People in Motion Assignment

Blur Photos

Rilke Rutenbeck, 22, from Port Townsend, Wash., empties out the cardboard recycling bin near Buchanan Towers on Tuesday Oct. 30, 2018 at Western Washington University in Bellingham, Wash. She’s the operation manager for the Associated Students Recycle Center at WWU. “I’ve worked for the Recycle Center since my sophomore year,” Rutenbeck said. “So for three years now.”

Emily Kruse, 20, from Kent, Wash. practices her dance choreography at the Wade King Student Recreation Center on Thursday Oct. 25, 2018 at Western Washington University in Bellingham, Wash. “I dance because it gives me motivation to move,” Kruse said. “I feel at peace when I dance.”

Freeze Photos

Niña Poliquit, 18, from Olympia, Wash. dances at the SINI-HHA dance club practice on Tuesday Oct. 30, 2018 at Western Washington University in Bellingham, Wash. Poliquit said she joined Sini-Hha because she saw her sister dancing for the club her freshman year. “I also like to dance,” Poliquit said.

Keith Echague, 19, from Shoreline, Wash. dances at the SINI-HHA dance club practice on Tuesday Oct. 30, 2018 at Western Washington University in Bellingham, Wash. Echague said he’s been dancing for about five years now. “I joined SINI-HHA because I want to spread and grow the dance community up here in Bellingham,” Echague said. “I want to provide a safe dance space for newcomers that are trying to dance for the first time.”

Pan Photos

Claire Ecklund, 20, from Spokane, Wash. sprints to the soccer ball on Tuesday Oct. 30, 2018 during an intramural game at Western Washington University in Bellingham, Wash. Ecklund said she does intramurals because it’s a good way to stay in shape and she likes to play soccer.

Josie Eggerding, 19, from Kent, Wash. walks to her position on the soccer field after her opponent team scored on Tuesday Oct. 30, 2018 at Western Washington University in Bellingham, Wash. Eggerding said she joined an intramural soccer team to enjoy the simple things in life.  

           I really liked the way my blur photos turned out, especially the one with the cardboard. What worked for the blur photos was that I took the time to take lots of shots to make sure that I got a decent looking blur photo. What didn’t work so well for the blur photos for me was with my subject dancing. My goal with the dancing was to get a good shot of my subject flipping her hair and making it a blur. But none of them turned out quite the way I wanted them to, and it didn’t look flattering. I also noticed myself stopping to check the pictures and then I would miss a good moment that could’ve been a great shot. So for future assignments, I know to just check my lighting in the beginning, and then continuously take shots and check the photos occasionally to make sure they’re still turning out okay.

            The panning photos is what I struggled with the most. When I was at the soccer game, every time a player ran by me I would try the pan photo and I never quite got the subject in focus with a blurred background, but I was close! I definitely want to take more time in the future to practice this photography skill and be a little more successful at it. What worked for the pan photos was that I got good, even lighting. It was dark out, but the field lights definitely helped. I was able to keep my camera settings the same the whole time I was at the soccer game.

             I really love the way my freeze photos turned out. I captured good emotions and dance moves from the dancers. The lighting in the room was really dim, so I adjusted my camera settings accordingly and moved around the room to test different lighting situations. With low light, I think the lighting turned out great. In one of my photos, there are a few hands that stick in, which doesn’t make the crop very good. There was no way to crop the hands out without cropping my subject, so I did the best I could. I wish I got a few more subjects that were more isolated like in my other freeze photo. However, in a way, the hands kind of frame the subject. But I do still find the hands distracting. For future assignments, in situations similar to the dance club, I know to look for isolated subjects, or frame the photo with a couple subjects instead of focusing on one.