Posts Tagged ‘Marc Ullom’

REVIEW: PH 613: Color Theory for Photographers

June 15th, 2010
One of my final images in Color.

One of my final images in Color.

This course is required as part of the MFA-Photography degree …at least it was this semester!

I have heard from a program director that this course is undergoing revision so I can only discuss my experience in the Spring ‘10 section I took with professor Marc Ullom.

I learned a LOT in this class. I have never had any formal training in color and color theory and I now know why someone with red hair looks good in green from a technical perspective. I also found that I was creating images that I would have never attempted if I wasn’t studying color. I didn’t find this class hard, rather I seemed to be in a discovery mode in this class and every week was another mini-adventure in color and photography.   There are some difficult aspects.  If you had PH612: the Nature of Photography then you touched on plasticity.  In this course you will get some more face time with this difficult concept.  The modules in this class spend a lot of time discussing the exceptional work done by Johannes Itten on color theory.  After a few weeks into the semester I decided that instead of reading about what Itten wrote about I should be reading what Itten wrote and I bought Itten’s famous book “The Art of Color” so I could actually read directly from the master.

I was not disappointed.  If this is not yet a required book in future semesters you should get a copy of this book to supplement your reading.  It is a splendid book and a wonder to read, review, and reread.  It should be in every artists’ collection.  Sure, it is expensive but it is a fraction of the cost of tuition and you will likely find yourself going back and reading parts of this book over many years to come.

The other thing I found useful was a color wheel.  These are pretty cheap and found at most art stores and online.

I also found that using some online color wheels to be very useful in determining if images would well-fit with the weekly assignment.

http://colorschemedesigner.com/

http://ficml.org/jemimap/style/color/wheel.html

Marc Ullom is a great professor.  I had him last semester for PH 601: Photography-Concept and really enjoyed the feedback and encouragement I saw him give to me and other students.   He seemed even more attentive this semester and I greatly enjoyed his encouragement to play and experiment.  I worked to create some very abstract images for this class.  This was intended to push myself to do something completely new and it forced my attention on color and the relationships of color without having to bother with neither literal subjects nor narrative.  This was so interesting that I’m considering continuing with this for my thesis.


1 comment »

Posted in Courses, PH 613: Color Theory, Review

Tags:

PH 613: Color Theory for Photographers

January 13th, 2010
Tattoo Color!

Tattoo Color!

I’m taking this class online during the Spring semester of 2010.  For a list of courses  I’m taking or have taken please visit My MFA Schedule.

Note: While this information is subject to change it came from the AAU online catalog.   Courses and material should an do evolve over time and this is my historical record that shows what the course description was at the time I took the course.

This class is being taught by Marc Ullom.

PH 613: Color Theory for Photographers

This course will help students master important fundamentals related to technical and theoretical aspects of color. Emphasis will be placed on producing technically proficient images through lighting, color filtration, and post-production of images. Creative decision-making and color as an element of design will also be explored.
Course Learning Outcomes

As a result of successfully completing this course, students…

* Will be able to: Recognize a variety of color environments.
* Apply techniques for color correction of various lighting environments.
* Demonstrate proficiency with in-camera color correction.
* Master aspects of color in capture and output.
* Determine relevant filtration for common mixed or uncontrolled lighting situations.
* Apply skills related to using color as a primary element of design.

* Will be familiar with: Digital applications of principles and techniques learned in this class

* Will display the following attitudes/professional behaviors: Meet assigned deadlines.
* Professional presentation of work.
* Accept and apply feedback.
* Discuss and evaluate work using industry terminology and standards.
* Interact professionally with their instructor and peers.
* Prepare for, attend, and contribute to class.

No comments »

Posted in Courses, PH 613: Color Theory

Tags:

“A” Student!

December 30th, 2009

 

A is for Abstract
A is for Abstract

 

The short news:  All A’s in my classes.

Longer version: For those of you not familiar with AAU online (and why I have this blog) there are 4 grading milestones in the long/regular semester.  These happen every 4-5 weeks.

  • First Progress Grades
  • Midterm Grades
  • Second Progress Grades
  • Final Grades

There are also other grades you can look up :

  • Assignment Grades
  • Test Grades

In my PH601 class the grading policy is:

10% Quizzes
20% Discussion
25% Assignments
15% Midterm
30% Final Project

 

And my PH612 grading policy:

10% Quizzes
30% Discussion
20% Assignments
15% Midterm Project
25% Final Project

 

My 601 professor Marc Ullom gave out A’s for all the milestone grades whereas my PH612 professor Jim Sienkiewicz only gives out B+’s as the highest grade you can get for the first 3 milestone grades.  Given that I got a B on my midterm I was concerned about getting an A or a B+ for a final grade.

A fellow student in one course got a B+.  She did very good work and followed along on assignments and submitted exemplary work.  The only problem was she didn’t participate in disucssions over the entire semester.  I’ll post about that later.

Happy Christmahanukwanzaakah!

No comments »

Posted in PH 601: Photography-Concept, PH 612: The Nature of Photography

Tags:

My first week

September 8th, 2009
01-2007-04-07_WEAVER_v2

The Original 'Original' Alamo Drafthouse

I’m enrolled in PH 601: MS: Photography-Concept and PH 612: MS: The Nature of Photography at the Academy of Arts University in San Francisco.

My PH 601: MS: Photography-Concept course  is being taught by Marc Ullom.  I’m taken by his bio:

After graduating from the Academy as the valedictorian, Marc Ullom now works as a professional photographer and educator. Ullom is currently teaching full time at Andrews University, a small private institution of higher learning in Michigan, where he was awarded Teacher of the Year. His work has been exhibited across the country and can also be seen in an upcoming issue of B&W Magazine as well as in the Artists’ ShowCase Portfolio, Second Edition, published by the Center For Fine Art Photography.

I’ve got 12 classmates here.  10 gals and 2 guys.  This seems really unusual to me for an MFA course but I’ll give credit to online courses that allow a greater segment of women to take these courses.  It will be a nice change too.  going through MBA school was a 70/30 guy/gal split.  So I’m really going to welcome the change.

My PH 612: MS: The Nature of Photography course is being taught by James (Jim) Sienkiewicz and his website is http://www.jimsienkiewicz.com

In just a week I’ve seen some really thoughtful replies to questions.  There is also a lot of class activity.  Jim asked for 10-15 portfolio images as part of the first week assignment.  The rest of the assignment is basically an introduction to everyone else in the course.

I’ve got 12 classmates here and again 10 are women.    This class seems to have a lot more discussion traffic in it.  Maybe it is due to this class not necessarily being a first semester course whereas I think my PH601 course is what everyone gets in the first semester.

So some introductions and some show and tell fills out the first week.  This is pretty much what happens during the first week of most graduate and undergrad programs.

More soon!

No comments »

Posted in Courses, PH 601: Photography-Concept, PH 612: The Nature of Photography

Tags: