IAT100: Digital Image Design

Summer 2019
Week 1 Lecture
 Today in IAT100
• Course Introduction
• Class Information
– Policies and Expectations
– Readings and Tutorials
– Assignment Overview
• Homework & Assignment 1
 About Me
• Ben Unterman
• SIAT PhD in interactive digital storytelling
• Teaching at SFU since 2009
– Writing (IAT103W, IAT206W, IAT309W)
– Interactive Art & Narrative (IAT222, IAT313)
– Tangible Computing (IAT320)
– Game Studies (IAT210)
 About US
The TAs of IAT100:

Supratim Chakraborty (D101, D102 & D103)

e-mail: sca245@sfu.ca

Uddipana Baishya (D104)

e-mail: uddipana_baishya@sfu.ca

Masoud Haeri (D105 & D106)

e-mail: mhaeri@sfu.ca
 What you can expect from me
• I will create a respectful and rich learning
environment
• I will do my best to make the lectures and labs
entertaining, informative and worth attending.
 What I expect of you:
• Screens will be put away during lecture (no
laptops or cell phones)
• All work submitted this semester will be your
own work, created for the purpose of
completing this class.
• You will treat each other and your teachers
with respect
 What to Bring to Lecture and Lab
• Pencils and an eraser
• A pen
• Sketching paper for some in-lecture exercises.
• Your SFU Computing Access
• Be prepared!
What is representation?
La Trahison des Images

René Magritte, The Treachery of Images (This is Not a Pipe), 1929, oil on canvas,
 New ideas = New Forms of Representation

Cenni di pepo (ca.1240 - ca.1302

Orphan Girl at the Cemetery Marcel Duchamp 1912
Eugène Delacroix circa 1823–1824
A N D I T C O N T I N U E S T O E V O LV E

Takashi Murakami,
In this class, you’ll learn:
Visual language is an underlying
structure. An analogy could be
made to either writing or
music.

You will learn about the

interconnected of form and
content.
 Course progression

1. Single 2. Images in a sequence

image

3. Images in motion
Let’s take a look at Canvas…
 Plagiarism and Citation
• You must give credit for all work that you cite or use
as inspiration for your own work.
• You must create all images and projects using material
created specifically for this class.
• You must do all of your own editing.

All instances of cheating will result in a grade of 0 for the

project. Severe instances may result in you failing the
course. All instances of cheating (even very mild ones) are
reported to the university.
Lecture + Lab + Homework

Lecture: Explains concepts and expectations for

your wk1 homework. Maps this to your Project 1
(due wk4)

Homework: Teaches photography skills that are

needed for Project 1.

Lab: Introduce Photoshop needed to complete

homework. *Photoshop taught in Lab is to give you a
introduction for you to build upon in your own time.
This is not a software training course.
 Homework Assignment
5 Photography Exercises
1. Single clear subject
2. Interesting angle
3. Urban Location (Symmetry / Asymmetry)
4. Leading Lines
5. High Contrast
Clear Subject
 Tip: avoid the middle

http://www.digitalcameraworld.com/2012/04/12/10-rules-of-photo-
composition-and-why-they-work/
Unusual Angle
Symmetry / Asymmetry
Lines
High Contrast
 This is Art. Make it Good.
Photos should not just be technical
demonstrations, but engaging, thoughtful,
aesthetic objects with a purpose.

Make your images tell a story, have a point,

resonate with emotion….
 Homework Assignment
You will be looking at examples in labs next
week.

If you want one of your photos shown, let your

TA know.
 Homework Assignment
• All pictures in a single PDF
– Don’t save pictures as high resolution
– Single picture on a page on its own
– Followed by explanation on a page of its own
(etc.)
• Due: Tuesday, May 14
 Project 1: Self and Place
A Still Life photograph communicates more than what we see.
The objects we bring to a photograph and the settings or
environments we choose to compose them can work
together to communicate our individual experiences and
community histories. A photograph can incorporate our
stories, including thoughts, feelings and experiences.

You will be creating a digital photography diptych (a set of two

pictures designed to be seen together) around the theme of
"Self and Place." The submission will include online process
documentation as well as the printed photographs.
 Learning Goals
Apply:
• Composition to visual design to support
communication intent.
• Theory of composition to create a Unified
picture.
• Post-production skills (Photoshop) to heighten
both aesthetic value and communication intent.
Ken Lai

Ken Lai
Intersession
Ken Lai

Alida Horsley
Intersession
Vik Muniz: Individuals, 1998

Jessica Fan
 Project 1: Self and Place

We will look at this assignment in more detail

next week.

For now, work toward it with homework and

labs.
 In Labs This Week
• Introductions
• Digital Camera Tutorials
• Photoshop Tutorial
– Open and save images
– Working with Layers
– Cropping
– Image adjusments