W S U Fine Art Photography Program: Digital Imaging-FA 385

Digital Imaging-FA 385

Intermediate Photography

Instructor: Dennis DeHart, Assistant Professor

1:10-2:50 M/W/F

Rooms: 7093 / Digital Lab

E-Mail: dennis.dehart@wsu.edu

Office: FA 7025, Phone #: 5-4981

Office Hours: By Appointment

Course Objectives / Goals

Our focus for this class will on the continued development of the craft and tools of digital imaging practices as it relates to photography. Specifically we will be focusing on foundations of digital photography including DSLR camera, Digital Asset Management, RAW, Color Profiles, Editing with Photoshop, and Digital printmaking. This will include in depth assignments and demonstrations that will strengthen your technical skills. We will also begin to focus our attention on creative and conceptual ideas associated with image making. In addition, your will conceptualize, design, and implement your own final photo projects.

The theme of the class is constructed photography. This includes making tableaus, and creating directional and staged photography. In addition, we will be using digital imaging to explore appropriation, mixing, sampling, and layering. We will view and discuss a variety of artists, ideas, and strategies in order to develop our ideas. Artists work we will view include Juan Fontcuberta, Joel Peter Witken, David LaChapelle, Lori Nix, Robert and Shana Park-Harrison, Gilbert and George, Anthony Goicolea, Thomas Barrow, Patrick Nagatani, Louis Gonzalez Palma, Penelope Umbrico

Kahn and Selsnick and Robert Heinicken, to name a few. While we will be working with Photoshop in depth, this is an photo/art class-not a Photoshop/software training class.

Expectations/Requirements/ Attendance

Consistent and engaged attendance and participation in all aspect of the class is required. Please discuss absences in advance with the instructor. Repeated absences will result in the lowering of your grade. Two unexcused absences are allowed. Additional unexcused absences will reduce your final grade by one-half a letter grade. Eight (8) or more unexcused absences will result trigger an “F”. Not coming to class, arriving late, or leaving early, is not acceptable. Each occurrence will reduce your final grade by one-half a letter grade. Each instance of being unprepared to work will reduce your grade by one-half a letter grade. You are expected to complete all assignments on time. A final portfolio will be due for this class, in addition to several technical and artistic assignments.

Evaluation

Students will be evaluated (graded) through a combination of assignments, attendance, quizzes, and participation. Full participation in all aspects of the class including critiques will be graded. Additionally, because this is an art class, students will be evaluated on creativity and their ability to produce work. This means that if you make a considerable effort, the instructor will take your labor into account, though this does not guarantee an "A."

For maximum success, concern yourself less with your grade, and focus on investing yourself into the process of photography and art making. For some of you, this might mean the one and only art class you ever take, while for others it might be the beginning of something you will continue to do indefinitely. Either way, treat the class seriously and challenge yourself to learn the most you can about photography.

Academic Honesty
WSU is committed to principles of truth and academic honesty. Academic dishonesty includes cheating, plagiarism, and fabrication in the process of academic work, and can result in suspension or dismissal from the university. In this class, academic dishonesty will result in failure of this course and will be reported to the Office of Student Conduct

Disability Accommodations

Reasonable accommodations are available for students who have a documented disability. Please notify the professor during the first week of class regarding accommodations needed for the course. Late notification may cause the requested accommodations to be unavailable. Students needing accommodations must first have them approved through the Associate Director of Student Services, VSSB203a.

Cell Phones and Other Media Devices

WSU is committed to providing a quality- learning environment. All cell phones and be placed in a non-audible mode while in classrooms, computer labs, the library, the learning center, and testing areas. Cell phones must be used outside these facilities.

Lab Fee
$56.00 dollars.

Supplies / Equipment

-Quality Digital SLR camera or a medium format film camera.

-External hard drive

-Memory cards for your camera

-Memory Card Reader with cable

Retail

B&H Photo (NY) www.bhphotovideo.com

Freestyle (LA) www.freestylephoto.biz

Glazers (Seattle) www.glazerscamera.com

Text

Photography, 10th Ed, London, Upton, Kobre, and Stone, Pearson Education, NJ, 2010. ISBN: 0-13-028271-5. This is a comprehensive book that will serve you throughout your photo career. You may choose to buy previous editions of the book, though they might not be as relevant for future classes.

Additional handouts, notes, videos, and presentations will be provided by the instructor.

Weeks 1-4

Working foundations. What is a digital image?

-Digital capture and imaging options.

-Megapixels/Input-Output

-Overview of input devices. DSLR, different cameras

-Screen Shots, Appropriation

-Color Space. RAW Conversion, Adobe Bridge, Photoshop

·Project 1-Digital Capture (sampling)

·Group Tableau

Weeks 5-8

Photoshop: Think global. Act local.

-Image resolution, color space, image size

-Navigation, the Interface

-Tools, Layers, Masks, Filters,

- Color Correction, Soft Proofing, preparing images for multiple platforms

- Compositing, montage techniques

·Project 2-Scanner as camera (Arcimbaldo)

Cameras and Software in tandem: Extending Space

-Extending Dynamic Range

-Expanding Format

-Beyond the Rectangle

·Project 2-HDRI-Multiple shot compressed together to extend dynamic range

·Project 3-Panoramic- Stitch multiple images together in order create panorama and Extending Space with diptychs and triptychs

Weeks 8-11
Advanced compositing. Constructing, multiples. ART MAKING
Beyond the Basics
Refining

Weeks 12-16
Project development, sets, shooting, lighting, compositing. Final Projects.

Review Assignment #1: Technical Foundations /Digital Capture

Part 1: Setting up You camera

-Adjust your camera settings so that you are shooting RAW, Adobe RGB. 16 bit.

-You need to shoot memorable photographs that have good overall exposure. Conceptually, create images that say something about you and/or are autobiographical in nature.

-Use your histogram to evaluate you images as you shoot.

Part 1.2: Importing and Converting RAW

-Import your images using Adobe Bridge

-Adjust the color balance, exposure, contrast, tone, etc.

-Evaluate high, middle, low contrast. Set your black and white points

-Choose 5 of your strongest images that related to the idea of autobiography.

-Edit the images so that there is continuity between the images in terms of exposure, overall lightness and darkness, density, contrast, tone.

-Save your files in PSD or TIFF format. Please size the images not bigger 8.5x11 and 300dpi.

-Have ready to present week 3 on a jump drive

Assignment 1.3: Scanner / Analog Capture

-Please make 3 scans of your previous work in film/negative/slides/prints. If you do not have film, then please scan your 2-d artwork from other classes

-35mm negatives should be scanned in at no less the 2000dpi. 8x10 prints at no less then 300 DPI.

-Once you images are imported, edit the images. Save the images for presentation on week 3.

Assignment 1:

Building an image

Using the metaphor of mapping, I would like you to de-construct, and then reconstruct your own map. You will plot 15 points/sites on your map using the screen grab and objects you brought it. This map in many respects is an anti-map, while at the same time a new kind of map. If you are having trouble wrapping your head around this, think of hip hop music and sampling.

Technical Parameters

Part 1-Bring a minimum of 5 objects that represent you. For example old pictures, trophies, toys-any object that we

can fit on a scanner bed. We will scan these objects on a flatbed scanner. At least 2 of the objects/pics need to include you.

Part 2-Buy a paper map. Cut it up and re-collage it on a 8x10 pieces of paper. The map can be of anything, though it must be reconfigured (use scissors and glue)

Part 3-Make 10 screen grabs from your home state/province/region. Put these in a folder along with your scans.

Part 4-Set up your canvas with your map. The canvas size is 16x20 @ 300 dpi.

Part 5-Beginning building your “map” by layering different elements (screen grabs/scans of objects, etc. ) on top your canvas. Some of you will know how to technically accomplish this more then other. Don’t worry, I am here to help

Part 6-While the project is due next friday, you will have an opportunity to “re-do” the work later in the semester, after you have more technical knowledge.

Project is due Friday, the end of week 3

Digital Imaging-FA 385

Intermediate Photography

Assignment #2:

Compositing, collage, montage, and selection.

Technically

1. Collecting images using scanner / or camera

2. Importing and resizing images

3. Selections, canvas, image placement, resolution, rotation, scaling images

4. Color correction, composition, layers, and design

Artistically:

1. Using everyday found and collected objects to create portraiture

2. Employing compositing, and collage to express a point of view

3. Selected and contextualizing objects and re-contextualizing in a new space

4. Expressing oneself through limitation

For project 2, you will need to either photograph or scan objects to be used in a portrait similar to Arcimboldo. You will need to use a minimum of 20 objects (anything goes within reason) The final image needs to laid out on a 16x20 black canvas @ 300 dpi. To do the project, you will need to first do a rough sketch. Then you will need to scan the objects. From there, you will need to import the images onto your canvas using layers and size, rotate, and ultimately composite to make a final portrait.

Giuseppe Arcimboldo. Was an Italian painter best known for creating imaginative portrait heads made entirely of such objects as fruits, vegetables, flowers, fish, and books – that is, he painted representations of these objects on the canvas arranged in such a way that the whole collection of objects formed a portrait.

Assignment 2.1:

Using screen shots, image downloads, scanning, sampling, etc. Make 1 16"x20" image, @ 300 DPI, that uses a minimum of 25 photos. For this part of the project, we are interested in pattern and repetition, or how the sum of parts creates a larger whole. (refer to Penelope Umbrico)

Gilbert and George

Project #3

HDRI

HDRI (High Dynamic Range Imaging) has recently gained popularity as technique for making photographs. Like any tool, the technique has become rampant with both memorable and also gimmicky kinds of images. Continuing with the classes theme, we will study some aspects of HDRI in order to provide you with another tool in order to make compelling images.

Some tools that you will specifically need for this next project will be a tripod and a digital camera.

In essence, bracketing with your camera is the first and most important step in creating HDRI images.The easy way would be to set you camera on aperture priority and take a series of shots using the same aperture while adjusting the shutter speed. (For example you set your camera at F11and adjust the shutter speed to1/30, 1/60, 1/125, 1.250, 1/500, etc.) You also can use the manual setting. Remember, you want to keep the aperture the same throughout the exposure.

After you have completed your shoot, you can then import the images into Photoshop (In CS5 it would be under File>Automate>Merge to HDR Pro. From her you will navigate to the folder of images and import the images. Photoshop will “compress” the images into one “super image.” At this point you now have an HDRI image that can be edited.

For your project, I would like you to create 3 HDRI images.

Project #3.1

Panorama (Stitching)
Please create 2 panoramas using 5 vertical images. A tripod is imperative. We will review the technical stitching aspect in class. After you have completed your shoot, you can then import the images into Photoshop (In CS5 it would be under File>Automate>Photomerge.