Lewisaj's Blog

Here’s a creepy picture I took of my staircase right after we moved in…not sure what would cause the image…light, dust, or some other unworldly being?

For my focused insight, I chose to review a student made movie that I found on Teacher Tube.  The title of the movie is Silent Death and it is made in style of movies from the silent era.  Due to the lack of dialogue, I thought an emphasis would have to be placed on the camera work to create a clear and compelling story.  I decided to focus my insight on the rule of thirds and while it’s impossible to know for sure if the camera work was intended to highlight this skill, it did so successfully on a number of occasions.

During the breakup scene at the beginning, the rule of thirds is being used to split the screen and show that the two girls are clearly siding together. Through showing the boy as being isolated, the camera conveys the message that he somehow is the one at fault.  After the unfortunate death of the girlfriend, we see an image of the two girls on the floor with the boy standing over the top.  This display of power further drives the point that he is responsible for this tragedy. 

Throughout the process of trying to transport the body a range of different angles and shots are used, but not once does the camera operator give in to the temptation to center the characters in the shot.  By choosing to keep the majority of the action in either the upper or lower corners of the screen, the scenes appear more visually stimulating for the audience. 

The end scene (where the movie begins to take on a Weekend at Bernie’s feel) was filmed on a tripod and it’s clear that a visual choice was once again made to incorporate the rule of thirds.  While it may not be the most entertaining film I’ve ever seen, it is clear that a good amount of thought was put into the camera placement of each scene.

http://teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=117036&title=Silent_Death

Check out this video from Edutopia about a charter school utilizing technology.

http://www.edutopia.org/collaboration-age-high-tech-technology-video

Before

After

I applied the rule of thirds to this picture I took of my dog Norman.  By cropping and zooming in a little bit, I think it makes it a little more interesting to look at.

I found this cool video on the history of technbology in the classroom, it reminds you how far we’ve com in the past 20 years!

http://www.schooltube.com/video/36281/A-Brief-History-of-Technology-in-Education

https://blackboard.bsu.edu/@@8eb6a1f402fc0290a08c1211a50b381f/courses/1/2009SS2_EDTEC665s800C/db/_1016885_1/phases_0002.wmv

Check out my montage on phases of the moon!

Here’s a picture of my son that was born in January.  When I look at him and think about all of the technological changes that have happened during my life…I wonder what types of adavncements he’ll see by the time he’s 30.

Here’ a great example I found of a school in Hawaii incorporating both legacy and future content.

http://www.kamalii.k12.hi.us/podcaststories07/Site/Podcast/9E3F30D8-314C-4E4B-AC45-50A3C31D6F59.html

Here’s picture I took in backyard.  The squirrel is a good metaphor for me and how I perceive myself as being caught in between being a digital native and a digital immigrant.