The arrival of this show on campus gives us the chance, for a short time only, to apply some of the lessons of visual and textual analysis to the work of one of our nation's greatest photographers.  You'll also deepen your photographers' eyes for the images you must capture in Second Life for future projects.

Your tasks before writing:

• Visit the Ansel Adams show at the Lora Robins Gallery. Notes: backpacks must be left at the door, no food or drinks permitted, comp books or laptops may be taken in, and if you write, you cannot use pens (pencils are available at the front desk)

• Hours:

  Tuesday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

  Saturday and Sunday, 1 to 5 p.m.

  Closed Mondays

  Also Closed:

  - Fall Break (October 10 - 13, 2009)

  - Thanksgiving Week (November 24 - 30, 2009)

  Admission is free.

• Find one of Adams' images that you find compelling. Spend time taking notes about its details
• At home, after a day has passed, spend time looking at your notes and see if one aspect of the photo has "stuck with you"
• Return to the gallery and study the picture again. This time, compare the "stuck with you" detail to what you see on a second viewing.

Then start writing:

• Pick ONE of these topics for your wiki project (at least 800 words):
  • Option one: Perform a 10-on-1 analysis of Adams' photo, leading to a claim of what you see as the focal point and secondary focus(es) for the image. Each of the ten points merits discussion into how it contributes evidence
  • Option two: Support the following claim or write and present evidence for a counter claim to it: "A black and white photo, framed and carefully shot by a master photographer, does not capture what is really in nature"
  • Option three: Take a photograph in Second Life in the style of Ansel Adams. Post it to your wiki, and in a 10-on-one analysis of your own image, analyze why your SL image (in color unless you switch it with a photo-editor) captures what is memorable about Adams' work
  • NOTE: you will NOT be permitted to upload a copy of Adams' photograph to this wiki. That will violate copyright.