Art New Media 328 Online-Spring 2017
American River College
Digital Imagery-Photoshop
John Driscoll
916-220-2733
driscoj@arc.losrios.edu

Communication: If you have any quesitons or comments contact me via D2L discussions, webmail or messaging. I will respond through my ARC e-mail within 24 hrs. You are also welcome to call me. I do not maintain an on-campus office but will do my best to meet with you if other means of communication are not answering your questions or solving your problem.

Becasue this is an online "studio" class, where the primary focus is project based, digital artwork, our primary source of weekly interaction will be through our companion website and D2L. The website will have our weekly schedule, gallery of student work and project feedback. Group critiques of creative work will be accomplished thorugh the D2L discussion board for group feedback. Weekly assignments will be in the D2L contents and submitted as scheduled into our weekly dropbox. Feedback on all assignments and prelimenary design work will be in the dropbox comments. Communicaton is a key element in your success in the class....again, you are wlecome to contact me at anytime.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): To the greatest extent possible I've tried to make all our class content accessible. We have clear written instructions for all exercises and projects. My extensive feedback and critiques on all work is in written form not recorded. I have also created movies to help communciate key skills...they are subtitled for accessibility. If you see any content that could be improved or modified for accessibility, please let me know.

INTRODUCTION
Objective and Purpose
•The objective of this course is to offer an introduction to digital imaging using Photohop. The class will be taught in an online format which will require self-directed study and timely completion of assignments.

• Students will learn to create effective visual communications using Photoshop CC and apply the basic design principles to their work. A series of exercises and projects will reinforce the learned skills and principles.

•Students will enhance their design/photography vocabulary with online forums and critique groups where projects will be discussed.

Student Learning Outcomes (SLO) (ARC Curriculum)

The outcomes are what we expect students should know or be able to do upon completion of a course.

* Apply design knowledge and skill in the use of photo manipulation on the computer
* Analyze the usage of the tools available in the computer program
* Apply the tools to a series of creative projects

Student Course Topics (ARC Curriculum)

Introduction to the Adobe Photoshop tools including Painting, Editing Brushes, Airbrush, Textures, Patterns, Cloning, Smudge, Blur and Sharpen

Making Selections with simple and irregular shapes and copying selections to masks

Working with Masks and Channels

Understanding Color Models, Color Correction, Tonal Adjustments, Hue and Saturation

Manipulating selections, Filters, Stokes, Composition Technique, Gradient, Blending Modes

Create Text, Alter Text Size, Manipulate Text

Scanning, Resolution, Resampling and Resizing

Selecting Print Options, File Types and Color Separations

Importing and Exporting Files, Compressing files, Placing files

Project Critiques and In-Process Reviews

Technical Requirements
To effectively participate in this course students must have access to the following equipment and software:

Basic computer familiarity
PC or Macintosh computer with Photoshop installed
Ability to connect online through a modem, DSL or other network support
E-mail account that will allow the transfer of digital files up to 500k
Scanner, camera or phone to format and send image files as e-mail attachments

Books and Supplies
Required Software: Adobe Photoshop CC (2017 is latest update)
Photoshop CC Classroom In A Book, Adobe Press-required (2015 or 2017 Editions)
Photoshop CC Visual Quickstart Guide, Peachpit Press-optional but highly recommended

The latest Classroom In A Book wasn't published until Jan 2017 so the Bookstore had to stock the 2015 version. You may use either...the learning skills will be the same.

Adobe software is now distributed through the Creative Cloud. This monthly fee service will give you access to all of Adobe's creative products for a student rate. I believe they currently require a one-year subscription.

Student’s Responsibilities
•You are required to acknowledge that you have viewed the online orientation or you may be dropped to make room for an eager student on the waitlist.
•You must meet the assignment deadlines by posting required exercises or projects as directed in weekly lectures/assignments
•Student participation/communication in class is essential. We will critique our work as well as the work of others in online group discussions.

Overview of Assignments
•All exercises and projects will have specific due dates which can be found in the PROJECTS and SCHEDULE pages.
•Project deadlines are a very important aspect of design. Be prepared to discuss your project online and how you met project requirements with your design.
•Although we are working in an electronic medium, sketching your layouts is an important part of the creative process. You will be required to scan and e-mail some of these sketches.
•Due dates must be met.

NOTE: Weekly assignments will have a two week window for submission in the weekly dropbox. If you submit completed work during the first week (ending on Sunday) you will get full credit. If you submit during the second week you will receive half credit. No assignments will be accepted after the second week and the dropbox will be closed.

Projects submitted during the assigned week (always ending on Sunday) will be on-time. Late projects (up to one week late) will have an automatic full grade deduction. No projects will be accepted after the second week.

Grading
Your projects will be evaluated on several criteria:
•Understanding the assignment and skill with techniques
•Concept/Originality
•Design/Composition
•Technical Skill

Notes on Grading:
•All assignments must be submitted by the time scheduled on the date due unless noted otherwise by instructor or updated schedule.
•Late projects will be downgraded. Turning in a project after the deadline will result in a full letter grade reduction. (i.e. A becomes an B).
•Projects will not be accepted after one week past the due date, unless special arrangements have be made with the instructor.

Exercises/Quiz/Projects

Self-Paced Tutorials and Exercises- These are tutorials from the Adobe Classroom In-A-Book and exercises I have written which will reinforce weekly topics. These will be graded on a 10 point scale with 10 per half-semester. Cummulatively, exercises are worth 30% of overall grade. They must be comepleted on the due date to receive credit!

Quizzes - There will be two quizzes focused on Photoshop and design/photographic theory. Lectures and Classroom In A Book chapter questions will be the source for quiz questions. They will be assigned a percentage grade and, in total, are worth 10% of your overall grade.

Projects - There will be Five creative Photoshop projects which account for 60% of your total grade.

Graded Elements
Tutorials and Exercises 30%
In-class Exercises and Classroom In a Book (CIB) tutorials.

Quizzes 10%
Based on Classroom In A Book Exercises and content provided in
weekly modules

Note: There are exercises, tutorials or projects due most every week. These are deadlines which are an important aspect of the design business. You must meet deadlines to receive credit. I do give partial credit for projects that are late but why test my policy.

Projects 60%
Retouch 10%
Creative Critter 10%
Photo Synthesis 10%
Wired Magazine Cover 15%
Photo Collage-Legacy Poster15 %

Grading Scale (note: I calculate to tenths and round up at .5)

A=100-90% of total points
B=89-80%
C=79-70%
D= 69-60%
F=59% or below