Digital Photography
ART-150W 8638 Digital Camera
Fall 2005

Location:
A-303

Class Schedule: Lecture/Lab – Friday 10-3
Office Hours: 3-4 by appointment

Instructor:  John Sappington - john@basearts.com

Course Syllabus

Online Syllabus:  http://www.basearts.com/DigitalPhotoDVCf05.htm

DESCRIPTION:

This course is an introduction to approaches and techniques of digital imaging that focus on the use of the digital camera and digital darkroom. The course will cover the technical and practical aspects of the digital camera, and the use of image editing software (Photoshop), covering traditional darkroom concerns and exploring the particulars and potentials of the digital image.

Recommended Technical Texts:

"The Photoshop CS Book for Digital Photographers", Scott Kelby, New Riders Publishing, 2004
www.scottkelbybooks.com


"The Photoshop Book for digital photographers", Scott Kelby, New Riders Publishing, 2003
www.scottkelbybooks.com

"Photoshop 7 Professional Photographic Techniques", Janee, Nyree Costello, Gavin Cromhout, Vikas Shah, friends of Ed, 2002
www.friendsofed.com

"Photoshop 7 for Windows and Macintosh", Elaine Weinmann, Peter Lourekas, Peachpit Press 2003
www.peachpit.com

Photography, Barbara London, John Upton, Ken Kobre, Betsy Brill, Prentice Hall
or
Photography, Revised Edition, Henry Horenstein, Russell Hart Prentice Hall


Required Supplies / Equipment:

A digital camera is required.

Students are required to obtain backup media to store class example files and work in progress.

Optional media types are:

- 250MB Zip disks

- CD-ROM , Write-once or Re Writable: Approx. capacity 700+MB 

- DVD ROM, Write-once or Re Writable: Approx. capacity 2-4 GB.

Students are also required to have an e-mail account.  This can be accessed through the lab and may be a free account like those available from Hotmail, Yahoo, Freemail, Excite, etc.  The instructor will assist students in obtaining an e-mail account if necessary only on the first day of class.  Students will be expected to check this e-mail account at least once a week.  General class announcements will be reported via e-mail.

EVALUATION:

50% of student grades will be based on class participation.  Students must attend class in order to effectively participate.

40% of student grades will be based on the completion of assigned exercises.  These exercises will not be graded for skill or content, but will be checked for completion.  Incomplete assignments will be considered undone. 

10% of student grades will be determined by averaging grades on three evaluative class assignments and one final project.

Students are expected to attend all of every class meeting unless they have received prior permission from the instructor. Attendance will be taken at the beginning of each class meeting. Anyone absent when attendance is taken will be assumed absent from the class.   If you are late to class it is your responsibility to make sure your attendance is acknowledged by talking to the instructor. 

If you are intending to drop the class, it is your responsibility to drop the class.  You should not assume that the instructor will automatically drop you because of absences.  If you stop attending classes and you do not drop the class, and the instructor has not dropped you from the class; the instructor may be required to give you a grade of F for the class.

• Internet Resources-Links
• Course Outline - http://www.basearts.com/DigitalPhotoOutline.htm
  

Syllabus Overview - Expectations, Requirements, Objectives,
Best Practices.

Assignment:

Email account exchange - email my account (john@basearts.com) with Digital Photography DVC Fall 05 in the subject line for the purposes of a class email list.

Bring 5 images minimum - However you can get them here - in whatever media ...

Reading:

Camera Manuals

Course Outline - http://www.basearts.com/DigitalPhotoOutline.htm

Review Internet Resources - http://www.basearts.com/resources.htm

Artists:

Sites:

http://www.lomographics.com

Lecture:

Digital Imaging/Camera Basics: Camera

Lab:

Assignment:

Locate and Read Camera Manual - Cover to Cover
Set Camera to highest resolution
Bring Camera with cables (usb/firewire)

Reading:

Artists:

Sites:

Lecture:

Camera Operation - Exposure basics

Lab:

Assignment:

Bracketed Exposures - Choose a subject and make 5 bracketed exposures.
1st exposure according to meter reading.
2nd + .5 half step greater aperture selection or more exposure (over)
3rd + 1 whole step (full stop) greater aperture selection (over)
4th .5 half step smaller aperture selection or less exposure (under)
5th - 1 whole step smaller aperture selection or less exposure (under)

*Be sure to make notes of the exposures in your journal.

Experiment with the shutter speeds + and or - one shutter speed is equal to a full stop.

Reading:

Artists:

Sites:

Lecture:

Introduction to Photoshop - Best Practices

• File Browser
• Image Size / Resizing
• Resampling
• Embedding File Info
• Layers Introduction
  

Lab:

Critique Bracketed Exercise

Reading:

Keep working on those manuals - reread as you work on the bracketed exposures. Reread ISO controls or sensitivity controls, White Balance.

Artists:

Sites:

Lecture:

Scanner

Photoshop: Creating Selections and Manipulating

• Marquee
• Move
• Crop
• Magic Wand
  
  Paths, Bezier Objects
• Pen Tool
  

Lab:

Assignment:

5-n-1 - Take an existing file and crop to create 5 different image files. Focus is on re-framing and composing. Not compositing.

Reading:

Digital Photography Workflow: Top photographers talk shop
Steve McCurry, Matthew Jordan Smith and Joyce Tenneson. Although their styles and subjects vary greatly, their digital workflows share common components. It's not merely a coincidence. Read about the technologies and workflow techniques each of these photography icons has employed to stay ahead of the game.
http://www.extensis.com/en/about/customer_stories.jsp?contentTypeView=all&ad=80302

Appendix A - Seeing and Writing 2 - On the Theory and Practice of Seeing - handout
Recommended: John Berger - Ways of Seeing

Artists:

Sites:

Lecture:

Photoshop:

Luminance / Color Corrections

• Adjustment Layers
  Photo Filters
• Curves
• Levels
  
  
  
  Discussion:
  On the Theory and Practice of Seeing
  

Lab:

REVIEW: 5-n-1

Reading:

Appendix B - Seeing and Writing 2 - On Reading Visual and Verbal Texts -handout

Artists:

Sites:

Lecture:

Photoshop:

• Burn / Dodge
• Clone
• Healing
• History

Discussion:
On Reading Visual and Verbal Texts

Lab:

Critique: 5 of current best images - Non-Assigned

Reading:

Artists:

Sites:

Lecture:

Photoshop:

• Compositing
• Vector Tools
• Text Tools

• Automation Techniques - Presentation
  

Lab:

Assignment:

Composite - 1 in 5 - Create one image file from the components or pieces of minimum 5 image files. Create multiple variations on the composition at will.

Reading:

Artists:

Sites:

Mid-Term Reviews / Interviews

If you do not have an assigned time make sure you show up at the start of class to get one!

Lab:

Assignment:

Evaluation Form (Please Complete and Submit from your home system)

Reading:


Digital Photography: The Dubitative Image, from Snap to Grid: A Users Guide to Digital Arts, Media and Cultures, by Peter Lunenfeld

"Thinking about photography: Debates, historically and now.", Photography: A Critical Introduction, Edited by Liz Wells

Artists:

Sites:

Lecture:

Working with Flash and ambient light.

Lab:

Assignment:

Reading:

From Brandon Smith - colored gels and diffusion material for on camera flash units...

This book has alot of filters for diffusion.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=45184&is=REG

This book has more colors.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=45189&is=REG

Only have to pay $.01 plus shipping ($4), no gimmick.

Artists:

Sites:

Lecture:

Photoshop: Printing

• File Types - Reviewed
• Color Management
• Resolution
• Pre-Press File Preparation
• Proofs / Printing Options from w/in PSD

Reading Discussion

Lab:

Assignment:

Digital Art Supplies
http://www.digitalartsupplies.com

order sample sheets....!


Shooting Assignment:

Let's make it simple - 3-5 images of light. Where light is the central subject or primary focus of the image.
Consider both ambient or existing natural and artificial light sources and utiliting the flash.

Be sure to also experiment with the flash in daylight. What impact does it have ... ?

Reading:

Printers - Materials - Supplies

PS Print
http://www.psprint.com/

Preparing files for print - Pagemaker, Illustrator
http://www.psprint.com/helpcenter/preparingyourfiles/digitalcheck_pm.asp

Artists:

Sites:

Digital Art Supplies
http://www.digitalartsupplies.com

Discussion

Digital Photography: The Dubitative Image, from Snap to Grid: A Users Guide to Digital Arts, Media and Cultures, by Peter Lunenfeld

Lab:

Photoshop:Printing

Assignment:

Come with ink jet paper for proofs.

Reading:

Artists:

Sites:

Lab:

Photoshop:Printing

Reading:

Artists:

Sites:

Lecture:

Output to the Web

Lab:

Assignment:

Reading:

Artists:

Commercial Photographers - Online presence (sampling)

http://www.nadavkander.com
http://www.jockmcdonald.com/
http://www.milesaldridge.com/
http://www.marcleclef.com/

Lecture:

Photoshop: Web Cont...

• Optimization
• Automation Techniques

Lab:

Assignment:

Reading:

Artists:

Sites:

Lecture:

Legal / Copyright Issues

Protecting your images
Respecting the work of others

Lab:

Assignment:

Reading:

Electronic Frontier Foundation
http://www.eff.org

Intellectual Property Online: Patent, Trademark, Copyright
http://www.eff.org/IP/

U.S. Copyright Office
http://www.copyright.gov

Adobe
http://studio.adobe.com/us/tips/tip.jsp?p=1&id=54&xml=phs7addcopyright

The Free Expression Policy Project
http://www.fepproject.org/fepp/fairuseintro.html

Artists:

Sites:

Reading:

Artists:

Sites:

Reading:

Artists:

Sites: