This course examines communications technology from a media perspective. Students will develop knowledge and skills as they design and produce media projects in the areas of live, recorded, and graphic communications. These areas may include: TV, video, and movie production; radio and audio production; print and graphic communications; photography; digital imaging; broadcast journalism; and interactive new media. Students will also develop an awareness of related environmental and societal issues, and will explore college and university programs and career opportunities in the various communications technology fields.
Syllabus
Unit 1: Introduction to Photography and Photo-Editing
In this unit you will learn the basic principles of photography and composition. Using this knowledge, you will analyze photographs to identify the elements of an effective image.
Photo-editing programs let you improve your photographs by making adjustments to brightness, colour and framing. They can also be used to perform more complex changes to photographs, such as merging two photographs together or adding text and special effects. You will use these techniques to create projects for print and for publication on the Internet.
As the final activity in this unit, you will create a movie poster using the photographic and photo-editing techniques you have learned.
Activity 1: Cameras and Photographs Activity 2: Taking a Picture
Activity 3: Photographic Elements
Activity 4: Composition
Activity 5: Introduction to Photo-Editing
Activity 6: Basic Photographic Adjustments
Activity 7: Selection Tools
Activity 8: Compositing
Activity 9: Masks and Layers
Activity 10: Adding Text
Activity 11: Creating Photo Projects
Activity 12: Summative Activity: Movie Poster
Unit 2: Web Design
Most people get their first experience creating Web content by customizing personal pages on social networking sites. These services make it easy to build a page that looks good using premade templates. But in order to make a Web site from the ground up, you need to understand the principles of good Web design and be able to use design software effectively.
In this unit you will design and format a Web site using Adobe Dreamweaver. With this software, you can set the visual style of your site, control the layout of your pages and add interactive elements like buttons and menus. You will also use Adobe Flash to create animations that can add interest to your site.
As the final activity in this unit, you will create a Web site and animated splash page using the principles of web design that you have learned.
Activity 1: Creating a New Web Site
Activity 2: Formatting Web Pages with Tables
Activity 3: Navigating and Links
Activity 4: Creating Advanced Interactions
Activity 5: Online Forms
Activity 6: Introduction to Flash
Activity 7: Creating Characters and Backgrounds
Activity 8: Animation
Activity 9: Animation With Motion Tweens
Activity 10: Advanced Animation Techniques
Activity 11: Summative Activity - Creating a Web Site
Unit 3: Film Production
As many languages as you think you know, you actually know one more: the language of film. In this unit you will learn how the film language uses images and sounds to communicate story, theme and emotion. Understanding film theory doesn't guarantee you will make effective movies; you also require the planning and technical skills to bring your vision to life.
Because film-making is a collaborative art, you need to be able to effectively communicate your ideas to the cast and crew. Tools such as screenplays and storyboards allow you to share your creative vision. Once you are on the set, you need to understand how to safely and correctly set up the equipment to film the scene. All these new skills require practice and no matter where you live, there are opportunities for you to get experience behind the camera and meet others who are interested in film.
In the culminating activity of this unit you will use the skills you have learned to write and plan out a scene for filming. If you have access to a film/video camera, you can even film your scene and use the footage in the next unit on video editing.
Activity 1: The Film Language
Activity 2: Shot Types
Activity 3: Music, Sound and Film
Activity 4: Planning your Production
Activity 5: Film Equipment
Activity 6: Jobs on a Film Set
Activity 7: Film Industry and Our Culture
Activity 8: Summative Activity: Preparing a Scene
Unit 4: Film Editing
Editing your movie is more than just piecing the footage together. Film editing is about making choices that have a huge impact on the pacing, feel and theme of your work. In this unit, you will learn how to assemble a sequence so that the individual shots create a seamless flow of images. You will practice editing sequences involving action as well as dialogue-intensive scenes in order to understand the fundamental principles of film editing.
You will also learn the technical skills required to use video editing software. You will use the software to edit as well as to add transitions, titles and special effects to your projects.
In the summative activity for this unit you will edit a film project of your own making. You will be evaluated on your understanding of editing techniques, as well as your effective use of the features of the video editing software.
Activity 1: Introduction to Film Editing
Activity 2: Pace and Rhythm in Editing
Activity 3: Applying Transitions and Effects
Activity 4: Matching Action
Activity 5: Editing a Conversation
Activity 6: Applying Effects and Text
Activity 7: Creating a News Report
Activity 8: Summative Activity: Editing a Scene
Unit 5: Culminating Activity
For the unit of the course, you will create a Web site that features autobiographical information along with samples of your best work.
Activity 1: Portfolio Website
