While you are in room 26, consider yourself an employee of an exciting new design company. I’ll train you and evaluate your learning, but sometimes you’ll train yourself or another student. As you gain more training, you’ll gain the confidence to take on projects for real clients.

I will teach you how to be a professional. You will work hard, but expect to have fun too! This is my fifth year teaching at Yreka High School and thirteenth overall. I have also worked as a graphic and web designer for ten years, studied photography for countless years, and have enjoyed photography my whole life. I love teaching! My goal is for everyone to find something inspiring, interesting, fun, or new. I look forward to learning from - and being inspired by - you too.

I created this website to make your learning easier and more organized. Click on your course tab above, and you will see a detailed academic calendar. There is a Gallery there too for student work. Let me know if you have any ideas to improve our Website!

Foundations of Photography* is a hands-on class for those photographers just starting their love affair with photography. The skills and knowledge presented in this class show you how to take and make great photographs using a step-by-step approach. This class gently guides new photographers from tentative beginnings though wobbly first steps to a level where they can confidently create their own great pictures.

Taking photographs is enjoyable and challenging in all sorts of ways. After all, it’s a method of creating pictures which does not demand that you have drawing skills. It’s a powerful means of storing memories, showing situations or expressing views which does not insist that you be good at words. But don’t fall into the trap of thinking you must have the latest, expensive ‘gee whiz’ camera to get the most telling shots. What photography demands of you are skills of a different sort that are independent of the technology used to capture the picture. Of these, the most important is the ability to observe - sharpen up your ‘seeing’ of surroundings, people and simple everyday objects in the world around you. Avoid taking these things for granted just because they are familiar. Develop your awareness of the way lighting and viewpoint can transform appearances, and be quick-thinking enough to capture an expression or sum up a fast-changing situation by selecting the right moment to shoot. Become skilled in these areas and you will be a good photographer.

Don’t get the wrong idea. I’m not saying that technical abilities and the latest digital equipment do not contribute to the making of great pictures - they do. It is just that you should keep in the forefront of your mind that techniques and ideas presented in this class serve only one purpose. That is, to support the creation of images that you see with your eyes first and capture with your camera second. This seems a funny way to start a class that, let’s face it, is about learning the techniques of photography, but seeing is the foundation skill upon which all good photography is built and so I think that it is essential to remind you of its importance right from the start. This course is designed to help every beginner expand their photography and increase their enjoyment of picture making with today’s cameras.

* This class meets the VPA requirement for UC admission

Graphic Design/Photography is a class that combines the creativity of an art class with the technology of computers. You do not need to be the most creative or artistic person to take this class, nor do you have to be the most skilled person on the computer. All that you need to know for this class will be taught to you in a step-by-step manner, which will build your skills from the most basic to a proficient designer by the end of the year. All you need to do is be willing to learn and try your best to follow along every day in class.

You will be asked to learn about the basics in art, including elements and color theory, as well as the principles of design and layout. Along with that, you will also get hands on training in the newest technology available, including Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, and InDesign. These programs will give you the tools to create real projects, like the pros.

Some of the assignments you will be doing include Magazine Covers and Layouts, Product Design, Posters and Advertising, Brochures, Stickers, Illustrations, Photograms, Pinhole Cameras, Digital Photo manipulation, and T-Shirt Design (silk screening) plus a few other things.

No matter what your interest, you will be able to make each assignment unique by putting your own creative twist on it. All that I ask is that each student does their best to push themselves further and further with each project.

Welcome to the 2012 ieka staff and thanks for taking on this challenge. It means a great deal to me that each of you has decided to invest your time into this project. You won’t be disappointed!

I always wish that I were somehow able to give you a glimpse of the great sense of accomplishment you’ll feel for your part in making our yearbook come together when it arrives in late May. I guarantee you that the pride you’ll feel in your work and the effort we all have put in as a staff will quickly make you forget the many sacrifices along the way. How great it is to show your friends the book and be able to say “I wrote that story…,” “I designed that layout…,” “I shot that picture….”

“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.”  - John Quincy Adams

ASB is run for the students, by the students. The purpose of the ASB is to encourage a high standard of scholarship, promote order and discipline within the context of a democracy, foster cooperation between the administration, staff and student body, to initiate and supervise all student activities and fund-raisers, and to inspire loyalty to YHS. The ASB provides students with the opportunity to participate in the planning and execution of activities and to learn constructive leadership procedures. Student government activities are organized on two levels, school-wide and by grade level. All students enrolled at YHS are represented through ASB. At YHS, students are encouraged to actively take part in the decision-making process that concerns and affects the student body. This course will promote teamwork, responsibility, and self-discipline.

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