Computer Graphics Art Lessons

Students are usually very excited to work with computer graphics. The computer is an essential part of their lives in every subject area, and therefore they learn quickly and instinctively with this media. Some art teachers use computer lessons as a reward for good behavior! Graphics components in most applications include line, shape, color, value, pattern, and space—the elements of design! The tool palette mimics the pencil, paintbrush, spray paint, etc.

Computer availability varies widely from one school district to the next. Some teachers arrange to take their classes to the school computer lab while others have rolling carts of computers to reserve and bring into the art room. Still other districts have issued individual computers to each student. These are usually stored in their classroom and can be brought to the art room. Know that whatever exposure you can offer your students will be well received.

Make sure your district has a license for use of the program you will be using—or use a free alternative. There are good-quality free programs available for both elementary and middle school art students. Spend some time investigating what is available with an Internet search of photo-editing websites, which allow the students to gain a basic understanding of the use of layers. This is knowledge they can build upon at the secondary level with more advanced programs such as Adobe Photoshop.

As of 2020, programs which are free to use include Sketchpad 4.0 as well as Sketchpad 5.1. Sketchpad is a great addition to any Google Classroom lesson. If you work with a school or nonprofit education center, you can acquire a free license to use Sketch Pad with your students. On both versions, Stroke/Fill is available on all brushes. Vector Fill replaces Flood fill for crisper edges. Also included is Linear gradient editor and Radial gradient editor. Sketchpad 5.1 allows the artist to import and sketch on PNG, JPEG, GIF, and PDFs.

If your class will be working with photographs, other programs available to use at this time are PIXLR EDITOR and PIXLR PRO. PIXLR allows students to work in layers, replace colors, and transform objects. It is similar to Photoshop in many ways, including effects and filters used to enhance photographs. As with Sketchpad, it is free to use.

Try your lesson ahead of time to familiarize yourself with how each tool works. At the elementary level, it may be impossible to teach students how to save their work into their personal school account. Directions can be given, and if they are able to follow, think of it as a bonus! Providing them with the experience of a computer graphics lesson is an important learning experience, even if it is not saved. For older students, demonstrate how to save work and file-share with the teacher. Also show the use of tools necessary for the assignment. Post or project simple instructions for the lesson, so that students can see directions easily when you are not immediately available. Also try to exhibit printed examples for motivation. If students are file-sharing with the teacher or saving projects in their personal student account, it will be possible to access the file for assessment purposes, without printing. Students who have a flash drive may choose to take the lesson home to continue work or print it.

Printing availability in schools also varies widely and can be cost prohibitive. Many art teachers choose a few to print from each class for art exhibits, rather than allowing students to print at will. If a quality printer is not available in your school, consider taking the file to a camera store for printing.

Consider posting directions (either on the computer's desktop or a poster) with information on How to save into their student account, How to save to desktop, How to send to teacher, and How to place on a personal flash drive, so that students can learn how to do this without repeated oral directions.

Photography

There is no doubt that photography, with its almost 200 years of history, is now accepted as an art form. Many older students now have almost instant access to a camera (cell phones), and some students have photography experience.

Check your school's policy on the use of cell phones for taking pictures. Most elementary and middle schools prefer students not to have cell phones out during the school day. And there will be students who do not have a cell phone. Therefore, most art teachers find themselves working with digital cameras.

Although it is increasingly rare, some schools continue to have traditional photography equipment, including cameras, black-and-white film, and developing supplies. Since usually neither cell phones nor film cameras tend to be good options, the lessons in this chapter will focus on digital cameras.

Digital Photography

Digital photography has almost replaced film photography, although real cameras continue to be used by photographers who prefer effects that can be obtained only with film. If you are lucky enough to have access to cameras for student use, it is likely they will be digital, and there may not be enough for a whole class to use them at once. Therefore, you may have to devise a system of sharing. This will require two lessons going on simultaneously for the number of class times it takes to have each group of students use the cameras and download their photos (from the memory card) onto a computer. Once everyone has a digital photo to work with, you can proceed with your lesson on the computers. Changes to the photos, or digital lessons using the photos, can be done on any photo-editing website/application. Files would be saved the same as a digital lesson, either saving into the student's account, sending to the teacher, or saving to the desktop. Photo printing at the elementary and middle school level is usually done at a drugstore or photo shop from a flash drive or external hard drive. Some teachers select the photos they want to print while others allow students to bring their own flash drive and take it for printing themselves.

Although it will limit the number of photos you can fit on a memory card, the better the quality and the larger the size (within reason) of the images, the finer the photos will be. If possible, look at the image size on the computer—300 dpi (dots per inch) gives publication-quality photos while 75 dpi is preferable for sending via e-mail. (A local newspaper suggests e-mail quality of 200 dpi, with the photos 5” or 6” wide/tall.) If you want the photo for display purposes, 150 dpi is suggested.

ADVANTAGES OF DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY

It is possible to take a large number of photos on one memory card.
A photo can be retaken immediately if it doesn't turn out well the first time.
You will have an opportunity to look at it later on a screen to see an enlargement. You can immediately delete a poor photo and take another, better shot.
While you may take many photos, you have the opportunity to select the best of the lot to print.
No need to purchase film. After the photos have been transferred to a computer or disk from the memory card, the memory card is erased and reformatted.
You can easily make a “slideshow” with selected photos, to be shown digitally.

PROJECT 10.9
Suggestions for Taking Digital or Film Photos

Light. Photography is still about light. Pay attention to it! Notice how something that is partially lit is more interesting than something brightly lit. It is why photographers often prefer to take photos early in the morning or late in the day.

Rule of thirds. The “rule of thirds” suggests that the subject (the focal point) should be placed at an intersection of a tic-tac-toe grid. (It might be the lightest, brightest, or most complex item in the photo). In a landscape, avoid having the horizon line in the center—move it high or low.

Close is better! Particularly with cell phones or inexpensive cameras, the quality of something taken from a distance may be poor when it is enlarged.

Avoid distractions. Look to one corner, then around the edges of the viewfinder to make sure there is nothing there that you didn't intend to include, or that detracts from the photo. If the background doesn't add to the effect you are after, try a different angle.

Viewpoint. The bird's-eye view (looking down) or worm's-eye view (lens low, looking up) give a different “reading” of a subject than shooting straight on.

Elements and principles of art. These are especially applied in photography: leading lines, formal or informal balance, repetition of shapes, contrasting foreground and background, differences in value, distinguishing texture, and fabulous colors.

Engaging attention. If you are taking a photograph of a scene, try to include something or someone (a focal point) in the foreground to make it more interesting.

Photographing People

Backlighting. If you are taking a picture in sunlight or in front of a window with light behind the subject, the person is backlit and the face is likely to be too dark. Even in a bright situation, use a flash (standing back a distance of 6’) to improve the appearance of a backlit subject. With a backlit subject, you can give an appropriate amount of light to the subject by using a built-in flash and using a telephoto (if the camera has one).

Flash. The built-in flash in most cameras is good only for a distance of approximately 10’. If you are too close when using a flash, the subject will appear “washed out.” If you are further away, it is ineffective.

Framing. People (and their faces) are vertical. The camera can be turned to take vertical photos. Use your space well. When taking photos of young children, get down to their level for more effective photographs.

Cropping people. Leave space in front of a subject moving one direction, or in front of a face that is looking in one direction. When taking photos of people, it is better to crop at the waist, shoulder, hip, or knees than at the ankle or wrist. Including a person's hands often adds interest to a composition.

Panning. If you are taking a moving subject (such as a runner), follow the movement with the camera, then take the picture. You may be able to stop the action briefly, while still having the effect of motion in the background.

And remember, rules of composition can be broken!

PROJECT 10.10
Unusual-Angle Photograph

Grades–6–8

Curriculum connection–language arts

Time needed–4–6 class periods

Elements and principles of art–line, shape, balance, emphasis, value, movement

Vocabulary–asymmetrical, focal point, leading lines, rule of thirds, foreshortening, cropping

Materials/equipment–cameras, computers, photo-editing application or website, flash drive(s)

Background Information

Learning to see things from a new perspective is one of the exciting things about photography. Shadows or repeated shapes suddenly add drama to a photograph. Ask students to bring in a photograph (in a magazine or newspaper) that demonstrates some of the things you have been talking about (contrast, leading lines, repetition, rule of thirds, close-up). Make a digital presentation of photos that are of unusual angles: taken from a high or low vantage point, an angle that shows extreme foreshortening, or a close-up view of one part in the composition. Consider including these suggested famous photographers: Edward Weston, Ansel Adams, James VanDerZee, Imogen Cunningham, or Annie Leibowitz.

Preparation

Determine boundaries for students taking pictures. Should they stay in the room? Should they check out their camera and stay in the school? Make sure your administration is comfortable with students going outside of your room before you proceed.

If there are not enough cameras for every student in the class, prepare a schedule for groups of students to use the available cameras while another lesson is going on simultaneously. Proceed with the computer steps when all photos have been taken.

Prepare a demonstration on the computer for methods of enhancing a photo. Show how to crop unnecessary background and to allow the emphasis of the photo to follow the rule of thirds, improve the contrast in the image, turn the photo to black and white or sepia (if desired), etc. Remind them to make a duplicate of the original (in the layer menu) for experimenting.

Process

Have students lay their found photos on a table and gather around for a discussion on which are the best examples of unusual camera angles. You could also use a document camera and project several pictures at a time for the discussion. Which are their favorites and why?
Demonstrate lying on the floor on your belly and aiming the camera upward toward the subject. Step up on a table to demonstrate a view from overhead. Crouching alongside an object (like a handrail) can demonstrate an interesting foreshortened view. Emphasize the importance of getting close to the subject, perhaps a distance of 1’–2’.
Before students start taking photos, share the assessment points you will use for this lesson (see the following text).
Show the class how to transfer the photos from the camera to the computer and erase their photos from the camera before they turn it in to you. Clearly indicate the time when photography must stop so that there is enough time for transferring the photos to the computer.
Determine how many different photos you would like each student to take—about four to six photos are suggested. Have students begin taking photos of unusual artistic angles, reminding them of demonstrations.
When all photos are taken and transferred to computers, repeat your presentation on methods of enhancing the photo using a photo-editing website or application.
Students should consider cropping, adding contrast and/or brightness, changing to black and white, etc.
Demonstrate how students should save the photo in their student account, send to teacher account, or save to desktop.
If students will be printing their own images, explain how they can transfer the file from their computer or account to their flash drive. Alternatively, you may decide to choose the pictures for printing and put them on your own device. Unless a good printer is available at your school, take the pictures (or have students take their own flash drives) to a drugstore or photography store for printing.

Assessment

Consider evaluating the photos with a rubric assigning points to the following critical learning areas of this lesson:

The photos taken show an understanding of unusual camera angles.
Cropping has been used to delete unnecessary background information or clutter.
The photograph has good contrast, allowing the viewer to see the composition from a distance.
The rule of thirds has been used for the emphasis point.

Curriculum Connection

Language Arts

Photo with a poem. Perhaps it is possible to have a language arts teacher talk to your class or work separately in their class to have students compose their poem.

Have students select and print a favorite photo and compose a poem to go with it. The poem does not have to rhyme, and it doesn't even have to mention something that is in the picture. Instead, ask students to think about how they feel when they look at the photo. Does it make them feel sad? Or cause them to think about a person or place that is special to them? If a poem is worth writing, expect them take time to make it at least 14 or more lines, or four or five stanzas.

PROJECT 10.11
Black-and-White Emotion Portrait

Grades–6–8

Curriculum connections–language arts

Time needed–4–6 class periods

Elements and principles of art–space, value, balance, emphasis, movement, contrast

Vocabulary–asymmetrical, focal point, leading lines, rule of thirds

Materials/equipment–cameras, computers, photo-editing application or website, flash drive(s)

Background Information

Famous portrait photographers are easy to research on the Internet. Since this lesson is centered around showing emotion, it will be important to find examples that do the same to show the class. Likely, the photo will have to be a close-up view to show facial detail, but an unusual camera angle can also be incorporated. If there is any background behind the subject, it should help get across the emotion of the subject. Find examples and create a short slideshow from the following suggested artists: Dorothea Lange, Steve McCurry, Carol Guzy, Rehahn, and Lee Jeffries.

Preparation

Determine boundaries for students taking pictures. Should they stay in the room? Should they check out their camera and stay in the school? Talk to your principal if you'd like students to go out of the room.

If there are not enough cameras for each student in the class, prepare a schedule for groups of students to use the available cameras while another lesson is going on simultaneously. As you are forming your groups, pair each student with a partner. Partners can share one camera. Proceed with the computer steps when all photos have been taken.

Prepare a digital presentation of famous portrait photographers, emphasizing emotion. (See the suggested artists in the preceding text.)

Have a class discussion and post how different emotions can be depicted in a portrait. Stress creative instead of cliché solutions.

Process

Using a student as a model, demonstrate how close to the subject they should be to get a good close-up with the cameras they will use. Demonstrate high, low, and side angles of the subject, showing exactly where the camera should be held.
Pair students with partners and have them take four to six photos of each other, concentrating on showing emotion. They can try a different emotion, different camera angle, and different lighting each time!
Before students start taking photos, share the assessment points you will use for this lesson (see the following text).
Show the class how to transfer the photos from the camera to the computer and erase their photos from the camera before they turn it in to you. Clearly indicate the time when photography must stop so that there is enough time for transferring the photos to the computer.
When all photos are taken and transferred to computers, open a photograph of your own on the photo-editing website or application that the students will be using. Show how to crop unnecessary background and to allow the emphasis of the photo to follow the rule of thirds, and how to improve the contrast in the image and turn the photo to black and white. Remind students to make a duplicate of the original (in the layer menu) for experimenting.
Demonstrate how students should save the photo in their student account, send to teacher account, or save to desktop.
If students will be printing their own images, explain how they can transfer the file from their computer or account to their flash drive. Alternatively, you may decide to choose the pictures for printing and put on your own device. Unless a good printer is available at your school, take the pictures (or have students take their own flash drives) to a drugstore or photography store for printing.

Assessment

Consider evaluating the photos with a rubric assigning points to the following critical learning areas of this lesson:

The photos taken show a clearly understood emotion.
An unusual camera angle has been used.
Cropping has been used to delete unnecessary background information or clutter.
The photograph has good contrast, allowing the viewer to see the composition from a distance.
The rule of thirds has been used for the emphasis point.

Curriculum Connections

Language Arts

Students should trade photos with their partners so that each has a photo of themselves to use as an inspiration for writing. Have them think of an appropriate title for the photo. Students could also write a paragraph about the emotion they depicted. Any writing should be school-appropriate and not damaging to any other person.

Figure 10.9 Palestinian Child, 1958, Dorothea Lange, 1895–1965, American, Gelatin Silver Print, 4 1/8” × 3 5/8”, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri.

PROJECT 10.12
Texture Collage Photograph

Grades–6–8

Time needed–4–6 class periods

Elements and principles of art–space, texture, shape, value, pattern, balance, emphasis, variety, movement, contrast

Vocabulary–focal point, leading lines, rule of thirds

Materials/equipment–cameras, computers, photo-editing application or website, flash drive(s)

Background Information

This is an excellent project to teach the elements and principles of design. The main focus is texture, and how the student arranges the textures in a photograph will create a unique piece of art. This lesson is not done by combining parts of several photographs, but rather by manipulating elements within one photograph. Texture photographs are readily available on the Internet for class discussion. However, the concept of a photo collage means the photograph should have enough variety of elements to manipulate and create a new image.

Preparation

See the preparation steps in the project titled “Black and White Emotion Portrait” for considerations when students leave the classroom to take photographs, as well as for tips on how to share cameras and when to begin the work on computers.

Prepare a digital presentation of photographers working with texture, as well as those working with collage. Suggestions include Nancy Spero, Raoul Hausmann, Artie Vierkant, and Ryan Foerster. Organize your presentation in advance, as all photos may not be age-appropriate.

Bring in a large magazine photograph of texture. Use scissors to cut into the photograph and rearrange the parts. Allow the class to discuss what might be copied and pasted in a different size, orientation, etc., to create a new composition.

Process

Remind students to take pictures of textures, not “things.” The view in the camera should have a variety of spaces, textures, shapes, values, and patterns. These elements will need to be rearranged with a collage technique. Each student should take four to six photos.
Before students start taking photos, share the assessment points you will use for this lesson (see the following text).
Show the class how to transfer the photos from the camera to the computer and erase their photos from the camera before they turn it in to you. Clearly specify the time when photography must stop so that there is enough time to the transfer the photographs to the computer.
When all photos are taken and transferred to computers, open a photograph of your own on the photo-editing website or application that the students will be using. Show how to crop unnecessary background and to allow the emphasis of the photo to follow the rule of thirds, and how to improve the contrast in the image. Remind students to make a duplicate of the original (in the layer menu) for experimenting.
Demonstrate how to use the photo-editing program to copy/paste, change size, and add effects such as drop shadows. Experiment with filters on individual parts of the photograph on separate layers. Have a class discussion on which filters may work for this lesson and which may not.
Demonstrate how students should save the photo in their student account, send to teacher account, or save to desktop.
If students will be printing their own images, explain how they can transfer the file from their computer or account to their flash drive. Alternatively, you may decide to choose the pictures for printing and put them on your own device. Unless a good printer is available at your school, take the pictures (or have students take their own flash drives) to a drugstore or photography store for printing.

Assessment

Consider evaluating the photos with a rubric assigning points to the following critical learning areas of this lesson:

The photos taken show an emphasis on texture.
Cropping has been used to delete unnecessary background information or clutter.
The photograph has good contrast, allowing the viewer to see the composition from a distance.
The rule of thirds has been used for the emphasis point.
Copy/paste function has been used for a collage effect.
Composition shows the creative use of options for a variety of effects and the appropriate use of filters.
The design shows a good use of the elements and principles of design to create an interesting composition that leads the viewer's eye to the point of emphasis.

Figure 10.10 Texture Collage Example, 2019. Marilyn Palmer, collage. Photo editor online Pixlr.com, collage pasting pieces of the original photo in various sizes and placements.

_______ /_______	(0–15pts.) The photo selected shows an emphasis on architecture.
_______ /_______	(0–15pts.) Cropping has been used to delete unnecessary background information or clutter.
_______ / _______	(0–15pts.) The photograph has good contrast, allowing the viewer to see the composition from a distance.
_______ /_______	(0–20pts.) Copy/paste function has been used for an infinity effect. The image has been manipulated in a variety of ways with size, rotation, etc.
_______ / _______	(0–15pts.) The composition shows creative use of options for a variety of effects and the appropriate use of filters.
_______ / _______	(0–20pts.) The design shows a good use of the elements and principles of design to create an interesting composition that leads the viewer's eye to the point of emphasis.
_______ / _______	TOTAL (0–100pts.)