Photography Tutorials

🗣️ Technical Cards Exhibition and Group Review

Time: 45–60 minutes

Goal: Prepare and present your Shutter Speed and Focal Length and Distance technical cards, listen to the presentations of others, participate in the discussion, and complete a short reflection.

Use the Technical Cards Exhibition Handout throughout this activity.

Complete this activity after:

1. Prepare for the exhibition Check both technical cards and use the handout to prepare what you will explain during the presentation.

Bring these completed files:

Name-Lastname-Technical-Cards-Review/
├── Name-Lastname-Shutter-Speed-Card.gif
└── Name-Lastname-Focal-Length-Distance-Card.jpg

Each participant will have approximately 3-4 minutes.

Present the GIFs in this order:

1. Shutter Speed GIF
2. Focal Length and Distance Technical Card

For each GIF, briefly explain:

  • What changed
  • What remained unchanged
  • What visual change you observed

Finish by sharing:

  • One result, problem, or discovery
  • One compositional decision that worked well
  • One change you would make in a future photograph

Write down your responses to help you while presenting.

2. Listen and participate Observe the technical and compositional decisions made by others and contribute specific, respectful feedback.

During the exhibition:

  1. Listen while each participant presents.
  2. Observe the technical and compositional changes in both cards/gifs.
  3. Complete the audience section of the handout.
  4. Record at least one specific observation from another participant’s work.
  5. Contribute at least one question or comment during the discussion.

Observe the Shutter Speed GIFs

Look for:

  • A stationary camera position
  • Consistent framing and focus
  • A repeated subject movement
  • A clear progression from frozen movement to motion blur
  • Accurate shutter-speed labels
  • Changes in brightness caused by the slower shutter speeds
  • A readable and consistently positioned text label

Useful comments include:

  • “The movement begins to blur clearly at 1/60.”
  • “The camera framing remains consistent throughout the GIF.”
  • “The background makes the subject’s movement easy to see.”
  • “The difference between 1/500 and 1/30 is especially clear.”
  • “The slower shutter speeds also produce a visible change in brightness.”
  • “The repeated movement is consistent enough to compare the settings accurately.”

Avoid vague comments such as:

“It looks good.”

Instead, identify the specific technical or compositional choice that worked.

3. Reflection Share what you learned from Day 3.

Day 3 reflection questions

  1. What changed when you photographed 18 mm, 50 mm, and 135 mm from the same camera position?

  2. What changed when you moved the camera to maintain similar subject framing?

  3. How did camera distance affect the apparent relationship between the subject and background?

  4. Which focal length and camera position created the strongest sense of depth or subject separation?

  5. Which compositional decision worked best across the two activities?

  6. What did you notice in another participant’s work that you may apply to your own photography?

  7. What would you change if you repeated one of these technical comparisons?

  8. What will you pay closer attention to during the next photography activity?

Credits: Jessica A. RodrĂ­guez