Soft Focus

Minnesota 9-12 Media Arts Standards
Used in this Lesson

  • 1. Demonstrate knowledge of the foundations of the arts area.
  • 1A. Analyze how the elements in media arts such as image, sound, space, time, motion and sequence, are combined to communicate meaning in the creation of, presentation of, or response to media arts.

  • 1b. Evaluate how the principles of media arts such as repetition, unity and contrast are used in the creation of, presentation of, or response to media artworks.

  • 1c. Analyze how the characteristics of a variety of styles and genres such as documentary, narrative or abstract, contribute to the creation of, presentation of, or response to media artworks.

  • 1d. Apply understanding of the health and safety issues related to creating in media arts.

  • 2. Demonstrate knowledge and use of the technical skills of the art form, integrating technology when applicable.
  • 2a. Integrate tools, materials, and techniques to create original products for artistic purposes.

  • 2b. Integrate linear and non-linear software including video- and sound-editing software to create original products for expressive intent.

  • 3. Demonstrate understanding of the personal, social, cultural and historical contexts that influence the arts areas.
  • 3a. Analyze how a work in media arts influences and is influenced by the personal, social, cultural and historical contexts, including the contributions of Minnesota American Indian tribes and communities.

  • 3b. Synthesize and express an individual view of the meanings and functions of media arts.
  • 4. Create or make in a variety of contexts in the arts area using the artistic foundations.
  • 4a. Create a single, complex work or multiple works in media arts.

  • 4b. Revise creative work based on artistic intent and using multiple sources of critique and feedback.

  • 4c. Justify an artistic statement, including how audience and occasion influence creative choices.

  • 5. Perform or present in a variety of contexts in the arts area using the artistic foundations.
  • 5a. Present, exhibit, publish or demonstrate collections of media artworks for different audiences and occasions.

  • 5b.Revise a presentation based on artistic intent and using multiple sources of critique and feedback.

  • 5c. Justify artistic intent, including how audience and occasion influence presentation choices.
  • 6. Respond to or critique a variety of creations or performances using the artistic foundations.
  • 6a. Analyze, interpret and evaluate a variety of media artworks by applying self-selected criteria within the traditions of the art form.

  • 6b. Justify choices of self-selected criteria based on knowledge of how criteria affects criticism.

    • Additional Tie-ins

  • Science: Focal Length of lenses
  • Creation of Mood in Photographs
    • Students are shown how, on digital point and shoot cameras the focus is locked if the shutter button is pressed halfway. So if one wants to achieve a slight "soft focus" effect with the camera, he or she only needs to focus on the subject by pressing the shutter button halfway and holding it, taking a few steps closer or further away from the subject, and then pressing the shutter the rest of the way to take the picture.

    Students are also shown how to create soft focus effects using photoshop.

    Students will hand in two portrait photos of different people. One where they use their camera settings to achieve a soft focus effect, and another where they take a good crisp photo of someone and use Photoshop to create a soft focus effect. Any prior photoshop techniques may be used to improve the second photo before applying the soft focus effects.(Both photos should be put in a folder labeled with the student's name and dropped into the Photo drop box for grading.)

    Evaluation:

    2 points -- Raw photo using camera settings to achieve soft focus effects
    3 points -- Quality of original photo for the photoshoped effect (lighting, background, clarity, etc.)
    3 points -- Quality of finished photo after photoshop effects are added.
    2 points -- Followed directions

    10 points total

    Finished Photo with Soft Focus


    Original Photo

    Jen Fiskum