The Appalachian Photography July 2005 Student Publications shares its photographers for The Appalachian and The Rhododendron. Our photographers create visually-stimulating moments through photographs, collect caption information and submit photos in a timely manner according to set deadlines. Formatting Photos for Newsprint Composition Camera Equipment Check-out Procedures Behavior Expectations Captions/Cutlines Best of Photojournalism 2004

Photoshop can't take place of taking a good photo. Good lighting and composition must be in place when a photographer takes the photos. However, Steps can be taken to make sure a good photo prints as intended in the newspaper.

Photos must be lightened using the histogram to an “almost too light” midtone setting on the screen. Remember that the photo will be almost 50% darker on newsprint than on the screen. This is due to the ink “spreading” on newsprint and making the images dots larger than they should be, making the image muddy or overrun with color. Ink on newsprint reacts the same with as if you were to touch an ink pen to a piece of toilet paper. This is known as dot gain and it is more prevalent on cheap newsprint. Making the images lighter than they should be to appear balanced on the screen will allow the dots of ink to spread on the newsprint.

The key here is to make sure the photo does not look washed out - watch your midtones!

Use the Web Uncoated color profile with a 20% dot gain in Photoshop. The Appalachian users are automatically set up to convert photos to this setting. IF YOU SEE A WINDOW POPUP WHEN WORKING WITH IMAGES, CONVERT TO DOCUMENT’S WORKING SPACE.

Composition is the foundation of a good photograph. There are several schools of thought when it comes to composition. The most popular is the Rule of Thirds.  This theory holds that the most successfully composed images are set up so that the dominant element is placed in one of the intersections of lines that divide a photo into thirds horizontally and vertically.

Another popular composition technique is diagonals, meaning the dominant or inferred lines of the photograph flow from diagonally. For instance, this photo of a skater is dynamic because it places the skater in the vertices of the Rule of Thirds and the handrail is created a strong diagonal line.

Static images are created when the dominant elements are predominantly horizontal or vertical.

While it is essential to shoot great photographs, it is also necessary to prevent unwanted cropping. When shooting people, do not cut out body parts with your composition. If cropping is necessary, do it at a natural joint, such as a knee or waist. Most cropping can be done in the design process.

Similar to cropping is spacing. Be sure to leave adequate head room for subjects at the top of the shot. If the subject is moving quickly, give them space to move by providing room in the direction they are heading. The above shot is a good example because the skater has room to move down the handrail.

Another element of good composition is depth of field. Most good compositions have a foreground, midground and background. This means that there is information at these different depths. In the above photo, the handrail and steps take up the foreground, the skater is in the midground and the buildings and trees are in the background.

SLR cameras allow photographers to tamper with depth of field. Large aperture settings (smaller numbers) mean less will be in focus in the shot. Small aperture settings (larger F-stops) mean more will be in focus. Also, the length of the lens determines depth of field. Longer lenses tend to have larger depth of field than shorter lenses.

The Office of Student Publications offers digital cameras for staff members to use. This equipment is for publication use only, and should never be used for personal reasons. The most used camera available is the Nikon D70. Here are a few terms you should know before handling a D70:

• SLR: single-lens reflex; the type of camera (meaning light enters through the lens, is bounced off a single mirror into the viewfinder. The mirror is flipped up to expose the light-sensitive backing during exposure.
• exposure: the amount of light hitting the sensor
• CCD: charged coupling device; the light-sensitive material that replaces the film in the back of the camera.
• F-stop: measure of apertures; smaller numbers mean larger aperture openings, and vice versa
• aperture: the size of the hole inside the lens that controls the amount of light hitting the CCD
• shutter: controls the time amount of light hitting the CCD; measured in fractions of a second (4=1/4, 2000=1/2000)
• white balance: the temperature of environmental light and its counterbalance. Daylight has a slightly blue tint, indoor is slightly orange and fluorescents are slightly green. D70s have white balance settings that counteract these temperatures to create consistent photos: outdoor (sun), indoor (incandescent bulb), fluorescent (light tube), flash (lightning), overcast (cloud), shade (house), automatic and manual.

Camera equipment is available on a 24-hour check-out period. All equipment is stored in the photo closet adjacent to the advisor's office. The only people who can access this closet are the advisor and the graduate assistant. Student union employees are not allowed to open the closet.

When checking out a camera you must fill out a form detailing what equipment you are receiving, including lenses, storage media, camera bags, tripods and flashes. The form will be kept in the closet. Upon check-in, the advisor or graduate assistant will sign the bottom of the form and store the equipment in its proper locations.

Any lost or damaged equipment is the responsibility of the staff member who has checked it out.

When shooting events for Student Publications, it is expected that photographers maintain professionality. Press passes are to be fully visible at all times, and at no time are they to be used for personal entry into events. While working, photographers are not allowed to consume alcohol or participate in any other unprofessional behaviors.

Photographers should be prepared to collect caption information at the time of shooting. This means the photographer will need to carry a pen or pencil and writing tablet with them.

Photographers must obtain oral permission of subjects when not shooting in a public forum, such as Sanford Mall or Duck Pond Field.

Captions should explain what the photograph cannot. This information includes subjects' names, affiliations, hometowns (if necessary) and year/majors. This information is required if there are up to four subjects in a shot. If there are more than four, a group explanation is all that is needed.

Caption information should be saved with the raw image. To do this, open the image in PhotoShop. Save the photographer's name and caption information in the file info (Apple-Option-I). Saving the caption information with the photo makes it easier to archive and retrieve.