To begin this assignment first think of a “town, building, object, etc.” that IS familiar to you and that you somewhat enjoy-and isn’t too far away…because you need to take some pictures of it.

Next step: go to that place or object with a camera. Look around and just chill for a little bit.  Pretend that you are there for no reason so that you are more aware of what is around you. Now you can start planning shots.  I think close-ups are pretty effective for this assignment, but they are the obvious pics to take because they easily change perspective, so expand the repertoire by adding in some strange angles or focusing on a strange object in the foreground. I chose a building on the UMW campus that I know all too well: Pollard Hall. Below you can see where I began my journey to becoming a music major; an unexpected journey that led to many wonderful memories.

Now that you have chosen an awesomeous place to do this assignment and planned out your shots, start snapping pictures.  Try to convey an overall feeling through the shots and make sure to get more than just ten photos so that there are more to choose from.  I tried to make the comfy place I spend much of my days feel aloof and mysterious.

For some pictures I focused on one or two objects and tried to change how they are seen by passerbys, such as the sign or outside door.  Some objects are just things that no one seems to notice, like the red phone and the pencil sharpener (who still has those in classrooms?!) And for a few other pics I just changed the perspective so that they became dirty or strange like the outside archway images. I also played with motion to try an give a swaying feel like in the elevator and piano. If you choose to play with camera settings to acheive a ghost like picture than lengthen the shutter speed in a dim area. I did this in the music lab pic, (but I’ll be making a tutorial just for this effect so stay tuned). Here are my defamiliarizing Pollard pics: