Course Syllabus

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The Science And Art Of Digital Photography

Bruce Hemingway
Lectures: MWF 12:30-1:20 on Zoom
Sections: Tuesday or Thursday 2:30-4:20 on Zoom

Digital Photography is a unique technological activity that is totally dependent on its roots in digital sensing and computational imaging. It has many functions—scientific, artistic, documentary and social—and its historical development is a fascinating study in scientific innovation.  This course will give students the tools and technological understanding to make better pictures. We will concentrate on four areas: the history and development of photography; the science of optics and digital imaging; the elements of photographic composition and design; and the future of internet-enabled photography.

We will begin by examining the invention of photography in the 19th century, and consider the social implications of this revolutionary process. We’ll examine lens design and optics, the understanding of perspective, the rapid development of materials used in chemical photography, and the development and construction of the modern CCD and CMOS sensors. We will explore methods for combining optics and digital sensors with digital image processing techniques in the modern digital camera. Our tour will dive into the key aspects of the design of a photograph by the photographer—the use of design elements such as line, color, pattern, texture, and light to compose outstanding images. Our discussions will focus on the foundations of digital photography while still relating those foundations to the latest trends in the field. 

Section meetings begin the second week!

We all need the first week to get used to this new remote environment. Here are instructions on using Zoom:
https://itconnect.uw.edu/connect/phones/conferencing/zoom-video-conferencing/log-in/

On your Canvas page, click the Zoom button to see upcoming class meetings. Information about Section meetings via Zoom will arrive via email.

Photography in the Age of Coronavirus

We need to take photographs, and we understand that you may have concerns about photographing outside.

  • You must observe local restrictions and guidelines about going outside.
  • Most governmental guidelines allow local walks outside, as long as appropriate social distancing is observed.
  • We will modify assignments as needed to safely allow your photography to take place.
  • Your safety and comfort comes before all else. By using some ingenuity you can overcome much.
  • We won't do any group activities or walkabouts this quarter.

Goals and Objectives

This course is designed to provide you with the foundations necessary for designing and making better digital photographs.

At the conclusion of the course, you will be able to:

  • Identify the elements that make a good photographic composition, and apply those to your own work.
  • Improve your own digital photography by proper understanding and use of performance boundaries of the equipment.
  • Relate classic film photography issues to modern digital imaging techniques.
  • Show some proficiency in digital image post-processing software.
  • Understand the uses of Social Photography and web and cloud-based services such as Instagram, Facebook, and Flickr.
  • Select the right digital camera for your use.

Prerequisites:

  • Math 120 or equivalent.
  • You must have a digital camera with manual control over shutter speed and aperture. Need not be an SLR.
  • Web access for uploading images. A computer would help...
  • Programming experience is not required.
  • A Flickr account for the course. You'll be making one new album in this account for each assignment. If you already have a Yahoo login you can use that, or you can make a new one just for CSE131. Making a Flickr Photo album is fairly straightforward. The albums you make for this course should all be listed as "public" so TAs and fellow students can see the photos you've taken. Please see the 'How To/FAQ' tab for more information.

Instructor & TAs:

Bruce Hemingway - photos here. Online Office hours: TBD

Please note that communication in this course will primarily be via Email. Canvas messages will not be attended to.
You can email the CSE131 staff here.

TAs

Section

UW Netid

Photos

Office Hours
Andrew Washington Wang aa awwang(@uw.edu)

By Appointment
Nikhil Nagari aa nagarn
Georgina Maud Chandler ab chandg
Sunny Cui ab xinyicui
Jillian Zhao ac zz981115
Hana Ra ac hra16
Zichuan Han ad rick98 Flickr
Nicole Pasia ad pasiani
Rishabh  Patted ae rsp22 Flickr
Steven Yu ae xiaory2
Dylan Stockard af dylstock
Eva Feng af evafeng
Yu Fan ag fany23
Mark Theeranantachai ag stheera
Stella Zhang ah zhangxru
Justin Wang ah jwang98

Textbooks

Software

Flash applets on some technical aspects of photography

Top Final Projects- 2017

Top Final Projects- 2018

Top Final Projects- 2019

Top Final Projects- 2020

Mailing List

You are automatically enrolled in the Class Mailing List, and the Section Mailing List for your section.
To post a message to all the Class list members, send email to cse131a_sp20@uw.edu .

Evaluation and grading

40%  ------  Weekly photography assignments (8), graded on meeting assignment goals
10%  ------  Participation in class and section activities
30%  ------  Best of three out of four online  quizzes (on readings, lectures and applets)
20%  ------  Final Project

Grading of Photo Assignments

It's hard to judge artistic quality, so rather than grading the individual photos, we will assign grades based on whether you met the technical requirements of the assignment. For each requirement within an assignment, you'll be given a full points (2pt) for meeting the requirement, half (1pt) for not quite meeting the requirement, or 3pts if you do something spectacular that makes your grader's jaw drop. You should submit no more than 10 photographs for an assignment; points may be deducted for submitting extra photos. And, don't hand in ugly photos-- you know what we mean. We will warn you, and take off points for ugly photos.(Ugly photo warning added May 9.)

We use the following rubric for grading for each of 5 requirements in each assignment:

 WARubric.PNG

Note: Jaw dropping photo that fulfills requirement (extra credit) =  (3 pts), Late assignments = -10% per day

  • Sample Assignment Grades:

2+2+2+2+2 = 10pts : Full points for the assignment
2+2+1+2+2 = 9pts : Half points for requirement 3
(2+2+2+2+2)*0.9 = 9pts : Late by 1 day (but met all requirements)
2+2+1+2+2 = 9pts : Commenting/Captions lacking for photo that meets requirement 3
2+0+0+1+2 = 5pts : No points for requirements 2 and 3, half for requirement 4

You can score a maximum of 15 points per assignment (3+3+3+3+3). 40% of your grade is from assignments, which would be 10x8 or 80 points.
Anything over 80 points is extra credit, so shoot some great photographs!

Lateness Policy for Assignments

Since the assignments come in rapid succession, it is important that each be completed on time. Replacing photos after the deadline is not allowed, and will be treated as academic misconduct. To allow for unforeseeable circumstances, you will be allowed up to two weekdays of grace for up to two of your assignments (four weekdays total). Beyond this, late assignments will be penalized by 10% of the grade for that assignment per weekday that they are late. Exceptions to this late policy will be made only in the case of a necessary (non-pleasure) trip approved in advance by the instructor, or severe illness. If you do not submit one of the assignments at all, you will fail the course, even if you are taking it pass/fail. In this case, or if you believe you are in danger of failing, it is your responsibility to come talk to us before the end of the course. Incompletes are given only in exceptional circumstances.

Up to two unused late days may be used for the final project.

Regrading

In addition to the policy on late assignments (see above), during the quarter you can add up to five photos to already completed assignments and request that they be re-graded. Photography includes a fair element of luck. This provision means that if you take a shot later on in the course that would have been perfect for an earlier assignment, you can still turn it in! It also means that if you didn't quite understand a requirement and did the wrong thing, you can submit a new photograph later. One regrade may be used to redo all of the captions in any one assignment. The deadline for regrade requests is the same as the final project due date, which is 11:59pm on Wednesday June 10th, 2020 this quarter.

Originality, collaboration, and borrowing: 

Many of you have taken extraordinary photographs in your careers. Some of these photographs may perfectly and beautifully satisfy the requirements of a CSE 131 assignment. Nevertheless, in the interests of fairness and continued learning, we expect your submissions for each assignment to be photographs taken by you specifically for this course. You are encouraged to discuss assignments with friends, but you are expected to take your own photographs.

Participation Policy for Quiz Section

Attendance at the weekly quiz section is expected and forms a significant part of the weekly quiz grade. How participation is measured may vary week to week but will largely be based on attendance. To allow for unforeseeable circumstances, you will be allowed to miss up to two of your quiz sections. Exceptions to this attendance policy will be made only in the case of a necessary (non-pleasure) trip approved in advance by the instructor, or severe illness. An absence beyond the allotted two may result in a participation grade of zero for the week. If becomes an area of concern for you, it is your responsibility to come talk to us before the end of the course.

Due to changes in course and section registration, we will not be counting the first week in the final participation grade.

Academic Misconduct

Student Conduct Code

The Student Conduct Code explains that admission to the University carries with it the presumption that students will practice high standards of professional honesty and integrity (WAC 478-120-020 [2]).
In particular, all work (homework and exams) is to be your own individual work. You may discuss assignments but NOT copy any photographs. You may not discuss exams.

Religious Accommodations

UW Policy on Religious Accommodations

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Special thanks to Marc Levoy, Stanford University.

Tentative Schedule

Course Summary:

Date Details Due