Topics inAdvanced Digital Imaging:
Photography and the Internet

a syllabus

Spring II 2000
PHOT 4190.01
© Bill Barrett 2000

Feedback (general opinions, problems, suggestions, etc.) on this hypersyllabus is encouraged!

Class description: An exploration of some of the ways photographers have been benefiting from the Internet, and how to join them there. Topics include E-mail discussion groups ("Listservs"), portfolios on the World Wide Web, Internet photojournalism, getting technical information and doing research, Photo CD, and working with service bureaus. Students will learn to produce and optimize images for the World Wide Web. Current professional digital work is examined, with special emphasis on legal and ethical issues. Prerequisite: PHOT 3190.

This course is part of Webster University's "Languages Across the Curriculum" project. An additional credit in Foreign Languages and Literatures may be earned by students with proficiency in a language; see the instructor for more information.

We will be using the Macintosh platform in class, but students with Windows familiarity are welcome. Cross-platform questions are encouraged, and issues are addressed.

Class attendance is very important in this course. Your participation (especially in discussions and on Motet) and attendance are a significant part of your grade. NB: While almost any topic can be researched on the Internet, be aware that areas unrelated to photography are not the subject of this course. Written assignments and class presentations must be completed on schedule. Verbum sapientiae sufficit.

How you're graded: Your final grade is based on your performance throughout the course. Your attendance and active participation count for 25%; work on assigned projects (and thus general knowledge of computer hardware and software) count for 50%; class presentations count for 15%; written exam and quizzes count for 10%. Doing more than required can earn you extra credit; talk to me outside class if you're interested. What grades mean...

What we're doing and when:

Week 1 (3/20). Introductions; hardware, operating systems, and software; the Webster University Computer Technologies Acceptable Use Policy; using Motet to communicate with each other (note: the Motet conference for this class is called "AdvDigiPhot00s"); joining photography-related discussion groups (and how to find groups you might be interested in) among them the Photoshop listserv, Photoforum, PhotoPro, EP (Editorial Photography), (y, para los participantes de habla español, FotoRed). New to on-line discussion groups? Read the "rules of the road." First assignments: find a web page that you think is fabulous, and one you think is awful, and write a brief review of both in Motet. What your Class Presentations are about.

Week 2 (3/27). First impressions of the listserv group, proposed self-introductions; what is the list really like? is is "moderated"? who reads it and who posts messages? recent threads (or flames and spam); what did you find on the WWW? what seems missing? what other listserv group(s) are you joining? Jargon on the net. Bookmarking favorite places in your browser. As we begin looking at photography-related web sites with a critical eye, it's important to be think about some of the special concerns when evaluating resources on the Internet.

Week 3 (4/3). Building web pages: What would you like your page to look like? Viewing code and seeing how good pages are constructed. Looking at HTML and beginning to build our pages. Viewing photography on the web.

Week 4 (4/10). Things you need to know about reproduction on the web; issues in scanning; consumer quality digital cameras. Optimizing images for the web, including Photoshop web tutorials; class presentations.

Week 5 (4/17) Permanence, care and handling of CDs; what to expect in the DVD format; the CD as coffee table book; the CD, the Internet and the "stock" market; CD as multimedia portfolio (MPPA Pictures of the Year).Virtual Reality and the photographic portfolio: William Whitehurst Studio.

Week 6 (4/24) Reviewing websites: deciding where to go, criteria (good and bad), writing the reviews. Using WYSIWYG software and "tweaking the code."

Week 7 (5/1) Newsgroups... and why you might want to avoid most of them. Building our own web sites: first look at your pages. Happy May Day!

Week 8 (5/8) Maintaining your site, planning for the future. How to get your own domain name (as long as no one else already has it registered). Final critique and wrapup: Where do you go from here?

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