HDR Photography Intro

1. What manipulations to the camera will you need to make to create an HDR image?
You'll need to equip the AEB function in the camera through the settings, however if that's not an option, then you'll have to change the settings manually and expose everything between each shot you take. 

2. What equipment will we use to take this type of image?
A camera with AEB, a tripod to ensure that every photo will be in the same position (if that's what you want), and an HDR photo-blending program to blend the photos and add final touches.

3. What is the reason someone might take an HDR image?
HDR images are very vibrant and dreamlike. They have a very unique atmosphere to them that, depending on the lighting and the colors in the picture, can be very eerie or happy.

4. What can we expect to happen with the images once we merge them together, what will we see that we might have not seen with just one photo?
The final product will be something completely different. Every shadow and lighting will be expose in the photo and create a vibrancy in it. The photo will be very dark and yet very light, and it should have high-contrast.

Infrographic

Top 10 US States with the Most Registered Cats
Create line charts

Final Exam Planning Warm-Up

1. When will you shoot this assignment?
Preferably, I would like to shoot my photos this weekend (April 30th), but the latest I would like to shoot my photos for the assignment would be next weekend.

2. Where will you shoot?
That depends, because I have three very different ideas for my shoot. Either I'll shoot the photos at my friends house, in front of my house in the garden, or at an observatory.

3. What will you be documenting or telling your story about?
My first two ideas were really simple. The first was to shoot photos of my friend painting, which is something that she does and enjoys a lot. I have a few ways to shoot the photos already in mind if I went with that.
The second idea was to photograph my mother gardening. Now that winter has passed and the warm weather is settling in, she's been working in the garden in the front of the house, and it's a long process that I could document.
My third idea would take a little bit more planning. My father is part of the Austin Astronomical Society and every few weekends they have a star party at the Observatory at Canyon of the Eagles. I wouldn't be able to take photos when the stars really set in, but the setting itself is nice. The only problems about this idea was timing - clear skies are not always guaranteed - and the fact that there's not much of a story for this idea. The benefits of this idea is that I could get a lot of nice photos and that I don't necessarily have to wait for the next star party because my father has private access to the observatory.

4. What equipment needs will you have to get this finished?
Preferably, I would like a tripod handy, but I can take photos without it just as well.

5. Describe the process.
I would like to use my video portions at the beginning when we're arriving and at the end when we're leaving. I would also like to include video image somewhere in the middle, though I don't know what of. The rest would be still images, and my narration would mostly be at the beginning and the end.

Illustrator Artwork

Presidential Politics commentary

Fitbit and other wearable technology story

Culture of Me Project story

Preview for Final Exam - Intro to iMovie

Websites: http://www.mindbites.com/lesson/160-intro-to-imovie  and  http://knowledge-innovation.wikispaces.com/Basic+Skills+for+iMovie

 1. Using iMovie is an easy task once you know how the simple basics. To use iMovie, you would need a video camera, the tape or film of that video camera, a cable to connect the camera to the computer, and a Macintosh computer. Once all these things are available, you can open iMovie by clicking on the icon on your dashboard or wherever iMovie is stored on the computer. A window should come up and you should be able to select "Create a New Project" and name it. It's important to choose the correct video format as well. 
  There are three main parts on the iMovie layout - the view screen, the clips pit (it was actually very hard to hear what she was saying but it sounded like she was saying "clips pit") and the timeline. On the view screen, you can view your move and play it. In the clips pit, all your clips are stored.
  The purpose of the timeline is so that you can place and arrange the clips you have in order to create a movie. It's good to note that there are two modes on the timeline - the Clips mode and the Time mode.  The Clips mode shows only the clip, and it's recommended to use this mode whenever you're rearranging the order of your clips. The other mode, the Time mode, displays the length of the clip depending on the size of the clip. Basically, you can view the duration that a single clip will play and pinpoint when it'll transition to the next clip. 
In order to capture videos on iMovie, you can choose one of two modes; Edit mode (represented by scissors) and Capture mode (represented by a camera). When you're transferring film from a video camera, you'd switch to Capture mode and then turn on the camera, which you'll then set to Playback mode. Once that's done, you can go back to the right spot and press play and then import to capture the film. 
  Editing is one of the most simple steps on iMovie. You can rearrange clips and add them to the timeline by clicking them, dragging them to the right spot, and then dropping them. You can "trim" a clip by selecting Time mode and then pulling on the edges of the clip to make it shorter or bring it back to its original length. Additionally, you can split clips into small pieces by dragging the playhead where you want to split it and then selecting "Split Clip at Playhead" under the Edit menu. In addition to that, you can copy and paste to duplicate a clip and highlight it and hit delete to erase a clip. Knowing how to edit an iMovie will give you access to a greater range of options to make your video better, such as Titles and Effects. Whenever you have inserted a Title or an Effect, you can preview how it will look in the final product, and then hit update once you're satisfied with how it turned out.

2. I already knew how to edit an iMovie a bit from messing around on the program a while back. It's pretty simple and easy to remember once you know how to do it, as well as creating a new project and all that. 

3. I didn't really know that there were different modes that you could select, so that was something new for me to understand.

4. I'm not so concerned with editing the clips, but I'm worried about not getting the right number of clips or the right amount of time. Or even getting too many clips and not being able to choose a selected few. Most of all, the biggest thing I'm concerned about the project is choosing a good topic for it.

5. Once I brainstorm an idea that I would like to do for my project, I can get that done during the weekend of that week. After that, editing will be a breeze and I can probably plan out how I would like to rearrange my movie beforehand.

6. I actually really like the idea of doing an art project. Either I can do it myself and capture the process, or I can get one of my friends to do one. The idea of capturing the process of a painting is something I would enjoy, and I know people who would be glad to do it.

My Opinions Story

Topic: Should teachers reduce the amount of homework that is given to students?

Whether you've just come from an after school club, a sports practice or hanging out with friends, we all know that feeling after school when your mind has been rung out for a little more than 7 hours of school. We all know the dread of having to face our daily given burden: homework. Many of us have begun to feel like homework is taking over our life outside of class.  

High school teachers aim to assign high school students an average of 3.5 hours of homework per week. That may not seem like a lot, but consider that students may receive homework from at least five of their teachers. Once, you take that into account, high school students receive approximately 17.5 hours of homework a week. Divide that by the number of days in the school week, not counting weekends, it averages out to 3.5 hours of homework a night.

In a 24 hour period during the school week, the average high school student spends approximately 7 hours at school, 2 hours getting to and from school, 5 hours doing daily things like eating, dressing, and showering, and 8 hours of sleeping. All together, that’s 22 hours out of the 24 hour day, leaving only 2 hours in the day for students to spend time on homework, after school activities like clubs or sports, family time, and relaxation. However, high school students are given 3.5 hours of homework a night by our previous calculations, which leaves no time whatsoever for students to relax or enjoy things that spark their interest.

 So why are we spending so much time on homework? During the 1960s when the Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik 1, The U.S. Department of Education upped the amount of homework students were required to have per week in fear that U.S. students in the U.S. were not being educated enough. This was merely of act of one-upping the other side. Back then, homework was simple memorization and not as complex as the homework today. These days, teachers assign students much more complex assignments, but they have not decreased the amount of homework that students are receiving. High school students are gaining the same amount of homework, but it takes much longer to complete the work.

 Homework is not a bad thing. It allows students to practice their skills outside of class, and it’s been proven to help students gain time management skills, learn responsibility and perseverance, and build up their self-esteem. 

 However, a study at the Stanford Graduate School of Education found that too much homework can diminish its effectiveness and counter the benefits. Too much homework causes students to experience greater stress, which can lead to both mental and physical health problems like sleep deprivation (insomnia), anxiety, weight loss, and constant headaches. Not only that, but like we established earlier, students do not have enough time in their 24 hour day to engage with friends, family or pursue their interests, decreasing their social and extracurricular skills, and thus they do not have a way to diminish their stress. The stress continues to build up, and students may develop a lower self-esteem and a tendency to procrastinate.

 The quality of the homework does not need to decrease, but the amount of homework does. Teachers need to take their students into consideration and assign less homework so that they can safely manage their time between their interests and their schoolwork. Alternatively, teachers can give students more time to work in class so that they will have less to do at home. Students need to find a way to balance homework, extracurricular activities, and social time on their own, but they will never have the chance if teachers keep assigning the amount of homework that they do now.

SNO Online Papers

The Eagle's Tale - "Love without borders"
http://eaglestaleonline.com/opinion/2015/10/01/love-without-borders/

1. Avery Cummings, the Co-Editor-in-Chief, wrote the article.

2. Cummings' story is about her personal experience in an interracial relationship and her dismay at her family, friends, and peers who do not completely accept her relationship with her Mexican-born hispanic partner. She also expresses how her relationship with her partner and his family opened her up to other cultures.

3. "However, instead of staring with a gaping mouth or rude eyes, at least smile. It can be disheartening to be stared at in public all the time due mainly to a difference in skin color. We are all human, regardless of skin color."
"I have a found a much more satisfying world in one entirely different than my own. One where I learn new things every day, and one where I teach my own culture every day. It is through this new world that I was able to understand and no longer fear other cultures."

4. Yes. She addresses the reactions of her family members and friends acknowledges their concerns.

5. Cummings notes that the reactions her family and friends had might've been different if her partner had been American-born, but she's firm about her disapproval of their non-acceptance.

6. She quotes a reaction that her family and friends had to her relationship.

7. Cummings wrote in first person.

Coppell Student Media - "Why Coppell citizens should care about the water crisis in Michigan"
http://coppellstudentmedia.com/64866/opinions/why-coppell-citizens-should-care-about-the-water-crisis-in-michigan/

1. The article was written by Staff Writer, Jasmine Sun.

2. Sun's addresses the water crisis in Flint, Michigan and explains why Coppell citizens, despite living far from the incident and being unaffected by it, should care about it. She emphasizes her point that people should care even if they are unaffected because indifference and inaction can have dire consequences.

3. "But you may be wondering, why should I care? I live on the other side of the country. Lead in the water doesn’t affect me. . .And that is the exact problem. Because people do not care unless they are personally affected, water crises like these can continue to happen, all around the country and globe. . . People should be at least aware of the potential problems that water can have and how local government officials can address those problems."

4. Sun acknowledges reasons why people wouldn't care about faraway incidents, listing that it's because they are being unaffected by the incident. 

5. No, she's very firm in her article.

6. Yes. Sun quotes students and teachers from Coppell High School.

7. She wrote in third person.

The Mustang Messenger - "College: Make it Accessible to All"
http://cyranchnews.com/4583/opinion-2/college-make-it-accessible-to-all/

1. The article is written by Shajid Hasan.

2. Hansan's article is about the rising tuition for colleges and universities. He states that college education has become increasingly significant for many Americans to pursue a successful career, however only students and their families that can survive the financial strain of college tuition are able to pursue a college education. Hansan argues that college should be made available to everyone and that the US should provide free college education.

3. "So, the United States lags behind a bit more. We decide that we’re not going to innovate and become better. We want to stay with Cold War-era politics in which “We The Best” is the motto. We’re limiting ourselves with just keeping our old values. We have to change our society for the better. So for the benefit of our nation we know what to do. To make sure we won’t be outsourced we have to have a strong industrious nation. We need to get rid of our increasing income gap. We need to adopt the practice of free college. Because if we don’t, “we” will no longer be relevant."

4. No, the writer does not address the other side of the argument. 

5. Yes, he's very firm about his opinion on the topic.

6. Hasan does not include direct quotes but cites statistics relating to his argument.

7. He writes mostly in third person (the writer avoids the usage of "I" "me", and "my") but later in the article, he uses first person ("In my opinion. . .")