Assignments 226

Create a wordpress.com page or site as a basis for your class portfolio. Make sure it links from the student links page on  this site.
Summary:
Assignments:  16 original photos in 8 categories
Lessons:  8 lessons
Extra credit:
     (For RU html pages only)   Google motion graphics chart;  Adobe gallery; slices
     (WordPress): A plug-in,  for example:   “This Day in History”  or connection to Facebook, Flickr, Twitter, etc.

ASSIGNMENTs:

Display 16 original photos on your web site, taken by you during this semester, at least one each in the following categories:  

A1) People or things around campus (Feb. 25 exercise)

A2) Portrait of a person

A3) Nature or animals or pets — Tell a story with this.

A4) River — Portrait of the New River in spring.

A5) sports event  — Get close. Be sure people are a big part of the frame of your shot. Move the camera with the action to keep the foreground in focus. 

A6) Tall building / architecture  – Use the Photoshop grid warp adjustment

A7) atmosphere / light / Abstract in the everyday — Look for a pattern or something unusual in the things you see everyday. 

A8) — Shoot in famous photographer style You may also see images by famous photographers on the masters-of-photography web site. 

How these are graded:  

– Aesthetics:
Subject should be appropriate for assignment
Theme is emphasized within the frame
Composition is balanced; rule of thirds, etc.
Proportions are pleasing and dynamic

– Technical issues:
Light and colors are level and balanced
Pixel depth is 72 ppi
Size is no more than 10 by 12 and no less than 5 by 8
File is optimized as a compressed jpg

Lessons:

Photos provided on D2L site 

L1.  Process and display the image  — Find a public domain image on the web. Download it to your desktop and open it in Photoshop.  Check the  (top menu) image / image size.  It should be 72 pixels per inch and the file size should be less than 250 k.   Now  file / save for web  and use jpg format.  Post to your wordpress page as L1.
L2 – Adjust image exposure  — L2 photo is provided.  Use Image / Adjustments / Levels   or  Image / Adjustments / Shadow – Highlight   to correct this photos:  See Jennings tutorials
L3 – Cropping, resizing –  L3 photo is provided on D2L.  Using the the rotate tool, straighten the image, then using the crop tool, cut off the edges of the image. You should have corners with white space at this point.Now, using the Clone tool, fill in the corners with other visual information from the middle of the photo. Save for the web and publish to your wordpress page.

L4 – Canvas size, layers, select tools, gradient tool — L4 photo is provided. This exercise is based on a hypothetical situation in which you need to create the cover of a magazine and this photo is the best you have from the great Balloon Race last week.

  1. Download the balloon photo and open it in Photoshop.
  2. Assignment2.balloon
  3. Rotate the canvas
  4. Invert (change from negative to positive)   Image / Adjustments / Invert
  5. Crop to basic image
  6. Use “magic wand” to get rid of sky / background
  7. - select sky and delete (probably have to do this a dozen times to get it all.
  8. - you should have empty space there now.
  9. Expand Image / Canvas size to  8 w and 12 h.
  10. Using the layer pallet, create another layer underneath the balloon image.  Call it “sky.”
  11. Using the Gradient tool, create a blue to white gradient on the sky layer.
  12. Using the text tool, write your magazine’s title in the space across the top. It could be anything you like (as long as its clean).
  13. Save the basic .psd photo on your desktop.
  14. Save for web and devices as a .jpg when you are done. This will flatten all your layers, so dont do that before you do step 13.
L5 – Photo fixes and touchups –   (See Adobe Help pages for more information)
  1. Red Eye 1  – Click on this Wikimedia commons photo and fix using the red eye tool
  2. Healing Brush — Click on this photo and use healing tools to fix it up.
  3. Save for web and turn in on your wordpress page.
L6 – Filters and layers and knockouts  –
  1. Use filters, layers and knockouts to do something creative with this photo:
    Computer of future
L7 – Layer Comps
  1. Create a set of layer “comps” (comprehensives) for an advertising or news design presentation.

L8 – Animation 

  1. Create an animation 728 x 90 leaderboard as per Internet Advertising Bureau standards.
  2. Use Photoshop and create a new 728 (w) by 90 (h) image.
  3. Use Photoshop animation effects for both a moving object and fading texts.
  4. Display on your website with a link to some other website.