GOOGLE ARTS AND CULTURE GALLERY INTRODUCTION

It’s great, great, great, great.

I’m so happy to share this with you, especially if you haven’t visited before. 

Google Arts and culture allows its users to browse more than 70,000 classical artworks that are present in over 1000 museums around the world. (for free!) 

This video gives my students (and everyone else too! ) a brief introduction to google’s art and culture collections. This video focuses specifically on the virtual tours available in art museums using google’s street view. (now gallery view….) Additionally, I share a few main tips on how to get around.

The online gallery collections are available just with your browser. But the app version is also available with a ton of different extra features, some of which are re-donk-ulous.

Google Arts and culture allows its users to browse on more than 70,000 classical artworks that are present in over 1000 museums around the world. (for free) ...

FIVE THINGS UNDER $10 THAT EVERY EDUCATOR SHOULD | COULD | MAY ENJOY FOR REMOTE TEACHING

That’s it? Just five? Well, just five, for now.

These are not the only options. But they seem to be the most affordable, most accessible, and most likely to change how your online classes go. In about three short minutes, I explain the 5 main ones that I think will help. Please note that I am offering up the lowest options (that I found) that also seem to be the most accessible. Most of my links are to box stores or amazon but I would always encourage individuals to buy locally whenever possible.

If you have a suggestion for any other specific items with better quality I would love to hear from you! I will be taking note of all suggestions for all price levels for all related items.

Camera, Lights, Action

(really its more like camera (s), lights, sound)

1. An LED DAYLIGHT lightbulb starting at $1.74

   But do not be fooled when buying these bulbs:  Daylight is not the same as bright white. 5000K is your jam.

2. A CLAMP LIGHT, starting at $7. The ones I use, start at $8.50

   Please note the wattage of any light you buy, to ensure you stay under both the wattage of the light and socket. Careful ya’ll this metal does get hot when it's on for a while, even w/LED.

3. DIFFUSER SOCK 2 for $10

   I use small binder clips to keep the material away from the light. Please note these are not designed or intended to sustain intense heat or long use times! Use lower heat producing bulbs like LED bulbs only.

   Are these a fire hazard? YES. However, burning candles is also a fire hazard. I won’t deny myself the sweet smells of the ocean mixed with cedar and lavender. SO if that helps: perhaps think of it the same way. Don’t leave it unattended and use it at your own risk. Always know where the fire extinguisher is located wherever you are, no matter what.
   

   Update Jan. 2021. I updated my diffuser socks without the elastic, with a string and sewing machine. I’ve come up with a few alternatives that you can use made with PARCHMENT PAPER! It’s heat resistant and you can diffuse light as much as you want. Make sure if you buy this from the grocery store you buy the parchment paper that logo free. Multiple layers of parchment = more diffusing.

4. WEBCAM | WEBCAM ARM

   The one I use in the video is $35. It’s decent for what it needs to be used for but it’s not great. You can definitely find better ones. Make me a suggestion to add to my list!
   

   $10 (The microphone arm I altered) 
   

5. HEADPHONES/MIC (for you and your students) Make some suggestions!
   

I have only owned all of these things for a short time so I cannot say how long they’ll last. I am not an expert in any of these areas, I am only offering you one of the many solutions I have come up with.

These are not the only options. But they seem to be the most affordable, most accessible, and most likely to change how your online classes go. In about thre...

QUICK PHOTOGRAPH, EDIT & TRANSFER TO MICROSOFT TEAMS TUTORIAL →

For students

Spend some time finding a good place to set up where you will take pictures throughout the semester.

Things to think about when finding a spot to photograph your work:

• Is it easy to get to?

• How is the lighting? Do you need to add light? 

• Where will you place it while you photograph it? If you don’t have a tripod, consider hanging your work on a wall, leaning it vertically, or placing it on an easel. Avoid taking the photo from above, as your body can often cause small but bothersome shadows.

• Use a tripod. (if possible) If you are documenting a piece of paper, take a picture of your work while still attached to a board or a flat surface to keep your image as accurate as possible.

Use a tripod. (if possible) If you are documenting a piece of paper, take a picture of your work while still attached to a board or a flat surface to keep your image as accurate as possible.

Why did I decide on this? Why is it important?

Distance teaching and learning means adapting to what’s available for you to use. I want my students to focus on the specific topics of the course I’m teaching and right now that’s painting and drawing.  But walking around the classroom and sharing the works in progress was always a big part of these classes and I want to keep it that way with our online classes.

I don’t want my students to focus on documenting their work and editing the photos, as this can take a lot of time. However, taking photos and documenting properly is important. Poor lighting, bad perspective, and incorrect cropping can incorrectly reflect the actual work created.  This video shows users of Microsoft Teams a quick, easy solution to simplify this process as much as possible in order to produce the best results in the shortest amount of time.

What’s Needed

If your school or business has a SharePoint Online license, then One Drive is available for free through Microsoft 365 or Office 365. The University of Houston offers this!

Tips For Teachers

If you don’t use Microsoft Teams, find another ‘scan’ app that is free to use, that uses a cloud service and this basic cropping feature. (Adobe scan is good one)