Photographer HPGE enrichment program | Stage 2–3 | Creative Arts | Field of Mars EEC
Program overview
Photographer is a Stage 2 and 3 Creative Arts HPGE enrichment program where students become nature photographers, using professional composition techniques to capture striking images of the bushland environment. Working throughout Field of Mars Reserve, students explore macro photography, perspective, framing, lighting and visual storytelling while developing advanced observation and editing skills using iPads. Each student curates a digital portfolio and selects one standout image to be printed and framed. HPGE domains: creative, intellectual.
Learning intentions
- We are learning how photographers use composition, perspective, focus and lighting to create striking images.
- We are learning to edit and curate digital photographs to communicate ideas and visual impact.
Essential information
Cost and details
Cost |
$60 per student - GST free This will be processed through the student's home school. This program is only available to NSW Department of Education school students. |
Dates |
Available dates |
Times |
9.15 – Drop off 2.15 – Pick up |
| Risk assessment | See location tile below. |
Transport |
Schools are required to organise transport for students to and from the location. No vehicles are permitted into Field of Mars Reserve. |
Staff |
Teachers are not required to attend but are welcome. |
Student selection |
Maximum 12 students per school per day. When choosing your students, remember the program takes place indoors, outdoors and in public spaces. Students may be near creeks and bushland tracks. While EEC teachers supervise them all day, consider if they’ll need SLSO or teacher support to stay safe. |
Bring |
Sports uniform, backpack, medication, low-waste food, water bottle, sunblock, raincoat, hat, sturdy shoes, reusable name tag. |
View |
Preparing for your excursion |
Welfare |
Participants will be walking during the day on an accessible boardwalk. Wheelchair accessible. May not suit recently unwell participants. For medical or special needs notify staff prior to program. |
Extreme or wet weather |
Program may be modified, postponed or cancelled due to predicted extreme temperatures, bush fire danger, heavy rainfall, high winds or dust storms. |
Booking policy |
Confirm student details 7 days in advance. |
Cancellation fee |
Less than 4 weeks notice – full cost (excluding HPGE programs in Term 1, Weeks 3–5) Weather or fire danger cancellation – $0 |
Activities
Composition
Students will be introduced to the art of photographic composition without initially using a camera. Using printed photographs, gallery-style critique and framing tools, students will deconstruct how professional photographers use the rule of thirds, framing, leading lines and focus to control what viewers notice in an image.
Nature photography
Equipped with Field of Mars EEC iPads, students will explore the reserve like professional nature photographers, searching for unique perspectives, dramatic lighting, tiny details and striking natural compositions.
Students will experiment with macro photography, perspective, texture, symmetry and selective framing while photographing plants, animals, patterns and landscapes across the reserve.
Editor
Returning to the studio classroom, students will edit and refine their strongest photographs using professional-style editing techniques. They will learn how photographers adjust colour, contrast, cropping and focus to improve visual impact and guide audience attention.
Students will create a photography book using their best images. The book will be printed and a PDF version will be returned to school via Google drive.
Gallery-quality takeaway
Each student will select one of their photographs to be printed on photo paper, mounted in a frame and returned to school as a finished exhibition-style artwork.
Slide show
Selected student photographs will be showcased in a gallery-style slideshow at the conclusion of the day. Parents are welcome to attend and celebrate student creativity and achievement.
This program is only available to NSW Department of Education schools.
Timetable
Time |
Activities |
| 9.15 | Arrival |
| 9.30 - 10.15 | Composition |
| 10.15 - 10.30 | Recess |
| 10.30 - 12.30 | Nature photography |
| 12.30 - 1.00 | Lunch |
| 1.00 - 2.00 | Editor |
| 2.00 - 2.15 | Slide show |
| 2.15 | Depart |
Tier 2 and 3 vocabulary
Syllabus outcomes and content
Syllabus outcomes and content Stage 2
Creative Arts K-6 Syllabus (2024)
Visual Arts
Outcome
- makes artworks using art forms to represent subject matter and ideas, and describes ways artists convey ideas about their world to audiences through artworks CA2-VIS-01
Content
Making: Artists represent their world through subject matter and ideas in artworks
- represent subject matter and ideas in artworks, making choices based on own interpretations of the world
- use drawing materials and techniques to create effects with texture and tone to represent subject matter and ideas
- explore balance, scale and proportion in compositions to represent subject matter and ideas
- demonstrate safe art making practices with respect for physical, social and digital saftey
Creative Arts K-6 Syllabus © NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) for and on behalf of the Crown in right of the State of New South Wales, 2024
Syllabus outcomes and content Stage 3
Creative Arts K-6 Syllabus (2024)
Visual Arts
Outcomes
- makes artworks in intentional ways to represent ideas about their world, and explains ways artists are influenced by contexts and how artworks are interpreted by audiences CA3-VIS-01
Content
Making: Artists represent their world in intentional ways through their artmaking practice
- Represent ideas or perspectives of their world and intentions in own artmaking practice
- Use drawing materials and techniques to create artistic effects to represent subject matter or ideas in intentional ways
- Create intentional effects with awareness of the relationships between colours and tones, to represent subject matter or ideas in realistic, imaginative or symbolic ways
- Use painting materials, techniques and processes to explore ways to apply paint in combination with mixed media materials
- Apply understandings of materials, digital technologies and processes to represent intended ideas in artworks
- Explore artistic conventions and ways to represent subject matter and ideas in compositions
- Demonstrate safe artmaking practices with respect for physical, social, digital and cultural safety
Creative Arts K-6 Syllabus © NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) for and on behalf of the Crown in right of the State of New South Wales, 2024
Location
Field of Mars Reserve
Main location – including risk assessment, maps and track overview.
Teachers or parents will need to drop off and pick up students.
Westminster Road alternate entrance
This entrance or exit offers access during severe high tides and heavy rainfall events that cause flooding on the main Pittwater Road entrance.
Learn with us
Book now
Book your HPGE program using our online booking form.
Learning resources
View online lessons that support primary incursion and excursion programs.
Flora and fauna fact sheets
View our curriculum-aligned fact sheets on Australian animals, plants, ecosystems and environments for NSW primary and secondary students, ideal for research, projects and classroom learning.