Three Field Trip Group Assignments
Scavenger Hunt:
As a group, collect images of phenomena listed below. Doing this will create a store of material that you can mine during the rest of the program. Draw and take a digital photo of each specimen you find. Remember, this is a National Park, so you may not remove anything from the area. You may move something to a different location on the beach if it makes it easier to document, but especially if it’s living, please put it back where you found it afterwards. Log every drawing or photo you yourself take in your field journal.
- Objects with symmetry: We haven’t discussed symmetry yet, but based on what you know, find as many different kinds of symmetry as you can. Document eight different specimens per person in the group. Each person should describe in their field journal how the objects they have documented are symmetrical.
- Growth patterns of different kinds: Look carefully at plants and animal life. What do you think their growth pattern is? (Gnomonic, branching, spiral, etc). Document four different kinds of growth patterns per person in the group. Each person should document four or more examples of each growth pattern they find (think of the possibility of using these in an animated sequence, for example). Each person should describe in their field journal the growth process they think has taken place for each set of objects documented.
- Document different examples of life forms reflecting the Fibonacci series. As a group, try to find three specimens per number in the series. Document an object you think might be in the series first, then count it to see if it is. Note in your field journal the result.
- Find and document evidence of other patterns, including, but not limited to rock strata, waves, water or wind erosion, cloud forms, etc.. Describe them in your field journal and speculate what forces caused the patterns.
Qualities of Sound: For this assignment, each group member works with an MD recorder by themselves. Organize a schedule within your group so that everyone has the opportunity to do this Tuesday or Wednesday. At the beginning of each take state your name, the part of the assignment, the date, the time and your specific location.
- Ambient sound:
For this part, go to a somewhere in the vicinity of the beach where you can be alone. Record five minutes of ambient sound, listening carefully and taking note of the kinds of sound you hear in your field journal. Listen to the recording a second time and from it choose a single sound to focus on. By repositioning yourself or the microphone, record that sound more specifically, so that is more easily distinguished from the other noises that made up the original ambient recording. Note in your field journal why you chose this sound, what the source of the sound is, and what it makes you think of.
- Dynamic and non-dynamic sounds:
Dynamic sounds are those you make to be recorded intentionally (footsteps, knocking objects together, etc.) Non-dynamic sounds occur naturally. Record three examples of each. Listen to each after recording. In your field journal, note what made the sound, what you think it sounds like, whether there are any patterns or rhythms in it and what they are.
- Non-representational sounds:
These are sounds the source of which we can’t easily identify. Listen for or create a sound you couldn’t easily identify. Record it. Log it in your field journal and note what the sound reminds you of and the cause if you know it.
- Record 10 minutes of continuous sound
coming from the waves breaking on the shore. As you record your 10 minutes, listen carefully and try to hear differences in amplitude from wave to wave. Do you hear any patterns? In your field journal, note the time and location of the recording and any observations about the wave sounds.
- In your writing journal, think about and describe the experience of recording these sounds; what you noticed about your own hearing, what connections you made with themes we’ve discussed, what things you might have seen while recording, etc..
Time Lapse/Stop Motion
For this assignment, your group should work together to record time lapse or stop motion or both onto the laptop. You’ll have a little over 2 hours to work. You could divide that time into half and do two things, or focus all your time on just one thing.
- Time lapse: decide as a group what you’d like to record. This could be starfish turning over, sea anenomes opening, cloud or shadow movements, water receding, etc. Designate one person in the group to log details of the interval, time of day, frame rate, etc.. After shooting the time lapse, look at it as a group and discuss what you see in the sequence. How does the time lapse make the original movement feel? What ideas does it give you for more time lapse work? After this, each person should describe their own responses in their writing journal.
- Stop-motion: decide as a group whether to use replacement animation (such as Al Jarnow’s sequences of sea shells) or moving objects (such as Bob Hutchison’s mating kelp), or a combination of both. Use only objects found on the beach (these can be natural or man-made detritus). You could also work with another group while they do the Tide Measurement and animate their building of marking sculptures. Before shooting, decide among yourselves what frame rate to use, the nature of the action, who will shoot, who will animate, who will direct. It might be a good idea to make a short storyboard of what you want to happen. After shooting, look at the sequence as a group and talk about what you see. Does it reflect the group’s intentions, or did something else happen? Were there any mistakes or accidents that made it more interesting? After this, each person should describe their own responses in their writing journal.