Meeting 1

Impara l'arte e mettila da parte

Handouts: Syllabus, Model Release Form, and model usage guidelines.
(See Handouts and Instructional Materials section of my web site for online copies of most class handouts)

Introduction

Attendance,  Syllabus
Discussion.

Needed for class
Students will need some means to store, carry and backup large assignment files. Most students choose external hard drives or USB Flash memory drives. Get 1GB or more. If you are thinking about an external hard drive to store your files, make sure that you get one that is powered by the computer connection and doesn't require a separate power block.

Our current computers use can use Apple Thunderbolt  and USB3 drives. Fast hard drives will be required if you take a video class later. If you own a FireWire [IEEE 1394] drive, you will need an adapter or cable to attach it to the newer ThunderBolt interface on our computers.  Commonly available USB 2.0 hard drives, while they will function on our machines, will be too slow for data-intensive material like video but will be OK for this class. If you have a choice, USB 3.0 is faster and worth the little extra money it costs.

The computers in the labs don't have integrated optical disk capability (CD or DVD), to that wouldn't be a viable option here.

With any storage device, back it up. It is wise to have duplicate or triplicate copies on a different media. For example, you might use a USB flash memory key to transfer work to and from the lab, and that gets backed up occasionally to an external hard drive. In this day and age, backups are expected. Unless the circumstances are extreme, no excuse that involves a lack of backed-up work will be considered.

Books (optional)
The meeting notes found online explain the class assignments and using Photoshop in detail. They can be considered an online textbook so you aren't required to purchase a printed textbook. Note that these online notes may be changing slightly as they are improved, or new features are discovered. Including full day-to-day detail is a significant challenge to plan.

There are many texts concerning Photoshop beside my web site, so if you need to, select one. For retouching, Ctein, and Katrin Eismann & Wayne Palmer are authors with good books. For photographers, Martin Evening is a reputable author. For retouching video in Photoshop, Gary David Bouton's book is a good choice. Note that some of these books may not have been updated for Creative Cloud, but the concepts behind the work should be similar. Some students use lynda.com for additional training instead of a textbook.

Other
You will be issued a color print card part way through the term. Be sure to follow VisCom procedure when using the cards for printing. Ask the computer lab manager if you don't know how the system works. Printing instructions will be given about mid-semester in this class, but you can follow this link now if you wish.

Examples of Work
Show examples of past student work and the work of other professionals. A great deal of additional student artwork is available online on my website. Look for the link on the Illustration I: Digital Imaging Start Page.