Aug 24
More about the general characteristics of mediated communication and
where production fits in.
Aug 29
Information: The question of coding
information: analog, digital. For a good discussion of the relationship
between Digital and Analog recording go the CD
recording page at the How Stuff Works site. Read the first three articles,
through How Does a CD Player
Really Work? Additional information on digital resolution can be seen
at the UCSC
Electronic Music site. Choose the Basics
of Digital Recording and the Basics
of Analog Recording topics. Resolution: A definer of quality
(measures, determiners of resolution). There is a very good overview
of digital recording at Winternet.Com.
The dump truck analogy used to explain binary numbers is wonderful.
Aug 31
Audio/Acoustics: Physics and math of wave
transmission. The section on Sound
Propagation in the UCSC Electronic Music site is very helpful.
. This may a good place to point you to a good online Physics
Text. Read the sections on Waves
(Lessons 1-4a) and Sound
Waves and Music (Lessons 1-3). Eventhough it is a physics
text, it has very important information concering perception as well. I
don't want to beat a dead horse but here is the same
information in another form. This one is from the Internet
Psychology Lab at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaigne. Read
all seven pages.
Sep 5
Audio/Acoustics: More on sound waves.
Transduction, Capture systems (recording).
Read module 37 in the online Television
Production Text . While you are at it modules 38 and 39 will be
helpful although we will return to that material later in the course. Want
to know how a See N'
Say toy works? It is audio after all.
Sep 7
Audio/Acoustics: Psychology of hearing, parameters of perception. How
do we use the information from sound waves? The Internet Psychology Lab
at UICU has a set of modules that deal with Audio
Perception. Browse all six of them. A very simplified approach
to Sound Perception can be found at the "Catching
Waves" site. While you are there, look around. We react to audio cues
much faster than we react to visual ones.Try
it
Although audio is associated with a variety of media, its "own" medium is usually thought of as radio. For a brief look at the connection between sound waves and radio waves take a look at the Mass Communication Text at Cybercollege. Module 17 deals with the technology of radio. Notice that this is a second free online text from Cybercollege.
Sep 12
Video, Film/Optics:Physics and math of wave transmission. Here
we explore visible light, the limited
portion of the electromagnet spectrum we are
able to detect with our eyes. Check out the Optical
Research Associates site. Go to their "Optics
for Kids" link and read through the section on Laser Light. Their "Gentle
Introduction to Optical Design" has some good basic information about light
and optics. Just click on the "why is the sky blue?" question to enter
the "notes" section. Then enjoy the tutorial. You may even learn something
about the Hubble Space Telescope in the process. Lenses are best understood
through the idea of Ray
Tracing,
in this case, with a thin convex lens. Ray tracing generally assumes an
ideal beam of white light whose components all behave the same. Toying
with a prismshows that the real world is different.
Another site dealing with elementary physics including optics and waves can be found in Peru. Go back to the online Physics Text. A cursory reading of the sections on Light Waves and Color, Refraction and the Ray Model, and Reflection and the Ray Model will prove helpful. Both of these sources can be considered as supplemental texts, most useful as restatements. I do not expect you to learn the math. Many other examples used through out this page come from ExploreScience.Com. The whole site is worth some exploration.
Sep 14
Video, Film/Optics: Transduction, Capture systems (recording). Lets
talk a bit about color mixing. Additiveand Subtractivecolor
mixing are keys to understanding film and video. The secret behind
film is explained at the How Stuff Works site under the topic of How
Photographic Film Works. The mechanism behind color video images is
covered very well in Module
15, Principles of Color Television of the Television Production Text.
Sep 19
Video, Film/Optics: Psychology of seeing, parameters
of perception. There are a number of sites on the web that deal with
perception and vision. One is sponsored by a professional association for
surgeons specializing in eye surgery. They provided a good overview of
"how the eye works"
and manage to instruct about lenses at the same time. The other, a Canadian
site, deals with perception
in general. One of the best web resources for dealing with visual perception
is The Joy of Visual Perception,
a wonderful text full of examples, both serious and fun. You can spend
some constructive recreational time with the "FunThings
in Vision" section.
Sep 21
Technical Introduction: Review general rules of equipment care
and facilities protocols. Review the Care
and Feeding of Media document.
Sep 26
Audio Production: Basic equipment survey (microphones,
recorders, mixers, processors, media). Care of equipment. A cursory survey
of audio for television
can be found on the Television
Production Reference Page. Read Modules 37, 38, 39 and 41 in the Television
Production Text. You may find module 41 interesting as well. For a
general overview of audio production from beginning to end review the Beginner's
Recording Handbook.
Sep 28
Audio Production: Recording (recorder operation, medium selection,
). Read the material on Audio
recording devices (Module 44) in the Television Production Text. Read
the sections on Analog
Audio Recording and
Digital Audio Recording in the Technical
Background Essays from EMS. Go back and reread the material on CDs
on the How Stuff Works page. They also have a good discussion on Analog
Recording. You should read all these sources. Then there is the matter
of the new kid on the block, MiniDisc.
The MiniDisc Home Page contains
more information about this popular new format than you could ever use.
Oct 3
Audio Production: Microphone placement, monitoring, field/studio considerations.
The audio "image." Studio manipulation (editing, "sweetening," construction).
Begin with a look at Module 43, Audio
Control Devices, mainly a discussion of mixers. Move on to Module 45
for a discussion of other
important audio devices. Compressor/Limiters
and Equalizers
are also covered at the Internet
Sound Institute home page. Finally, check out this Glossary
of Audio-Related Terms if you need something clarified. It is a bit
technical but helpful nevertheless.
Oct 5
No Class. Fall Break
Oct 10
Review of Course thus far. Preparation for Exam #1. Filling holes in
lecture schedule.
Oct 12
No Class: University Day
Submit Demonstration Project choices by 5pm
October 12.
Oct 17
Exam. #1 (20%)
Oct 19
Demonstration Project assignments returned.
Video Production: An introduction. Review basic optics.This
section of the course begins with some basic
photographic principles. You will find the online Single
Lens Reflex Camera site very useful. The online PhotoCourse
deals primarily with digital photography but the optical principles are
common to all photography. It is a good supplemental text for understanding
basic photography. Still need some help with lenses? Don't forget the online
Physics
Text. Lesson 5 under the Refraction
and the Ray Model is very helpful.
Oct 24
Review Exam #1.Video Production:
Use the online Television
Production Text (Modules 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14). The Television
Production Reference Page, written by Kevin Zanjani is good for
review. It should not be used as your sole source of info about video.
Cameras: Read Part IV in the Television
Production Text Text, Modules 17, 18, 19, and 20. Recorders:
Read Part VIII in the Television
Production Text, Modules 46, 47, 48, and 49.
Oct 26
Video Production: Processors, audio gear, media, editors, effects
generators, etc.). . Video Production: Recording (camera/corder operation,
audio setups).
Oct 31
Video Production: Editing fundamentals, the combining of images through
cuts, fades, etc. Read Section IX, Modules 50 thru 58 in the Television
Production Text.
Nov 2
Video Production: More about light. The physics of light. lighting
equipment, lighting setups. Read the Television
Production Text, Section VI, Modules 27 thru 36. Another online
text, Lighting for Television
is mainly about studio lighting, but useful, nevertheless.
Nov 7
The Video Image: Framing, focus, motion of subject, motion of
camera. Hap Kindem will
talk about his own work and about image composition. Read Modules 22 thru
26 in the Television
Production Text before class.
Nov 9
David Haynes: Planning the visual presentation. Storyboards and other
graphic possibilities. David also addresses issues in animation. Read module
6 in the Television Production
Text to familiarize yourself with the terminology of scripting.
Nov 14
Film Production: What are the main advantages/disadvantages
of film vs video? This is a good time to review the optics
and chemistry of photographic film on the HowStuffWorks page. You may
prefer to use my annotated version of the HowStuffWorks
page. Basic equipment survey (cameras, lighting, audio gear, film stocks,
flatbeds, video transfer). (Some material covered earlier).
Nov 16
Film Production: Basic film construction,
editing. Shooting (camera operation, lighting setups, audio setups). (Some
material covered earlier).
Demonstration Projects due in this week's Lab
Session (Nov 17)
Nov 21
Exam. #2 (20%)
Nov 23
No Class. Thanksgiving Holiday.
Nov 28
Entering the Digital Domain: Multimedia
Production: The computer as a medium. The concept of authoring,
Interactivity as the new dimension.
Nov 30
Building blocks of multimedia. Multimedia Production: The software
tools of construction. Modes of distribution (CD-ROM, World Wide Web, Installations).Review
Exam #2. Media Foundation Proposals Due
Dec 5
More on Multimedia
Dec 7
Last Class. Review.
Dec 14
Final Examination (25%) (8:00am - 11:00am)
