Writing from Photographs...

In the new media environment, writers have become very good at using images, whether photographs or drawings--with text--to tell a coherent story. This did not happen before social networking and other web 2.0 applications were widespread.

If we assume the above statement to be true, it is imperative that you, as a digital citizen, become competent using text and images to tell a story. This is the essence of what we will be doing, in multiple forms, for the next few weeks.

So, to the task at hand:

Today, you will start this unit with a new post on your blog.

ASSIGNMENT

First, search the internet for a photograph or image you would like to write about. It is often helpful to choose pictures that contain human subjects, or scenes which are visually engaging, so that writing is a natural act in response to the image. The two example images below are winning photo essay submissions from a national contest. They were used to write a descriptive response, which is what you are being invited to do today on your blog.

The general characteristics of descriptive writing include:

• elaborate use of sensory language
• rich, vivid, and lively detail
• figurative language such as simile, hyperbole, metaphor, symbolism and personification
• showing, rather than telling through the use of active verbs and precise modifiers

Example Photos Used for Descriptive Writing

Human image with an engaging, surrounding environment.

Concealed identity, relationship, beach scene.

Now,

• Choose a photograph of your own, upload it to blogger by 1. saving it to your desktop, 2. then hitting the "add image" button (to the right of the spell check button above.)
• Under your image compose a short descriptive response (200-500 words), focusing on describing the scene in the photo. You should describe what you see, using the five senses, so that your readers can vividly see the connection between your text and the picture you included. You need to recreate the photo in words using plentiful sensory imagery.
• You have the entire class period to compose your essay. You will be using the same photograph to complete another writing assignment later this week, so put effort in to choosing a photo and describing it in detail.