All iphones are capable of taking panoramas, I have taken quite a few myself. This past summer I went hiking in Yosemite. I took a trail that was along a water fall and once you reached the top you could see down the waterfall. In order to capture the mountains, trees and the waterfall I needed to take a panorama. I realized after Tuesday’s lecture that I have taken panoramas for granted. It interested me that the creation of the panorama brought people of all types of statuses into once place. It just showed that art does not exclude anyone. What also interested me what that the panorama was so moving that some people became disoriented and sick from looking at it. The building that displayed the panoramas was architecturally interesting the way the windows were precisely placed to only show light on the painting and not on the audience.
I have also taken panorama pictures for granted, such as when I was in 12th grade, my AP Calculus class had set up a panoramic picture to catch all 23 of us lined up with our new t-shirts standing in front of our school banner for being the first class to get 100% passing rate on the AP test; the first time to ever happen within in the city, a low-income city to be precise. The picture captured each and one of our expressions of enjoyment, success, and relief!
While I may not have taken many panoramas myself in the past, the lectures and readings have given me a greater appreciation for such images. In fact, I feel like I may have been inspired to try it out for myself!
Panorama Photograph is great because it captures more than what a normal photo can. I have used the panorama feature on my iPhone quite a bunch. I use it most often when taking pictures of scenery. It's very useful because it allowed me to fully capture a scene, instead one small photo, capturing very limited scenery.
The idea of landscape photography has never brought too much attention to me, but after learning some of its meaning, it makes a lot more sense. Originally, I only believed landscape served as a method of art for aesthetic, but as presented in class, I realized it served more than that. As early as in the 1800’s, landscape served as an advertisement for settlers looking to find land to raise crops, breed animals, or simply to settle a nice home with a nice viewpoint. The work of landscape gave people a clear visual idea of what they wanted, just as in modern real-estate, there are several photographs of specific areas in the land to appeal to buyers. I noticed this now as I am apartment hunting, and although real-estate photography isn’t exactly “landscape” art, it still serves a similar purpose; to convince me, the buyer to want this land. Landscape was and is always carefully depicted, to convince the viewer that whatever it is that they are seeing is great. Landscape is captured in specific angles, mood, lighting, etc to leave out the bad and focus on the good of an area. As I learned, the work of landscape serves more than pleasing the eye.
I agree, one out of the ten types of landscapes is landscape as wealth in the form of capital. I did not realize how big a role it played until I read "The Beholding Eye: Ten Versions of the Same Scene" by D.W. Meinig.
I have always had an interest in photography and when we learned about aerial photography today in class, it reminded me of the various aerial photos I have in my phone from traveling. Before today, I never knew the demand there used to be for the first aerial photographs and the extent to which people went to capture these landscapes. The term photographer-aeronaut was introduced to the world by Nadar in 1856 when he was able to capture the first photograph from his balloon. This reminded me of when I visited Paris and the extent that I went to capture the best view of the city from the highest place I could get to. This ended up being at the top of the Eiffel Tower where I was able to take many panoramas and aerial photographs of the city down below. It's also amazing that today, there are drone cameras that can capture videos while flying from the ground to the sky, creating an expansive view of the scenery. I can still see why aerial photos are still a craze because it is fascinating to see a city from the air - distinguishing its buildings from nature and how all the roads are interconnected; something you don’t get to see while on the ground.
I also find the concept of aerial photography/images very interesting. It's something that makes us more humble as people when we see our home from so high above it. It can also connect us since every person's home can resemble other places around the world when you view it from a higher perspective.
When reading the piece "Which Way North? How to Read a Bird's Eye View" by Ronald E. Grim, I found it very interesting that bird's eye views can have a bias or specific emphasis implemented by artists. I has assumed that bird's eye views were more objective. However, the fact that the scales of these type of maps were "not consistent throughout the drawing, representing a more artistic presentation", made me realize that the artist who created the view could have depicted the area however they desired, creating a sort of bias in the picture. However, I don't think its a bad thing. It allows artists to give their own personal flair to a systematic type of work, while still providing accurate information about the area they are basing their work off of. These artists will sometimes change the perspective or area shown in the bird's eye view to have a "selected vantage point emphasized" which could be useful for seeing certain areas or details of the area. Therefore, I think that the artistic expression and variation put into some bird's eye views can be helpful and makes these systematic views special.
I noticed that too! I thought that was weird that selection can create such a bias. I agree it isn't always a bad thing but when someone tries to prove a point with a bias picture or drawing then there can be a problem.
With all of the political drama constantly occurring, I keep seeing these political maps showing demographics of the U.S. on where people stand. Some maps have a smaller range of area and some maps are more specific than others. I started to notice the difference in some maps even though they were on the same topic. It occurred to me that some of these maps selected a weird population. As we talked about in class, maps are made for a human purpose. Some of these political maps choose specific samples of the population that support their view on a subject to prove a point. It amazed me to see all these biased maps out there that portrayed an inaccurate depiction of the U.S.
Today’s lecture on aerial photography reminded me not to take amazing aerial views for granted. It is almost impossible to watch modern movies or television shows without being exposed to aerial images, which usually provide locational context at the beginning or ends of scenes. But I think there is another use for aerial imagery, and that is to inspire grandeur through sublime imagery. I was reminded of TV programs on Nat Geo Wild or Nature Channel, where a significant portion of the show is often viewed from the air. I began to think about why these programs show so many aerial shots, and concluded that it is to inspire awe in the viewer. It is impossible to look down on beautiful valleys, rivers, plains, or rainforests without being overcome with feelings of admiration. While these landscapes would be beautiful from the ground as well, viewing the scenes from above multiplies the awe inspiring emotional effects. Perhaps the increased emotional effect is because humans are land dwelling creatures, and the ability to view landscapes from above is still a relatively new concept for our species.
I totally agree that it is so easy to take today's technology for granted, which includes aerial views. I love aerial shots of nature and I couldn't think of a time where we wouldn't have them.
To have grown up in our society, as it is today, it is wild to think that at one point in time all of this land was unchartered. With today’s technology, not only do we have detailed maps of every place in this country, but we also have high quality photographs. So without even travelling to these places, we already know what they look like and how to navigate them. This was not the case back in 1803 when Thomas Jefferson decided to send Lewis and Clark on their famous expedition that charted the West. To me, travelling to a place that has no map and no photographs of it is something completely foreign. People have travelled all over the world to map it and to be able to give a visual representation to the rest of the world without people having to travel to it. We are all fortunate enough to live in a country that is so vast and to have it be mapped completely.
Yeah, I agree. I really have a hard time imagining how to view an image back in the day of Jefferson it had to be completely hand painted. It is just so easy today to take out your phone and snap a picture of whatever you want, but back then that was impossible to do and would take a good amount of time to sketch. I feel like a lot of landscapes just had to be described with words and someone probably would never be able to experience that thing for themselves
Reading Robert Doty's "Aloft with Balloon and Camera" and listening to today's lecture reminded me of when I went in a hot air balloon with my parents when I was younger. While the view was certainly breathtaking, its amazing to think how hot air balloons used to be the pinnacle of science back in the 1800's, becoming popular enough to captivate the hearts of many and even influence clothing design at the time. While its popularity did lower substantially with the invention of the airplane, they still remain relevant today with hot air balloon trips and paved the way for technological innovations by proving that humans can fly in the sky.
It's interesting to learn how technology and the concept of bird's eye view has evolved over time. In the 1800's, the main way of seeing the world from above was through hot air balloons, but now that we have advanced technologically, we are able to use other modes such as satellites to take pictures from incredibly high altitudes. It's amazing that you got to ride a hot air balloon at a young age, and if you are ever able to go again, you will have a completely different perspective on the entire experience now that you've learned about the history of how they came into existence.
During our last discussion session on Monday, I was fascinated by the topic of undeniable subjectivity in all photographs. I always thought that if one were to take a picture of nature or any landscape, that picture would be considered objective because I thought that no people/facial expressions equates to neutrality. But my previous idea was disproved when we discussed how pictures are subjective because the artist must choose the angle at which the photo is taken as well as which objects are included and excluded. This relates to our current technology-filled world because on social media such as Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, etc., because we have the power to choose what to show the public and our friends through videos and pictures. It is normal for us to only show the good sides of our lives to give our audience a certain impression of who we are. Although a social media post with a hiking trail picture or food picture may seem objective, they are all subjective whether or not we recognize it at first glance.
I definitely agree with you; I never thought about how photographs are all subjective in one way or another. It is interesting to think about how a photographer or artist can influence the viewer's opinion and thoughts on a photograph just based on the angle and how they decided to take the photo.
I agree with this completely. Before, I always thought taking pictures of just landscapes were a completely objective thing because myself wasn't inserted in the picture. Now, hearing in lecture that any picture we take of a landscape is subjective makes me realize that any time I get an urge to take a picture of a landscape I see, it is a choice I make. It is my own point of view, so no one's picture of that same landscape will ever be the same.
I understand your viewpoint, and I agree that photography is not only subjective, but also is limiting in that it doesn't allow you to capture the entire scene in front of you. The small screen makes it so that you're forced to pick one are and not all of the area around you.
Last week, when we were discussing sublime landscapes in the 19th century, I found how people reacted to depictions of the sublime very interesting. Nowadays, you don’t find many people so in awe of nature that they are shocked to silence or feel like their senses are overwhelmed. Maybe that’s just because we have access to a lot more information and depictions of the world in this generation, so we feel like there is less to see; to discover. But, I still believe there is something magical about seeing nature with your own eyes and feeling it all around you. Any depiction of such sites does not compare to the reality, from what I have seen, even with the beautiful landscape paintings we saw in lecture. From what experiences I recall, the only grand depiction of nature that approaches the reality is probably the ride, Soarin’ Over California at Disney California Adventure Park (I know it’s silly, but that’s a fun ride). I hold the belief that depiction can’t capture reality because when I was a kid (about 8), I went to see this famous waterfall at a campsite (don’t remember where). I had seen photos of it beforehand at tourist centers and just thought it was a regular waterfall. But once I arrived and stepped out onto the platform to view the site, I was so overwhelmed that my mouth hung open in awe. I just kept looking up and up at the falling water until the peppermint candy I was sucking on got lodged in my throat. So I guess the memory is not as romantic as it could have been when I spent part of the time choking and then throwing up my dinner after my mom gave me the Heimlich. That may have been a bit of an extreme reaction, but people today still react in awe of the sublime reality of nature.
I totally agree with you. I love to look at nature and everytime I see any natural phenomenon I am at awe. But with the vast amount of technology we now have I feel like people do not have the drive to go see nature as they used too.
I feel the same way about how nowadays people rarely go out to see the sights since its so readily available online. While it is incredibly convenient, it doesn't give the same feeling as visiting in person. This does however reflect on how society and technology has changed more for convenience rather than necessity in the past decade.
Today’s lecture on aerial photography made me think about how much I took it for granted. I have seen numerous aerial photographs in my life and I have never thought about all of the history that comes with such an image. I work for my school district as an IT and I often would be in places above the ground and seeing such a view gave me awe in thinking about seeing things in different angles. I have been in four planes in my life and I was shocked about how high I was in the air. I saw the beautiful landscapes and cities of America ranging from San Jose to Washington DC. I cannot imagine how amazing it would be to be one of the first people to be in a hot air balloon. Like it was stated in lecture, only the most privileged people could have had the opportunity to fly hot air balloons. If I was alive in France at the time I probably would never of had to opportunity to experience such a marvelous journey
The lecture on Tuesday about bird’s eye views and the lecture today on aerial photography made me think about how much both aerial photography and bird’s eye views are used today and how much we see it in our everyday life even though we might not realize it. Aerial photography is used in television shows, movies, and music videos; we see it on the news and online. I used to think that the main purpose of aerial photography was for the art and the beauty of the scenes that someone is able to capture from such a great distance above. But, after our readings and lectures, I realized that aerial photography can also be used as a way to provide information. By looking at an aerial photograph of a city, we are not only able to see the beauty of the city, but we are also able to gain information about the city. We are able to see where the roads and buildings are and the relation between them and we can see just how big, or how small, a city is. I also find it interesting that bird’s eye views, as well as aerial photographs, can be a hybrid of both a map and a landscape. To me, a map and a landscape used to be two completely different things that had two different purposes and were never both represented in the same piece. However, after lecture, it is now clear that a map and landscape do not have to be two completely different concepts.
The lecture on aerial photography reminded me a lot of being in airplanes and seeing the landscapes from above. It is a perfect way to see the grid from above and how advanced american landscapes have gotten. A few months ago, when I flew to Miami, I saw a variety of landscapes as we flew across the country. My favorite aerial view was the snow capped mountain ranges that expanded for miles. It made me realize how advanced the United States is, and not just economically. We have access to wonders of land that is unique to our country and it makes me grateful that I live in a place with beautiful landscapes. This aerial view is so awe-inspiring because it more than anything, it makes us grateful that we live here.
I agree with you on how aerial views do help us appreciate our land as our home. Especially now, many people don't realize how wonderful and awesome the landscape of the United States is. I think it's really cool that you got to experience the sublime nature of the snow capped mountain ranges on your flight to Miami. It makes airplane flights in general a little more bearable when you get to see the beauty of the United States up close and realize that this is our home. Many people fail to notice all of this natural beauty down below us because they're focused on getting to their destinations. I'm glad you got to take in the beauty of the natural landscape, and that you got an unexpected bit of entertainment aside from your actual plans in Miami.
The lectures for this week gave me a new appreciation for aerial photography and its purpose for many Americans. People are naturally fascinated by aerial views and seeing areas from above. The ride "Soarin'" in Disney's California Adventure and Epcot is a perfect example. Many people enjoy this ride because they're able to see the entire landscape all at once and gain a new appreciation of it, as if they're reintroducing themselves to the land. In our daily lives, we're usually limited to a fixed viewpoint of the surrounding area, so consequently we aren't able to fully appreciate just how beautiful and sublime the land is. This is why many people love aerial views: it allows them to take in the entire land all at once, thus having a close encounter with the landscape. Areas that were once seemingly foreign and unknown could now be revealed to everyone, helping to reacquaint them with the land they live on and, therefore, forge a national identity for themselves.
That is so true! I have been on the ride "Soarin" at California Adventure and it wasn't until this class that I realized how much that ride actually shows you of the beautiful landscape of California.
I agree with you on how people have a desire to look at the landscape from a aerial view because we are limited to a fixed viewpoint. It was interesting for me that some rides could be enjoyed due to its view. Talking about maps forming identity also made reminded me about how people wants their city to look good in the bird's eye view maps.
I agree with you that people are intrigued by aerial photography and viewpoints. I live in San Diego and there's an area called "The Cross" that sits on the top of a hill that overlooks every perspective of San Diego. From this location, one is able to see downtown, each beachside city in San Diego, and even East of San Diego. This spot is always full of people, especially during sunrise and sundown. Going to places like these, you learn that many people share that same interest of seeing life through an ariel perspective.
The first couple of classes debating about how maps and landscape were interesting to me. Mostly the maps are identified as scientific and objective whereas landscape is identified as a picture with a single point of view and it is subjective due to that. Although through lecture I was convinced that maps are also subjective and after these lecture I came across an article about whether an island called Takeshima or Tokuto is a territory of Japan or Korea. Both countries are arguing that it belongs to then therefore they both have a map which implies that it is their territory. Additionally, it was interesting how the maps of Paris and other cities which were introduced in the lecture were not accurate and does not match the real streets. This brought me to think that I always take maps for granted that if they look like maps they must be “right”. It also made me think about how people today rely fully on maps.
On Thursday's lecture I found it fascinating learning about how much the launching of the hot air balloon meant to the people of France, and how many people came together to watch it happen. This made me think about the moon launch in the summer of 1969, and how big of a deal it was to the people of the United States. Although people already knew about flying, the idea about sending a man into space was something that the public thought of as impossible until it actually happened. Technology had advanced so much in the years between the balloon launch and the moon landing, but the affect of the things had on the world was similar in nature and stunned everyone that saw, or heard about it. And of course, the pictures produced from the moon landing were pictures that no one had ever seen before and they still strike awe into people who look at them today.
I agree, it is true that the balloon launching was a great part in history. I mean without it, the technology of flying would not advance or probably not even exist! Thanks to this invention, we can now fly in airplanes, visit other planets and even make gadgets of own. Technology has come a long way.
One of the types of photographs that I really enjoy looking at are cityscapes - seeing the beautiful skyline of cities like New York and Seattle have always given me a certain sense of awe and inspiration. After Tuesday's lecture and readings on birds eye views, I've gained a new, different appreciation for these types of images. Seeing one of the roots of cityscapes (as birds eye views are not the only source of inspiration for cityscapes) has given me a new appreciate for them. Coming from a generally inaccurate and misleading representation of a town or city and transforming into something generally accurate and real (yet still misleading) is the type of growth one would expect from an art form. However, I'd never really thought about the fact that cityscapes tend to only shed light on the positives of a city. The lecture and readings on birds eye views have brought me to realize the shortcomings of my favorite type of image, yet has made me appreciate it even more at time same time. While cityscapes may not tell the whole story, they've evolved wonderfully evolved from a type of art that was purposefully inaccurate, as well as misleading.
The beginning classes about landscapes and how each person has one unique view was pretty interesting to me. This is so true and realized that I have taken advantage of that in my life. My view point of the world is way different that the person next to me. From a philosophical point, learning about landscapes in this class has helped me appreciate my home a lot more. From a creative way, this topic sure got me inspired to make new art pieces of landscapes. For example, The Starry Night, by Vincent van Gogh has a beautiful landscape of a very beautiful night sky and out in the distance, a village surrounded by mountains. No one can create such a beautiful piece because it is one of a kind. No matter how exactly the same a person can paint it, it is still a unique point of view because Vincent van Gogh painted it from his perspective and philosophical view. So it is just mind-blowing to me that it is indeed true that every view is a unique view and no two views are alike.
Ever since they added the ability to take panoramas on my phone, I have been fascinated with them. Most of the places I go that involve nature, usually involves me taking several pictures this way. It just lets me capture way more of the landscape in a single photo, then a regular, rectangular photo is able to capture. During the last couple of summers I have been to several different places, including South Africa, Yellowstone, Zion, and The Red Wood National Forest. The panorama photo has made the pictures of the different landscapes I have taken look much better and it gives me a better memory of the places I have visited. Without the panorama photo I may not be able to remember these places as amazing and beautiful as they were. I understand why when this type of picture was first invented, why people were so fascinated with it.
One topic that was talked about in lecture were birds eye views and national maps. I thought this topic was interesting because we learned during lecture that birds eye views started mass print culture and symbolized the growth of our nation. As it was a method of propaganda during that time, birds eye views were intended to be more symbolic rather than accurate. I thought of a birds eye view of my own hometown when Mrs. Kaplan was showing examples on the projector. I grew up in Pacific Beach and my favorite coffee shop a few blocks away from the beach has a large printed birds eye view of P.B. on the wall from the 1960's. The difference between that image and what Pacific Beach actually looks like today is astonishing. It made me wonder if birds eye views of Pacific Beach potentially attracted buyers from the East to come settle down on the West Coast. It was so underdeveloped and has now grown to be a prime area for real estate, vacationing, and more. I wonder if that specific birds eye view map of Pacific Beach in that coffee shop was an accurate representation of the area at the time. I had never questioned what sparked the interest in San Diego and now am wondering if birds eye views attributed to it's growth.
Something I found interesting that we discussed in class was the topic of photos and their relations to maps. Photos quite literally are maps, but we don't think of them in the same way as we do maps because of the subjectivity caused by maps. I personally really enjoy taking photos, and seeing this connection to maps intrigued me, especially when I think about panoramic photos. They almost have a bird's eye effect to them when you think about it, because of the sweeping landscape. I also think that aerial photography is really interesting because it gives you a lifted perspective of the world around you, one different from just standing and taking pictures. Because that is something that can't be done on your own, we really appreciate these types of pictures more.
Over winter break I took a trip to Seattle Washington. I flew out of San Jose International airport. Soon after take off, we were out of the bay area and in rural northern California. Looking out the window I could see the grid system being displayed perfectly throughout the valley. It appeared to me that it was land used for farming. The grid system continued for a while till we got closer to the mountains. In areas with little urban influence, the grid system was very prominent. As we began to land in Seattle, the grid system was very hard to notice. Although it was noticeable through street and neighborhood patterns, it was incomparable to the countryside I witnessed earlier that flight.
All iphones are capable of taking panoramas, I have taken quite a few myself. This past summer I went hiking in Yosemite. I took a trail that was along a water fall and once you reached the top you could see down the waterfall. In order to capture the mountains, trees and the waterfall I needed to take a panorama. I realized after Tuesday’s lecture that I have taken panoramas for granted. It interested me that the creation of the panorama brought people of all types of statuses into once place. It just showed that art does not exclude anyone. What also interested me what that the panorama was so moving that some people became disoriented and sick from looking at it. The building that displayed the panoramas was architecturally interesting the way the windows were precisely placed to only show light on the painting and not on the audience.
ReplyDeleteI have also taken panorama pictures for granted, such as when I was in 12th grade, my AP Calculus class had set up a panoramic picture to catch all 23 of us lined up with our new t-shirts standing in front of our school banner for being the first class to get 100% passing rate on the AP test; the first time to ever happen within in the city, a low-income city to be precise. The picture captured each and one of our expressions of enjoyment, success, and relief!
DeleteWhile I may not have taken many panoramas myself in the past, the lectures and readings have given me a greater appreciation for such images. In fact, I feel like I may have been inspired to try it out for myself!
DeletePanorama Photograph is great because it captures more than what a normal photo can. I have used the panorama feature on my iPhone quite a bunch. I use it most often when taking pictures of scenery. It's very useful because it allowed me to fully capture a scene, instead one small photo, capturing very limited scenery.
DeleteThe idea of landscape photography has never brought too much attention to me, but after learning some of its meaning, it makes a lot more sense. Originally, I only believed landscape served as a method of art for aesthetic, but as presented in class, I realized it served more than that. As early as in the 1800’s, landscape served as an advertisement for settlers looking to find land to raise crops, breed animals, or simply to settle a nice home with a nice viewpoint. The work of landscape gave people a clear visual idea of what they wanted, just as in modern real-estate, there are several photographs of specific areas in the land to appeal to buyers. I noticed this now as I am apartment hunting, and although real-estate photography isn’t exactly “landscape” art, it still serves a similar purpose; to convince me, the buyer to want this land. Landscape was and is always carefully depicted, to convince the viewer that whatever it is that they are seeing is great. Landscape is captured in specific angles, mood, lighting, etc to leave out the bad and focus on the good of an area. As I learned, the work of landscape serves more than pleasing the eye.
ReplyDeleteI agree, one out of the ten types of landscapes is landscape as wealth in the form of capital. I did not realize how big a role it played until I read "The Beholding Eye: Ten Versions of the Same Scene" by D.W. Meinig.
DeleteI have always had an interest in photography and when we learned about aerial photography today in class, it reminded me of the various aerial photos I have in my phone from traveling. Before today, I never knew the demand there used to be for the first aerial photographs and the extent to which people went to capture these landscapes. The term photographer-aeronaut was introduced to the world by Nadar in 1856 when he was able to capture the first photograph from his balloon. This reminded me of when I visited Paris and the extent that I went to capture the best view of the city from the highest place I could get to. This ended up being at the top of the Eiffel Tower where I was able to take many panoramas and aerial photographs of the city down below. It's also amazing that today, there are drone cameras that can capture videos while flying from the ground to the sky, creating an expansive view of the scenery. I can still see why aerial photos are still a craze because it is fascinating to see a city from the air - distinguishing its buildings from nature and how all the roads are interconnected; something you don’t get to see while on the ground.
ReplyDeleteI also find the concept of aerial photography/images very interesting. It's something that makes us more humble as people when we see our home from so high above it. It can also connect us since every person's home can resemble other places around the world when you view it from a higher perspective.
DeleteWhen reading the piece "Which Way North? How to Read a Bird's Eye View" by Ronald E. Grim, I found it very interesting that bird's eye views can have a bias or specific emphasis implemented by artists. I has assumed that bird's eye views were more objective. However, the fact that the scales of these type of maps were "not consistent throughout the drawing, representing a more artistic presentation", made me realize that the artist who created the view could have depicted the area however they desired, creating a sort of bias in the picture. However, I don't think its a bad thing. It allows artists to give their own personal flair to a systematic type of work, while still providing accurate information about the area they are basing their work off of. These artists will sometimes change the perspective or area shown in the bird's eye view to have a "selected vantage point emphasized" which could be useful for seeing certain areas or details of the area. Therefore, I think that the artistic expression and variation put into some bird's eye views can be helpful and makes these systematic views special.
ReplyDeleteI noticed that too! I thought that was weird that selection can create such a bias. I agree it isn't always a bad thing but when someone tries to prove a point with a bias picture or drawing then there can be a problem.
DeleteWith all of the political drama constantly occurring, I keep seeing these political maps showing demographics of the U.S. on where people stand. Some maps have a smaller range of area and some maps are more specific than others. I started to notice the difference in some maps even though they were on the same topic. It occurred to me that some of these maps selected a weird population. As we talked about in class, maps are made for a human purpose. Some of these political maps choose specific samples of the population that support their view on a subject to prove a point. It amazed me to see all these biased maps out there that portrayed an inaccurate depiction of the U.S.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree! I definitely goes with the saying that maps are never neutral.
DeleteToday’s lecture on aerial photography reminded me not to take amazing aerial views for granted. It is almost impossible to watch modern movies or television shows without being exposed to aerial images, which usually provide locational context at the beginning or ends of scenes. But I think there is another use for aerial imagery, and that is to inspire grandeur through sublime imagery. I was reminded of TV programs on Nat Geo Wild or Nature Channel, where a significant portion of the show is often viewed from the air. I began to think about why these programs show so many aerial shots, and concluded that it is to inspire awe in the viewer. It is impossible to look down on beautiful valleys, rivers, plains, or rainforests without being overcome with feelings of admiration. While these landscapes would be beautiful from the ground as well, viewing the scenes from above multiplies the awe inspiring emotional effects. Perhaps the increased emotional effect is because humans are land dwelling creatures, and the ability to view landscapes from above is still a relatively new concept for our species.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree that it is so easy to take today's technology for granted, which includes aerial views. I love aerial shots of nature and I couldn't think of a time where we wouldn't have them.
DeleteTo have grown up in our society, as it is today, it is wild to think that at one point in time all of this land was unchartered. With today’s technology, not only do we have detailed maps of every place in this country, but we also have high quality photographs. So without even travelling to these places, we already know what they look like and how to navigate them. This was not the case back in 1803 when Thomas Jefferson decided to send Lewis and Clark on their famous expedition that charted the West. To me, travelling to a place that has no map and no photographs of it is something completely foreign. People have travelled all over the world to map it and to be able to give a visual representation to the rest of the world without people having to travel to it. We are all fortunate enough to live in a country that is so vast and to have it be mapped completely.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I agree. I really have a hard time imagining how to view an image back in the day of Jefferson it had to be completely hand painted. It is just so easy today to take out your phone and snap a picture of whatever you want, but back then that was impossible to do and would take a good amount of time to sketch. I feel like a lot of landscapes just had to be described with words and someone probably would never be able to experience that thing for themselves
DeleteReading Robert Doty's "Aloft with Balloon and Camera" and listening to today's lecture reminded me of when I went in a hot air balloon with my parents when I was younger. While the view was certainly breathtaking, its amazing to think how hot air balloons used to be the pinnacle of science back in the 1800's, becoming popular enough to captivate the hearts of many and even influence clothing design at the time. While its popularity did lower substantially with the invention of the airplane, they still remain relevant today with hot air balloon trips and paved the way for technological innovations by proving that humans can fly in the sky.
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting to learn how technology and the concept of bird's eye view has evolved over time. In the 1800's, the main way of seeing the world from above was through hot air balloons, but now that we have advanced technologically, we are able to use other modes such as satellites to take pictures from incredibly high altitudes. It's amazing that you got to ride a hot air balloon at a young age, and if you are ever able to go again, you will have a completely different perspective on the entire experience now that you've learned about the history of how they came into existence.
DeleteDuring our last discussion session on Monday, I was fascinated by the topic of undeniable subjectivity in all photographs. I always thought that if one were to take a picture of nature or any landscape, that picture would be considered objective because I thought that no people/facial expressions equates to neutrality. But my previous idea was disproved when we discussed how pictures are subjective because the artist must choose the angle at which the photo is taken as well as which objects are included and excluded. This relates to our current technology-filled world because on social media such as Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, etc., because we have the power to choose what to show the public and our friends through videos and pictures. It is normal for us to only show the good sides of our lives to give our audience a certain impression of who we are. Although a social media post with a hiking trail picture or food picture may seem objective, they are all subjective whether or not we recognize it at first glance.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with you; I never thought about how photographs are all subjective in one way or another. It is interesting to think about how a photographer or artist can influence the viewer's opinion and thoughts on a photograph just based on the angle and how they decided to take the photo.
DeleteI agree with this completely. Before, I always thought taking pictures of just landscapes were a completely objective thing because myself wasn't inserted in the picture. Now, hearing in lecture that any picture we take of a landscape is subjective makes me realize that any time I get an urge to take a picture of a landscape I see, it is a choice I make. It is my own point of view, so no one's picture of that same landscape will ever be the same.
DeleteI understand your viewpoint, and I agree that photography is not only subjective, but also is limiting in that it doesn't allow you to capture the entire scene in front of you. The small screen makes it so that you're forced to pick one are and not all of the area around you.
DeleteLast week, when we were discussing sublime landscapes in the 19th century, I found how people reacted to depictions of the sublime very interesting. Nowadays, you don’t find many people so in awe of nature that they are shocked to silence or feel like their senses are overwhelmed. Maybe that’s just because we have access to a lot more information and depictions of the world in this generation, so we feel like there is less to see; to discover. But, I still believe there is something magical about seeing nature with your own eyes and feeling it all around you. Any depiction of such sites does not compare to the reality, from what I have seen, even with the beautiful landscape paintings we saw in lecture. From what experiences I recall, the only grand depiction of nature that approaches the reality is probably the ride, Soarin’ Over California at Disney California Adventure Park (I know it’s silly, but that’s a fun ride). I hold the belief that depiction can’t capture reality because when I was a kid (about 8), I went to see this famous waterfall at a campsite (don’t remember where). I had seen photos of it beforehand at tourist centers and just thought it was a regular waterfall. But once I arrived and stepped out onto the platform to view the site, I was so overwhelmed that my mouth hung open in awe. I just kept looking up and up at the falling water until the peppermint candy I was sucking on got lodged in my throat. So I guess the memory is not as romantic as it could have been when I spent part of the time choking and then throwing up my dinner after my mom gave me the Heimlich. That may have been a bit of an extreme reaction, but people today still react in awe of the sublime reality of nature.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you. I love to look at nature and everytime I see any natural phenomenon I am at awe. But with the vast amount of technology we now have I feel like people do not have the drive to go see nature as they used too.
DeleteI feel the same way about how nowadays people rarely go out to see the sights since its so readily available online. While it is incredibly convenient, it doesn't give the same feeling as visiting in person. This does however reflect on how society and technology has changed more for convenience rather than necessity in the past decade.
DeleteToday’s lecture on aerial photography made me think about how much I took it for granted. I have seen numerous aerial photographs in my life and I have never thought about all of the history that comes with such an image. I work for my school district as an IT and I often would be in places above the ground and seeing such a view gave me awe in thinking about seeing things in different angles. I have been in four planes in my life and I was shocked about how high I was in the air. I saw the beautiful landscapes and cities of America ranging from San Jose to Washington DC. I cannot imagine how amazing it would be to be one of the first people to be in a hot air balloon. Like it was stated in lecture, only the most privileged people could have had the opportunity to fly hot air balloons. If I was alive in France at the time I probably would never of had to opportunity to experience such a marvelous journey
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ReplyDeleteThe lecture on Tuesday about bird’s eye views and the lecture today on aerial photography made me think about how much both aerial photography and bird’s eye views are used today and how much we see it in our everyday life even though we might not realize it. Aerial photography is used in television shows, movies, and music videos; we see it on the news and online. I used to think that the main purpose of aerial photography was for the art and the beauty of the scenes that someone is able to capture from such a great distance above. But, after our readings and lectures, I realized that aerial photography can also be used as a way to provide information. By looking at an aerial photograph of a city, we are not only able to see the beauty of the city, but we are also able to gain information about the city. We are able to see where the roads and buildings are and the relation between them and we can see just how big, or how small, a city is. I also find it interesting that bird’s eye views, as well as aerial photographs, can be a hybrid of both a map and a landscape. To me, a map and a landscape used to be two completely different things that had two different purposes and were never both represented in the same piece. However, after lecture, it is now clear that a map and landscape do not have to be two completely different concepts.
ReplyDeleteThe lecture on aerial photography reminded me a lot of being in airplanes and seeing the landscapes from above. It is a perfect way to see the grid from above and how advanced american landscapes have gotten. A few months ago, when I flew to Miami, I saw a variety of landscapes as we flew across the country. My favorite aerial view was the snow capped mountain ranges that expanded for miles. It made me realize how advanced the United States is, and not just economically. We have access to wonders of land that is unique to our country and it makes me grateful that I live in a place with beautiful landscapes. This aerial view is so awe-inspiring because it more than anything, it makes us grateful that we live here.
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DeleteI agree with you on how aerial views do help us appreciate our land as our home. Especially now, many people don't realize how wonderful and awesome the landscape of the United States is. I think it's really cool that you got to experience the sublime nature of the snow capped mountain ranges on your flight to Miami. It makes airplane flights in general a little more bearable when you get to see the beauty of the United States up close and realize that this is our home. Many people fail to notice all of this natural beauty down below us because they're focused on getting to their destinations. I'm glad you got to take in the beauty of the natural landscape, and that you got an unexpected bit of entertainment aside from your actual plans in Miami.
DeleteThe lectures for this week gave me a new appreciation for aerial photography and its purpose for many Americans. People are naturally fascinated by aerial views and seeing areas from above. The ride "Soarin'" in Disney's California Adventure and Epcot is a perfect example. Many people enjoy this ride because they're able to see the entire landscape all at once and gain a new appreciation of it, as if they're reintroducing themselves to the land. In our daily lives, we're usually limited to a fixed viewpoint of the surrounding area, so consequently we aren't able to fully appreciate just how beautiful and sublime the land is. This is why many people love aerial views: it allows them to take in the entire land all at once, thus having a close encounter with the landscape. Areas that were once seemingly foreign and unknown could now be revealed to everyone, helping to reacquaint them with the land they live on and, therefore, forge a national identity for themselves.
ReplyDeleteThat is so true! I have been on the ride "Soarin" at California Adventure and it wasn't until this class that I realized how much that ride actually shows you of the beautiful landscape of California.
DeleteI agree with you on how people have a desire to look at the landscape from a aerial view because we are limited to a fixed viewpoint. It was interesting for me that some rides could be enjoyed due to its view. Talking about maps forming identity also made reminded me about how people wants their city to look good in the bird's eye view maps.
DeleteI agree with you that people are intrigued by aerial photography and viewpoints. I live in San Diego and there's an area called "The Cross" that sits on the top of a hill that overlooks every perspective of San Diego. From this location, one is able to see downtown, each beachside city in San Diego, and even East of San Diego. This spot is always full of people, especially during sunrise and sundown. Going to places like these, you learn that many people share that same interest of seeing life through an ariel perspective.
DeleteThe first couple of classes debating about how maps and landscape were interesting to me. Mostly the maps are identified as scientific and objective whereas landscape is identified as a picture with a single point of view and it is subjective due to that. Although through lecture I was convinced that maps are also subjective and after these lecture I came across an article about whether an island called Takeshima or Tokuto is a territory of Japan or Korea. Both countries are arguing that it belongs to then therefore they both have a map which implies that it is their territory. Additionally, it was interesting how the maps of Paris and other cities which were introduced in the lecture were not accurate and does not match the real streets. This brought me to think that I always take maps for granted that if they look like maps they must be “right”. It also made me think about how people today rely fully on maps.
ReplyDeleteOn Thursday's lecture I found it fascinating learning about how much the launching of the hot air balloon meant to the people of France, and how many people came together to watch it happen. This made me think about the moon launch in the summer of 1969, and how big of a deal it was to the people of the United States. Although people already knew about flying, the idea about sending a man into space was something that the public thought of as impossible until it actually happened. Technology had advanced so much in the years between the balloon launch and the moon landing, but the affect of the things had on the world was similar in nature and stunned everyone that saw, or heard about it. And of course, the pictures produced from the moon landing were pictures that no one had ever seen before and they still strike awe into people who look at them today.
ReplyDeleteI agree, it is true that the balloon launching was a great part in history. I mean without it, the technology of flying would not advance or probably not even exist! Thanks to this invention, we can now fly in airplanes, visit other planets and even make gadgets of own. Technology has come a long way.
DeleteOne of the types of photographs that I really enjoy looking at are cityscapes - seeing the beautiful skyline of cities like New York and Seattle have always given me a certain sense of awe and inspiration. After Tuesday's lecture and readings on birds eye views, I've gained a new, different appreciation for these types of images. Seeing one of the roots of cityscapes (as birds eye views are not the only source of inspiration for cityscapes) has given me a new appreciate for them. Coming from a generally inaccurate and misleading representation of a town or city and transforming into something generally accurate and real (yet still misleading) is the type of growth one would expect from an art form. However, I'd never really thought about the fact that cityscapes tend to only shed light on the positives of a city. The lecture and readings on birds eye views have brought me to realize the shortcomings of my favorite type of image, yet has made me appreciate it even more at time same time. While cityscapes may not tell the whole story, they've evolved wonderfully evolved from a type of art that was purposefully inaccurate, as well as misleading.
ReplyDeleteThe beginning classes about landscapes and how each person has one unique view was pretty interesting to me. This is so true and realized that I have taken advantage of that in my life. My view point of the world is way different that the person next to me. From a philosophical point, learning about landscapes in this class has helped me appreciate my home a lot more. From a creative way, this topic sure got me inspired to make new art pieces of landscapes. For example, The Starry Night, by Vincent van Gogh has a beautiful landscape of a very beautiful night sky and out in the distance, a village surrounded by mountains. No one can create such a beautiful piece because it is one of a kind. No matter how exactly the same a person can paint it, it is still a unique point of view because Vincent van Gogh painted it from his perspective and philosophical view. So it is just mind-blowing to me that it is indeed true that every view is a unique view and no two views are alike.
ReplyDeleteEver since they added the ability to take panoramas on my phone, I have been fascinated with them. Most of the places I go that involve nature, usually involves me taking several pictures this way. It just lets me capture way more of the landscape in a single photo, then a regular, rectangular photo is able to capture. During the last couple of summers I have been to several different places, including South Africa, Yellowstone, Zion, and The Red Wood National Forest. The panorama photo has made the pictures of the different landscapes I have taken look much better and it gives me a better memory of the places I have visited. Without the panorama photo I may not be able to remember these places as amazing and beautiful as they were. I understand why when this type of picture was first invented, why people were so fascinated with it.
ReplyDeleteOne topic that was talked about in lecture were birds eye views and national maps. I thought this topic was interesting because we learned during lecture that birds eye views started mass print culture and symbolized the growth of our nation. As it was a method of propaganda during that time, birds eye views were intended to be more symbolic rather than accurate. I thought of a birds eye view of my own hometown when Mrs. Kaplan was showing examples on the projector. I grew up in Pacific Beach and my favorite coffee shop a few blocks away from the beach has a large printed birds eye view of P.B. on the wall from the 1960's. The difference between that image and what Pacific Beach actually looks like today is astonishing. It made me wonder if birds eye views of Pacific Beach potentially attracted buyers from the East to come settle down on the West Coast. It was so underdeveloped and has now grown to be a prime area for real estate, vacationing, and more. I wonder if that specific birds eye view map of Pacific Beach in that coffee shop was an accurate representation of the area at the time. I had never questioned what sparked the interest in San Diego and now am wondering if birds eye views attributed to it's growth.
ReplyDeleteSomething I found interesting that we discussed in class was the topic of photos and their relations to maps. Photos quite literally are maps, but we don't think of them in the same way as we do maps because of the subjectivity caused by maps. I personally really enjoy taking photos, and seeing this connection to maps intrigued me, especially when I think about panoramic photos. They almost have a bird's eye effect to them when you think about it, because of the sweeping landscape. I also think that aerial photography is really interesting because it gives you a lifted perspective of the world around you, one different from just standing and taking pictures. Because that is something that can't be done on your own, we really appreciate these types of pictures more.
ReplyDeleteOver winter break I took a trip to Seattle Washington. I flew out of San Jose International airport. Soon after take off, we were out of the bay area and in rural northern California. Looking out the window I could see the grid system being displayed perfectly throughout the valley. It appeared to me that it was land used for farming. The grid system continued for a while till we got closer to the mountains. In areas with little urban influence, the grid system was very prominent. As we began to land in Seattle, the grid system was very hard to notice. Although it was noticeable through street and neighborhood patterns, it was incomparable to the countryside I witnessed earlier that flight.
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