Session 3 - Marketing

Introduction to Marketing

What is Marketing?

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/marketing

Dictionary.com defines marketing as:

"1. the act of buying or selling in a market.
2. the total of activities involved in the transfer of goods from the producer or seller to the consumer or buyer, including advertising, shipping, storing, and selling."

Here is another definition:
http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/marketing.html

Creating a marketing plan

Before you decide what marketing materials you need, you should devise a marketing plan so that the materials that you produce will meet your organisation's marketing requirements.

Why develop a marketing plan

Read the following article

http://www.business.gov.au/business-topics/business-planning/marketing/Pages/why-do-i-need-a-marketing-plan.aspx

Watch the Coca Cola "Share a Coke" campaign video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2X8Bd3-G6IU

What do you think? Was it a clever idea? Did it work? Did it meet the objectives?

Can you think of a marketing campaign that you thought was well done and/or clever?

You need to have a marketing plan so that you can create and develop marketing and promotional material that will reach your target audience and achieve the required goals and objectives.

Class Activity

Think about a public library, perhaps your local library.

What products or services are they "selling"?
What is their "market"?
How do they distribute those products and/or services?

Session 2 - Digital Cameras and Basic Photography

Digital Cameras

This class will be focusing on Multimedia Devices and Software.

We are going to look at some basic information on digital still and video cameras. The variety of cameras available is huge as well as the usual jargon that is involved in purchasing a digital device.

Each make and model will vary in their specifications, resolution and features.

Types of Cameras

Read the following article for a full explanation of the types of digital cameras available and some of the terminology.

http://digital-photography-school.com/how-to-buy-a-digital-camera/

http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2015/06/how-to-choose-a-digital-camera/

http://www.cnet.com/au/topics/cameras/buying-guide/

Extra Reading if you want more!

http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2014/08/gizmodo-camera-buying-guide-2014-which-digital-camera-is-right-for-you/

http://www.cnet.com/au/topics/cameras/best-digital-cameras/

Shopping for a camera

JB HiFi web page shows some typical Digital Camera advertising and specifications.

https://www.jbhifi.com.au/cameras/

Basic Operation

Most Digital Still Cameras today have HD or at least high quality video recording as well as the ability to take still images. Although every camera is different, with different menu structures and settings, most will have a similar functionality.

These are from the camera I have at work.

For general usage, you would use your camera in "auto" mode. This allows the camera to select the best settings based on the type of photo it thinks you are taking.

Most cameras will have the ability for you to select a mode, such as "sport", "fireworks", "night", "macro". Each of these will have settings associated with them that will produce the best image in the specified conditions.

Digital Still Cameras usually store Photos in the JPEG format. Some more advanced cameras may also save the files in Camera RAW. This creates very large uncompressed images that retain all of the information about the image. Most Digital SLRs will have the ability to save as RAW as well as JPEG.

There is often a separate "movie" mode for taking video. In Movie mode, you would press the button to start recording and then press it again to stop. The video format will probably be MPEG or MPEG-2.

To transfer the images to your computer, you can use the USB cable that comes with your camera or you can take out the memory card and use a card reader. Most modern laptops will have a card reader built into them.

Once you have the images transferred to your computer, you should use your CD/DVD drive to burn them to a CD or DVD so that you have a permanent copy in case you have a hardware failure. I like to think of this as equating to the old fashioned negatives.

You can then use some of the many available tools to create digital photo slideshows, videos, or even a coffee table book.

Our Cameras

Within the IT department and the Chisholm library, we have a number of different cameras that can be used for still images and video.

Flip Cameras

These are a great little device that, unfortunately, were bought by another company and then very soon after dropped as a product. They are simple to use and take reasonable HD quality video (ours are 720 as opposed to 1080) as well as still images, but the biggest advantage of them is that they have a built in USB port that just flips out from the side of the camera. Some of the later models have built in WiFi so you can upload the video straight from the camera.

Video Cameras

There are also a number of Sony camcorders with hard drives within our department as well as the library (a range of brands). These are mostly used for video, but all video cameras have the ability to take still images as well as video. The difference between a camcorder and something like the flip camera is the video camera or camcorder will have better zoom, optical rather than digital, and usually better lenses.

Digital Still Cameras

We also have a few "point and click"  digital still cameras. These also take video as well as still images. There are a few different makes and models available including Canon and Sony.

Camera Phone

It is said that the best camera is the one that you have with you. For many of us, that is the camera on our mobile phone. If you are like me, I am not usually very far from my phone and it is usually on hand when a photo opportunity crops up.

Class Activity 1

As a group (or send out a delegate), go and visit the library at your campus and see what cameras are available for students to borrow.  What do you need to borrow any of these items? How long can you lend them for?

Class Activity 2

As you may be aware, I have booked to go on a holiday in July. Before we go, I would like to buy a cheap, but functional camera. I have the camera on my phone, but would like something a bit more functional. As a group, you are going to select a couple of appropriate cameras that will suit my needs and then find the best price. Use the Internet and any relevant websites you need for research. Before you start, you need to find out what my requirements are so:

• Work out some questions that you can ask to find out my requirements
• Find at least 2 cameras that fit my needs
• Find the best price for each.
• Any accessories that I might need

Assessment Task 1 (worth 40%)

1. You have been allocated $2500 to buy 10 basic cameras for the Mysty River Secondary College school library for students to use. These cameras must be easy to use and robust. You must include all necessary items for these cameras to be used straight away within this amount. Use the Internet or any junk mail brochures to get costs and specifications. Include sources with your submission.

2. For a selected camera, it could be your own or one from the library, write a basic instruction manual including 

• how to insert the memory cards, 
• basic operation, 
• any OHS issues, 
• proper storage and 
• charging of batteries.

Upload this to Moodle as a Word Document including cover sheet.

Photography Basics

Before we go out and actually take some photos ourselves, we will have a look at some photo composition advice from the experts!!

Rule of Thirds

When it comes to photo composition, the Rule of Thirds is by far the most well known.

Read about the Rule of Thirds here

Using Lines

The three main lines used in photo composition are Horizontal, Vertical and Diagonal.

Read about using lines in photo composition here

Straight Horizons

Another composition tip is to make sure that your horizons are horizontal - they're not called horizons for nothing.

Read about straight horizons here

Filling the Frame

Make sure that when you are taking shots of people or a specific object, that you can actually see that object in the picture and not have to squint to see what the photo is about.

Read about filling the frame here

Using objects as frames

Framing your shot can draw attention to the subject by blocking out the stuff you don't want to be seen. Lots of objects can be used as frames in a photo.

Read about Framing your Shots here

Class Activity 3

Using images from the Internet, such as Flickr,
Find at least 2 for each category.

Share your images in our facebook group and describe how you think the technique has been applied and why you like or not like the photo.

Critique the choices of other students!

Session 1 - Introduction to Multimedia

Multimedia Basics

http://www.techterms.com/definition/multimedia

As the name implies, multimedia is the integration of multiple forms of media. This includes text, graphics, audio, video, etc. For example, a presentation involving audio and video clips would be considered a "multimedia presentation." Educational software that involves animations, sound, and text is called "multimedia software." CDs and DVDs are often considered to be "multimedia formats" since they can store a lot of data and most forms of multimedia require a lot of disk space.

OR

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/multimedia

File Types

Before even considering what file types relate to Multimedia, you need to understand the concept of what a file type is.

Back in the old days of DOS, computer filenames were restricted to 8 characters, plus a dot separator, plus a 3 letter file extension (8.3 naming convention). That is now much higher, although the full path and filename must not exceed 260 characters.

A filename can include any character or number but may not include the following characters:

<   >   :   "   /   \   |   ?  *

The file extension is used by the operating system (such as Windows 7 or 8) to determine the file type. Windows then uses this file type to associate the file with a particular software application. When you select a file and open it, the associated software application will be used. Windows will also use an icon with the file name that will let you know what the default application for that file is.

The above image shows some files that are in My Documents. You can see that Windows has associated a software application with each file type that it can identify.

Office Applications
Common file extensions for Office applications are:

Microsoft Word .doc .docx .dot .dotx (templates)
Microsoft Excel .xls .xlsx
Microsoft Access .mdb .mdb .accd
Microsoft PowerPoint .ppt .pptx

Rich Text format .rtf
Text .txt

Open Office .odt .odb .ods

Audio Files
Audio Interchange File Format .aif
Interchange File Format .iff
Media Playlist file .m3u
MPS Audio File .mp3
MPEG-2 Audio File .m4a
WAVE Audio FIle .wav
Windows Media Audio file .wma
iTunes audio .m4p

Video Files
Audio Video Interleave File .avi
Flash Video File .flv
Apple QuickTime movie .mov
MPEG-4 Video file .mp4
MPEG Video file .mpg
DVD Video Object File .vob
Windows Media Video File .wmv

Flash Shockwave file .swf

Raster/Bitmap Image Files
Bitmap Image File .bmp
Graphical Interchange format file .gif
JPEG Image .jpg .jpeg
Portable Network Graphic .png
Adobe Photoshop Document .psd
Tagged Image File .tif .tiff

Vector Image Files
Adobe Illustrator File .ai
Encapsulated Postscript File .eps
PostScript File .ps
Scalable Vector Graphics File .svg

Multimedia File Type Details

MPEG
MPEG is the Moving Pictures Expert Group - a working group that is part of ISO. Its role is to develop audio and video encoding standards. The file format is named after this group.

MPEG-1 is the first generation of the MPEG format. The quality of this equates to that of a VHS Tape

MPEG-2 provides a better quality than MPEG-1. It supports a higher image resolution, better quality coding and supports multi-channel audio. It was developed to the standard of the DVD.

MPEG-3 is an audio file format. It produces compressed audio that is equivalent to CD quality sound. It is also referred to as MP3.

MPEG-4 is higher quality again. This file format has a high level of compression creating even smaller files, but supports 3D content and video files of a very high quality.

AVI and MOV
are container files for Microsoft , utilising a variety of codecs. Just because you were able to play one AVI file, doesn’t mean that you can play another one as it may have been compressed using a different codec.

WMV
this is the standard file format to be played with Windows Media Player

FLV
Flash Video

But what you see isn’t always what you get as there are so many variations on the codecs used for each of these.

Here are a few articles that may help unravel the mystery (or just make it more mysterious).

http://www.videomaker.com/article/15362-video-formats-explained
http://www.dr-lex.be/info-stuff/mediaformats.html
http://www.pcworld.com/article/199274/video_formats_explained.html
http://www.masternewmedia.org/the-video-encoding-guide-codecs-formats-containers-and-settings-explained/

and High Definition

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-definition_video

Image Formats

GIF      This stands for Graphic Interchange Format. GIF files are best for flat or simple graphics that contain solid areas of colour such as logos and line art. GIF also supports transparency and animation.

JPEG   This stands for Joint Photographic Experts Group. JPEGs are best for continuous tone images such as photographs or graphics that contain gradients.

PNG    This stands for Portable Network Graphics. PNG file type is best used for true colour images containing text and sharp colour transitions. Ideal for maps, charts and diagrams with more than 256 colors. This format also supports transparency

SWF    These are Macromedia Shockwave files or Flash files. This file format also supports transparency and animation.


http://windows.microsoft.com/en-au/windows/understanding-picture-file-types#1TC=windows-7

Lossy or Lossless

Lossy compression reduces the file size by discarding some visual information. Lossless compression reduces the file size without discarding visual information. JPEG is a lossy compression method, whereas GIF is not.

Bit Depth
Bit depth relates to the number of colours in an image. GIF is an 8-bit file format and JPEG is 24-bit.

32-bit              16.7 million colours plus an 8-bit alpha channel
24-bit              16.7 million colours
16-bit              65,600 colours
8-bit                256 colours
7-bit                128 colours
6-bit                64 colours
5-bit                32 colours
4-bit                16 colours
3-bit                8 colours
2-bit                4 colours
1-bit                2 colours

Pixels and Resolution

It's all about the Pixels

You have all heard the term, but what actually is a pixel. This definition is from http://www.techterms.com/definition/pixel and defines the term in plain english.

The term "pixel" is actually short for "Picture Element." These small little dots are what make up the images on computer displays, whether they are flat-screen (LCD) or tube (CRT) monitors. The screen is divided up into a matrix of thousands or even millions of pixels. Typically, you cannot see the individual pixels, because they are so small. This is a good thing, because most people prefer to look at smooth, clear images rather than blocky, "pixelated" ones. However, if you set your monitor to a low resolution, such as 640x480 and look closely at your screen, you will may be able to see the individual pixels. As you may have guessed, a resolution of 640x480 is comprised of a matrix of 640 by 480 pixels, or 307,200 in all. That's a lot of little dots.

Each pixel can only be one color at a time. However, since they are so small, pixels often blend together to form various shades and blends of colors. The number of colors each pixel can be is determined by the number of bits used to represent it. For example, 8-bit color allows for 2 to the 8th, or 256 colors to be displayed. At this color depth, you may be able to see "graininess," or spotted colors when one color blends to another. However, at 16, 24, and 32-bit color depths, the color blending is smooth and, unless you have some kind of extra-sensory vision capability, you should not see any graininess.

Image Resolution

So why is resolution important? Depending on the what you will use the images for, you may need a higher resolution or a lower one. If you wanted to create a large poster, you need high quality images i.e. images with a very high resolution. If you are creating thumbnails for a web based image gallery, then the size of the image is not so important and you would probably want a lower resolution so that they load up quickly.

If you increase the size of an image with a low resolution, you will start to see the blocky pixels. It is best to get an image with a higher resolution and reduce the size. Here is an example:

The first image is at its full resolution 3648 X 2736 and is 3.74mb. On a side note - this file took ages to upload into Blogger.

This is displayed at Blogger's "Large" size.

The following is the exact same image, but displayed in Blogger at "Original Size"

This is the same image that I have reduced to 150 pixels wide X 113 high, displayed at "Large" size

and the same image at "Original Size"

When you search for images on the Internet, as well as Copyright issues, you also need to consider the resolution of the images. We won't go into Copyright at the moment - I have to leave some excitement for the afternoon classes.

Creating a simple Photo Slide Show

As you are already familiar with PowerPoint, we will use this to see how we can use images to create a presentation. PowerPoint calls it a Photo Album.

Selecting your images

To create our photo album, we need to find some images. I am using Firefox and Google Images for this exercise.

I want to do my slideshow on "Dog Shaming" as there is nothing more cute than dopey dogs who are feeling guilty.

Step 1: Find some good quality images. My screen resolution is 1920 X 1080.

I put "Dog Shaming" as my search criteria. The result was lots of images and many different resolutions.

Step 2: Create the Photo Album

EXERCISE

• Pick a topic and download some good quality images
• Create a Photo Album using PowerPoint
• Share with your classmates.

Creating a Video

It hasn't been that long, so I don't think I need to show you how to do transitions for a presentations.

If you would like to have some music playing, you can add an audio track. I am using PowerPoint 2016 on my home computer.

Once you are happy with your masterpiece, you can turn it into a video.

To Create a Video from your presentation, use the Export option.

EXERCISE 2

• Apply transitions and timings for your photo album
• Add some Music
• Save your Photo Album as a video
• Share on Facebook

Here is just one of any sites that you can use to legally download music.


http://freemusicarchive.org/


Here is my VERY VERY quick photo album without any bells and whistles, but with a soundtrack, just using some basics photos from my computer.

And Slightly "Tweaked" version!