Digital Imaging
Spring 09


ART 181-BASIC DIGITAL IMAGING - 4211 1:00pm-4:00pm - 03/17-05/12

Class Schedule: 
Tuesdays 1:00pm-4:00pm

Location:
Barnett 1261

Office Hours:
Monday / Wednesday 11:00 - 12:00 or by appointment

Instructor:  John Sappington - john@basearts.com

ANALY HALL - ART COMPUTER LAB HOURS

Tuesday and Thursdays 1:30 -4:30

Overview
Schedule
Resources

Final Critique/ Presentations :

Course Syllabus

Online Syllabus (this page):

http://www.basearts.com/curriculum/SRJC.DigitalImaging.htm
Outline: http://www.basearts.com/curriculum/DigImagingOutline.htm

Recommended Texts in...

Digital Imaging (general theory)

multiMedia: From Wagner to Virtual Reality, Randall Packer & Ken Jordan, Norton, 2001
The Language of New Media, Lev Manovich, MIT Press, 2002
The Digital Dialectic: New Essays on New Media, Peter Lunenfeld, The MIT Press, 1999
Snap to Grid: A User's Guide to Digital Arts, Media, and Cultures, Peter Lunenfeld, The MIT Press, 2000

Against the Clock: Mastering Graphic Technology, " Photography,Writing, Design, Color, Type Companion for the Digital Artist, Pearson/Prentice Hall, 2004

Photography/Adobe Photoshop :

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

"Photoshop CS3 for Windows and Macintosh", Elaine Weinmann, Peter Lourekas, Peachpit Press 2007
www.peachpit.com

"Photoshop CS2 for Windows and Macintosh", Elaine Weinmann, Peter Lourekas, Peachpit Press 2005
www.peachpit.com

"The Photoshop CS3 Book for Digital Photographers", Scott Kelby, New Riders Publishing, 2007
www.scottkelbybooks.com

"The Photoshop CS2 Book for Digital Photographers", Scott Kelby, New Riders Publishing, 2005
www.scottkelbybooks.com

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

Design:

Design Writing Research Writing on Graphic Design, Elen Lupton & Abbot Miller Phaidon, 1996
Graphic Design Cookbook: mix and match recipes for faster, better layouts, Leonard Koren & R. Wippo Meckler, Chronicle Books, 1989
Looking Closer 2, Critical Writings on Graphic Design, Edited by Michael Bierut, William Drenttel, Steven Heller, and DK Holland, Allworth Press, 1997
the abc's of (symbols - triangle, square, circle) : The Bauhaus and Design Theory, Ellen Lupton and J. Abbott Miller, editors, 1999 *reprint.
History of Graphic Design, Philip B. Meggs

Typography:

Texts on Type, Critical Writings on Typography, Steven Heller and Philip B. Meggs, Allworth Press, 2001
The Thames & Hudson Manual of Typography, Ruari McLean, Thames & Hudson, Ltd., 1980
Great Type and Lettering Designs, David Brier, North Light Books, 1992.
Creative Typography, Marion March, North Light Books, 1988.
Type Design, Color, Character & Use, Michael Beaumont, North Light Books, 1987.
The New Typography, Jan Tschichold, University of California Press, 1995


Description:
An introduction to the basic principles and practices of digital production for fine art or personal use. Students will develop and enhance their abilities in the creation of digital artworks. Course introduces use of computer generated imagery, scanning technology, and digital photography.

COURSE CONTENT
Outcomes and Objectives:

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:
1. Create digital images with the computer.
2. Utilize a digital camera and the resulting images to produce digital artwork.
3. Operate a scanner and prepare resulting images to produce digital artwork.
4. Properly store and backup digital files.

Topics and Scope:
I. Image File formats
A. Vector
B. Raster
C. File Types and Use

II. Digital Camera and Scanner
A. Hardware Control
B. Resolution
C. Exposure
D. Basic Editing and Image Manipulation Functions

III. Computer Based Imagery
A. Basic Digital Tools Introduction
B. Resolution
C. Basic Editing and Image Manipulation Functions

IV. Transferring and storing digital artwork
A. Presenting artwork on the computer
B. Writing files to cd or dvd.

V. Critiquing Work

VI. Copyright Issues

Assignments:
Assignments may include any or all of the following:
1. Create a digital photogram.
2. Create composited digital images.
3. Make a presentation of digital artwork.
4. Create a backup of digital images to cd or dvd.

Textbooks:
STUDENTS PLEASE NOTE: DO NOT BUY TEXTBOOKS before checking with the SRJC Bookstore.
These titles are representative only, and may not be the same ones used in your class.

EVALUATION:

40% of student grades will be based on class participation.  Students must attend class in order to effectively participate.
50% of student grades will be based on the completion of assignments. 
These assignments will not be graded for skill or content, but will be evaluated for technical completion. 
10% of the student grade will be determined by the final portfolio presentation.

A PORTFOLIO OF COMPLETED WORK WILL BE MAJOR BASIS FOR COURSE GRADE. OTHER
FACTORS: ATTENDANCE, EFFORT, GROWTH, AND CLASS PARTICIPATION.

Required Supplies / Equipment:

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

Optional storage media types are:
100MB/250 Mb Zip disks, CD ROM/DVD-R, Write-once or Re Writable: Approx. capacity 700+MB-
Flash drives, memory sticks, etc..  

An accessible email account is required.  This can be accessed through the Lab: and may be a free account like those avaiLab:le from Hotmail, Yahoo, Gmail, Google, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc.  The instructor will assist students in obtaining an e-mail account if necessary. 

Check this e-mail account at least twice a week.  General class announcements will be reported via e-mail.

ATTENDANCE POLICY:

You 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. 

More than three absences will affect a student’s grade; the fourth and each subsequent absence will drop a student’s overall grade one portion of a letter grade (e.g. from a full B to a B-). Repeated tardiness will also affect a student’s overall grade; every three tardies will count as equal to one absence.

If you are intending to drop the class, please notify the instructor.  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.

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Attendance Requirements

It shall be the policy of the Sonoma County Junior College District to maintain an attendance policy and procedures consistent with State and local requirements.

1.0 Attendance

1.1 Students are expected to attend all sessions

of the course in which they are enrolled.

1.2 Any student with excessive absences may be dropped from the class.

2.0 Excessive Absence Defined

2.1 A student may be dropped from any class when that student’s absences exceed ten percent (10%) of the total hours of class time.

2.2 Instructors shall state in each course syllabus what constitutes excessive absence for that course.

3.0 Excused vs. Unexcused absences

3.1 Unless state or federal law requires that the absence be deemed excused, no instructor shall be required to make a distinction between excused and unexcused absences.

3.2 If individual Instructors wish to distinguish between excused and unexcused absences the instructor shall state in each course syllabus all criteria for any excused absences in addition to those required by state or federal law.

4.0 Nonattendance

4.1 Students who fail to attend the first two class meetings of a full semester course may be dropped by the instructor.

4.2  Faculty are required to drop all No-Show students by the Census Date of each census course.  A No-Show is an enrolled student who has not attended any class meeting of the course at any time, or who has not contacted the instructor to make arrangements to remain enrolled in the course.

 Policy 8.15, Revised July 10, 2007