Media Arts Fundamentals

This course is designed for students who are not professional designers or photographers but who have a personal interest in photo and image editing. BCOM17 explores a range of Photoshop tools, palettes, and functions used for creating, editing, capturing, repairing, resizing, and enhancing digital images. The course includes modules on selection techniques, layers, paint and colour techniques, type elements, filters, sharpening and softening, actions, lighting, repairing and retouching, and printing and publishing. (3 hrs. per week)

Prerequisite: None

This course is designed to help students develop and practice the communication skills needed to succeed in college and workforce environments. Emphasis is placed on improving foundational communication strategies-reading, writing, listening, and speaking—and on developing research and critical thinking skills. 

In this course, students learn introductory design fundamentals and the basics of professional practice for graphic designers. Learners explore the visual forms used to create design compositions as well as approaches to ideation and iteration as components of the design thinking process. This studio course uses hands-on projects and incorporates terms and techniques that are taught in other courses including typography, colour theory, and writing. Course content is delivered using a lecture/discussion format and develops the student's critical thinking/analysis skills through group critique sessions. Fundamentals of professional practice are also explored, including the language of design, time management, and self-care.

An introductory course the fundamentals of digital photography, elements of composition, and basic image editing. Also examined are photography's role in society, and a brief overview of the history of photography. You will learn the practical side of digital photography by exploring the various camera parts, functions and photographic techniques that will lead to producing technically sound images. Digital workflow, including image editing and optimization for various purposes is also covered. There will be series of photographic assignments, which will be edited and optimized in our computer lab, culminating in the production of visually compelling images. You will also gain an appreciation of aesthetics and composition, through discussions, critiques and writing an artist statement.

This course is a computer lab based practical course that is a study and introduction to video editing and post-production. Students will demonstrate through the Adobe Creative series basic non-linear editing techniques to produce visual montages and sequence-based instructional videos.

In this course, students continue to develop their basic design fundamental skills towards competence as professional graphic designers. Students explore how various conceptual approaches communicate meaning to an audience by completing hands-on projects. Learners focus on research, ideation and iteration as components of the design thinking process, the development of design layouts, and the role of the critique process. Further topics of professional practice are also explored, including communicating design to other designers, self-direction, and self-care.