Learning Macromedia Fireworks Essentials and Digital Image Editing 7 th Grade Technology Enhancement Instructor: Mr. Craig Clairmont Mailing address: PO Box 700-1045 Main St. Corvallis, MT 59828 Location: Middle School Computer Lab Course Hours: A-Days 7 th Period Work Phone: 961-3007 E-mail: craigc@corvallis.k12.mt.us Website: http://www.corvallis.k12.mt.us Course Description: Appropriate for beginning Web graphics and design students using Fireworks. The course will: Teach you the key principles of capturing digital images and manipulating these with Macromedia Fireworks Equip you with basic skills to navigate technological developments in digital photography Teach you how to critically evaluate your own and others work in the spirit of continuous technical and artistic improvement Encourage you to experiment with the principles of digital photography and imaging Help you to develop a portfolio to be proud of Photo Taking Basics & Objectives At the end of the photography course the student should be able to: Understand the key elements of a good photograph. Know how to handle and control a digital camera. Recognize different photographic environment. Know the basics of digital editing and printing. This course is an introduction to basic digital photography focusing on skills useful for a graphic design. Topics include basic operation of a digital camera, composition, camera controls, exposure, and basic image enhancement for creative use. Camera basics will introduce you to different types of cameras, explain the different parts of a camera and show you how to use a camera. Photo Editing Basics & Objectives Students will be introduced to the fundamentals of digital photo editing which can be applied to both personal and commercial purposes using Adobe s Macromedia Fireworks Studio 8 version as the imaging editor. Photographs will be supplied for each workshop session, and students will use their personal photographs to work on for the assignments. Examples of the skills students will learn to enhance their photographs include: cropping, resizing, using levels, using layers, transforming, color and exposure correction and applying filters. Additionally, students will learn basic photo re-touching, converting color photos to black and white or sepia, restoration and manipulation. NOTE: Although there is no textbook listed as a requirement for this course, students will be advised of highly recommended references during the semester. These taskbased, visual reference guides feature step-by-step instructions and plenty of screen shots to guide students through the most important tasks. Visual QuickStart Guides are the ideal way to get students up and running quickly and are used as a quick reference. 1
Topics to be addressed are: Introduction. 1. Fireworks Basics. 2. Document Setup. 3. Colors. 4. Vector Tools. 5. Selecting Paths. 6. Working with Objects. 7. Fills. 8. Strokes. 9. Effects. 10. Working with Bitmaps. 11. Text. 12. Masks. 13. Automation Features. 14. Importing. 15. Optimizing. 16. Animations. 17. Hotspots and Links. 18. Slices. 19. Buttons and Behaviors. 20. Exporting. Appendix: Keyboard Shortcuts. Text/Materials: Macromedia Fireworks Studio 8 for Windows and Macintosh: Visual Quick Start Guide by Sandee Cohen Books: Digital Camera Solutions: Edit, Use & Share Your Digital Images by Gregory Georges ISBN: 0-9662889-6-3 2000. 368 pages Software: Adobe Macromedia Fireworks Studio 8 version and an introduction to Freeware - Digital Photo Librarian Image Editor, GIMP (http://gimp-win.sourceforge.net/) and Google s Picasa Handouts: Additional handouts may be provided during the course. Teaching Methods: 1. Lectures/Demonstrations: The first half of each class will be used to highlight the important material within each unit using interactive discussions, group work, handouts, and camera and computer demos. 2. Labs: At least the last quarter to half of each class is dedicated to hands-on learning, facilitated by the instructor. You will work at your own pace during this portion of the class to solidify the lesson material or to begin work on the unit assignments. 3. Assignments: For an A or B grade, a Final Project must be completed. Adding your own information to these projects is highly encouraged as long as it is comparable to the project requirements. 4. Internet Support: These sites may prove to be helpful to you during and after this course. o Digital Photography Tips: http://coekate.murraystate.edu/camera/resources.htm o How Stuff Works: http://www.howstuffworks.com/digital-camera.htm o Download Freeware for digital editing: http://www.download.com o Great Digital Image examples: http://www.corbis.com o More great Digital Image examples: http://www.ditto.com 2
Course Policies: Missed Classes: You are responsible for the activities of each class period. If you know of a conflict ahead of time, you are welcome to submit assignments early. There will be adequate lab time scheduled to make up the missed time or work or you may arrange lab time at an alternate time. Assignments: by e-mail or folder placement in your student folders. Please complete assignments on MS Publisher and/or MS Word, print out, and staple before turning in if required. Create a folder called Technology in your main student folder. All of your work will be saved there. If colors are an issue for a presentation assignment, keep the assignment in your folder and turn in with your typed out work creating a reference and file name for me to know where to access this file. Late assignments receive half credit. Academic Dishonesty: Plagiarism and cheating are serious offenses and may be punished by failure on exam, paper or project; failure in course. Need for Assistance: If you have any condition, such as a physical or learning disability for which you need extra assistance, please see me immediately. If you have already met with Special Services, please provide me with information regarding your special need as soon as possible so that appropriate accommodations can be made. 3
Letter Grade PROJECT S Grading: TOTAL POSSIBL E POINTS YOUR SCORE FINAL LETTER GRADE TOTAL POINTS 1 20 A 200-180 2 20 B 179-160 3 20 C 159-140 4 30 D 139-120 5 30 F 120-0 Possible Sub-total 120 A-Grade Website creation successfully posted to the Intranet. Ten digital photos successfully posted. Web page has modified colored or image background and colored text and font. Website creation from PowerPoint or other editor allowed. Same criteria for a digital photo story with Microsoft Moviemaker. B-Grade Website creation successfully posted to the Intranet. Five digital photos successfully posted OR PowerPoint Presentation to class with 10 edited digital photos. Same criteria for a digital photo story with Microsoft Moviemaker. 80 40 POSSIBLE TOTAL 200 4
Course Schedule Discussion Topics Intro to the Digital Camera Camera operation and features Connecting to a computer Camera adjustments Image taking tips Image capture Basic editing features & different editing programs Color adjustments Image editing and printing Image editing program use Digital Camera Accessories and their uses Image editing program Image editing and file formats with Kodak Image Editor Saving and storage Scanner Tutorial and its uses Images in Multimedia Demo Panoramas and Digital Film & Video Publishing Web Page to a Web Server Incorporating Finished Images into other programs Desktop publishing and presentations E-mail tips Web Cam Demo Group Image Presentation Useful websites Creating a Portfolio on the Internet or CD or PowerPoint Assignments Read Digital Camera Basic Functions from Photo Course site or text Photo Assignment #1 - Point of View See Assignment Sheet for all Photo Assignment #2 Self Portrait Photo Assignment #3 The Photo Essay Photo Assignment #4 Photos with Text Photo Assignment #5 Photos with effects Portfolio: Web Upload Portfolio and present to class Beginning Digital Photography and Image Editing Grading Criteria for Critiques 5-10 of your best prints for each assignment or project (Image - composition, subject matter, relevance to the assignment, originality, etc...) Reasonable variety of subject matter. Good print quality with concerns for correct overall exposure and contrast Good presentation of prints/photographs Strong composition if required Thoughtful response to the assignment Interesting subject matter / your approach Good presentation is the key -- please consider the order/arrangement of your photos as well. 5
Photo Assignment #1 - Point of View Work with points of view other than eye level. Look up, down, between things, at ground level, etc. Try shooting the same subject from several different points of view to see how you can manipulate it. Explore the relationship of scale to point of view. Different points of view offer us a chance to present the same old subjects as new and interesting. This assignment will give you greater control over composition. Use that to your advantage. Photo Assignment #2 - Self-Portrait The theme of self-portraiture is one as old as the history of art. It has become as acceptable in the medium of photography as in any other. Give this exercise some thought; your goal is to visually express something about yourself. Do not attempt to express everything about yourself in a 5x7 print. Photograph yourself. You can include all of yourself or part of yourself, whatever is most appropriate for you as a self-portrait. It can include an environment or not, make conscious decisions about all aspects of the image. You can also create a Glamour shot and touch it up as for a magazine advertisement. You may also remove Red-Eye. Photo Assignment #3 The Photo Essay Tell a story using photographs. Just as a story is written, a photo essay should have a beginning, middle, and an end. The topic and content is up to you. Begin sketching out you story board (line) on paper -- this will help you focus on continuity and relevance of subject matter through out your story. Photo Assignment #4 Photos with Text Take your images and add text to them with the text feature on the image editor. Create at least one with a dialog, one with a description, and one with a name. The rest are up to you. You need to have three different fonts, 3 different colors of fonts, and 3 different sizes for the fonts. Photo Assignment #5 Photos with effects Take your images and create appropriate visual effects. You need to have one image saved with 3 different effects/3 different ways. One image will have its colors embossed to look like a painting, one with blurred edges, and one cropped into a zoom effect with one other effect. A fourth photo will need to be resaved into a different format; tiff, gif, or bmp. The others you may experiment and explore the various possibilities with these effects. 6
FINAL Photo Portfolio Project Intranet based Site and Digital Photo Story Final Presentation must contain at least 10 digital photos that you've already presented in critiques and assignments. These photos will then be added to a desktop publishing program or a web editor to be posted to the Intranet. Present your slide show in class. A Grade In addition to successful completion of the five assignments, a website creation will be successfully posted to the Intranet. Ten digital photos will be successfully posted. The web page will have a modified colored or image background and colored text and font. Website creation from PowerPoint or other editors are allowed. Each photo must be copyrighted to you and include a description on or below the photo. The copyright will have your name, date taken, and any description you would like to add. See Corbis.com for an example. You will also present these same photos in a digital movie photo story format. Use Windows Movie Maker or Google s Picasa to create your movie with a background audio theme, narration or song. Present this movie to the class. B-Grade In addition to successful completion of the five assignments, a website creation will be successfully posted to the Intranet. However, only five digital photos will be successfully posted with no special web page features. OR In addition to successful completion of the five assignments, a PowerPoint Presentation will be demonstrated to the class with 10 edited digital photos from your portfolio. The PowerPoint will have a title page with your name and date. AND You will also present these same photos in a digital movie photo story format. Use Windows Movie Maker or Google s Picasa to create your movie with a background audio theme, narration or song. Present this movie to the class. 7