on the history of photography or specifically the advancement of camera in successive generations.

Here is to some up:

·         1827- first camera  was invented when Joseph Nicephore made the first fixed image

·         1837- establishment of the first permanent photograph by Louis-Jacques Mande Daguerre and Joseph Nicephore

·         1940- production of the first colored photographs

·         1948- the release of the first Polaroid camera in the market

·         1960- introduction of the first underwater camera to the public

·         1986- creation of disposable cameras

·         1981- at last, the invention of first digital camera

Cameras can still be improved as years pass by because of our modern technology and getting wider knowledge about these things. Unlike what happened to humans in the theory of evolution where scientists asked why we stop from evolving when we get to this stage, is evolution really true? Well for photography, this can be true. After digital cameras, we now have cameras on our cell phones, iPhones, tablets and many other gadgets which make it more accessible. For professional photographers, there are now lots of SLR and DSLRs in the market together with lenses which improved the quality of images or photographs.