Art 195 Intro to Digital Media Arts Syllabus 

 

To view and download the Course Syllabus: Syllabus_Pastrana_V1.pdf

Meet Your Instructor: welcome to art 195.mp4

 

Course Description: 

Introduction to digital media arts for artists, photographers, Web designers, programmers, and animation artists.  Includes an overview of Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, digital graphics terminology, careers, market applications, and design components.  Work in computer lab with scanners, printers, CD ROM’s and the Web.

Textbook/Materials/Software Information: 

• Software requirements: Adobe Creative Cloud, Adobe Acrobat Pro & Gmail Account with Google Drive.
• Access to Adobe Creative Cloud Software is REQUIRED:
  • Adobe offers a brief free trial for each software program.
  • An Adobe Software subscription for students can be purchased here: Link
  • Santa Ana College has an Academic Computing Center with the required Adobe software programs available to all students for FREE, the lab is located in the Chavez building, Room 106.
  • Information regarding the Academic Computing Center, including hours and contact, can be found here: Link
• Regular internet access
  • It is required to have internet access to receive announcements, emails, and complete graded activities via Canvas. Canvas also has a FREE Student app you can download for your cellphones.
  • If you do not have reliable internet access at home an alternative would be to schedule hours here on campus to work in the Academic Computing Center.
• Text: No textbook is required for this course.
• Materials: Suggested (not required) headphones, hard drive, subscription to Lynda.com Link. Lynda.com is an online video tutorial site, it will give you access to tutorials 24/7 and will supplement any materials taught through faculty lectures/demonstrations offered in this course.  Lynda.com offers a 'search bar' to search for tool names, keywords or even concepts as you begin exploring digital media foundations. You can access Lynda.com for free with a library card from two local libraries. The LA County Library or the Newport Beach Library. Register for Library Card Here: Link . Newport Entry Point for Lynda.com: Link

 

General Information 

Philosophy & Format:

This is a lecture, lab, discussion, and project course.  Education involves the process of learning skills, gaining knowledge and internalizing these skills and knowledge’s in order to apply them to individual unique situations.  The ability to use these skills and knowledge is influenced by the individual effort of the student, interaction with other members of the class, applying this knowledge in appropriate situations and by interaction with the instructors facilitating this process.  The knowledge and skills gained is also influenced by the diversity of backgrounds, knowledge levels, and experiences of students in this class.  All students will contribute actively to their own learning by reading materials, participating in small or large group discussions and activities, sharing examples, providing and refuting principles, engaging in mutual dialogue and learning through discovery.  The instructor’s primary role is to facilitate students’ thinking and learning by providing information and utilizing approaches that encourages such opportunities.

Course Learning Objectives:

1. Introduce students to industry-standard design software and tools

2. Explore design methods for design of montages, vectors, web pages and page layouts.

Student Learning Outcomes

At the end of this course, students will be able to:

1. Identify and apply visual solutions to given problems, creating unique designs using the basic tools found in the taught course software. (Portfolio assessment)

2. Identify tools, processes, and efficient methods to re-create a given design problem and solution in order to illustrate their software and image production comprehension. (test assessment)

3. Navigate the software's work space utilizing menus, shortcuts, and windows to find and apply tools and effects to imagery. (test assessment)

 Grades and Assignments

Students will graded on Projects, Exercises, Participation in Discussions, Quizzes and Exams.

Students that miss four or more classes will earn a zero in participation.

(A) 90% - 100% (B) 80%-89% (C) 70%-79% (D) 60-69% (F) <60

Additional Course Information:

This course is the 'gateway' course for entry into advanced level coursework in the programs of Graphic Design, Digital Media Arts and 3D Animation/Modeling.

Art 195** serves as the pre-requisite for the following courses:

• Art 121A: Fundamentals of Typography
• Art 122: Graphic Design I
• Art 168: Portfolio & Business Development
• Art 192: Digital Design with Photoshop
• Art 162: Digital Illustration with Illustrator
• Art 164: Digital Publishing with InDesign
• Art 198: Graphic Design for the Web

Art 195 has no pre-requisites. You do not need to have computer skills or previous computer coursework to enroll in this course.  It is a beginning level course for students interested in the fields of Digital Media Arts.

Program Information:

Follow the links below to find out more about Graphic Design & Digital Media Arts Certificates & Degree offerings at SAC

Digital Media Arts Website: Link

Certificates & Degrees: Link

SLO course links/summaries: Link

Find us on Instagram (Follow: digital_design_at_sac) we regularly showcase excellent student work and post important program information: Link

Interested in Internships? Earn college credit and work experience at the same time! Contact Theresa Hagelbarger at internships@sac.edu