Wednesday, August 17, 2016

Taking Notes and Reviewing Important Information

Cornell Notes:  You can use a pre-made form or a piece of regular ruled binder paper to create a Cornell Note form.
  • Begin with a heading (Name, date, class, etc.)
  • Add a title:
    • If it's a lecture, something like "The Pullman Strike" or "The Water Cycle". 
    • If it's a chapter [or section of a chapter] use the title of that section.
    • If it's a movie, use the title of the movie.
  • In the "Notes" section, you will take shortened, essential notes.
    • Don't write down EVERYTHING -- keep it simple and cover main points.
  • When the lecture/film/section is over, summarize the page in the bottom section.  
    • Just quickly tell what the page is about as if you had to explain it to someone in a sentence or two.
  • Finally, add some study questions in the left column to help you remember the material.
    • See examples below:

A bit more about note taking:
There are some good tips in this one -- and some things NOT to do.  :)
Taking Cornell Notes (For Nursing School):

Saturday, May 28, 2016

ACT Extra Credit

While I am not a proponent of testing [in general], I am an advocate of doing well on the ACT because it can help you get into the college you want, help you get scholarships, and it allows colleges to find you based on your scores and interest inventory.  For that reason, I am choosing to offer extra credit for those who take the ACT and do well.
  • "20 Point Club":  50 Extra Credit Points
  • "30 Point Club":  100 Extra Credit Points
  • "32 Point Club":  Grade Bump (up one grade)
ACT Score must be shown to me by the last day of school.

Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Journal: How Would You Spend a Million Dollars?

Journal Write:  How would you spend $1,000,000?

Imagine that you suddenly won a million dollars.  What would you do?  How would you spend it?  Be specific.
Question: If you had $1,000,000 and had to spend it all in one year, how much [if divided equally] would you have to spend every single hour?

Wednesday, April 27, 2016

Beginning Check Writing and Banking

Today we're going to begin a unit on using a checking account.  First we'll do a math worksheet going over percentages, decimals, and writing amounts out in longhand. (I will be handing out a copy in class, but you can get a copy here)

Next we will explore the general layout of a personal check:

Finally we will do a quick simulation of writing checks and using a check register.  I will be passing out a worksheet with three checks and a register (you can view a copy here: Checks with Register).  Use the following scenario to complete your worksheet:
  • You begin your checking account today (12/02/16) with $135.72 from your piggy bank.
  • You receive a Check for $550.00 from your work and Deposit it to your checking account on 12/03/16.
  • Write a Check for your rent on 12/04/16 for $425 to Jellico Green Apartments.
  • You go to dinner at The Pizza Spot on Saturday Night (12/05/16) for $18.27 and use your Debit Card.
  • You send a Check to Edward Teach in the amount of $31.19 on 12/06/16 for a pair of shoes you bought on eBay.
  • You receive a Check for $550.00 on 12/17/16 from your work and you Deposit it to your checking account that afternoon.
  • You write a Check for your car payment to Airport Auto Brokers on 12/18/16 in the amount of $224.72.
  • You use Online Banking to pay $124.25 for your Jellico Electric bill on 12/09/16.
Compare your ending balance with a neighbors to verify your accuracy.


Here are a couple video clips to explore:




Wednesday, April 13, 2016

Photoshop Example: Restore Damaged Photo

We will spend today and tomorrow restoring a photograph.  I have actually done this as a side business (see http://www.restoredtreasures.com) and did pretty well with it.  The nice thing about doing this is that you make money, but you also save someones memories.

For today, select one of the attached damaged photos to repair and restore [or locate your own].  Remember to save the original to include in your portfolio as a "before and after".  If you do not include a "Before and After" (either as one image or by uploading both) I won't grade it.

This example comes from a press release from Utah (http://www.prweb.com/releases/2004/08/prweb149074.htm) in which they declare October 11th to be "Historical Photo Restoration Day".
Original
Restored
I will demonstrate the tools with this image:
Here are some examples of restored photos:
In this strange example, I combined the anaglyph project with a photo restoration to give the restored picture some depth.  You can see it if you use anaglyph red/cyan glasses.
Click on an image to view it full-size, then Right-click and Save As to your computer:


Sometimes I actually replace the original backdrop in a portrait.  Here are some examples:

Here are some video tutorials showing the basic process:







Photoshop Gondola Example

Assignment:  We have accepted an assignment from a client to take a dull, scanned photograph and improve it for use in a poster, brochure, web site, etc.  The client has scanned a photograph of a gondola, but they think it is too hazy... and they don't like the speedboat in the center of the picture... and "the colors are a little blah".  We will use PhotoShop to correct these issues... and more.

Photoshop Tools/Options Used:
  • Ruler
  • Rotate Canvas
  • Crop
  • Levels
  • Clone Stamp
  • Dodge
  • Burn
  • Replace Color
  • Magic Wand
  • Paste Into
  • Free Transform

We will be using the following images to create our final project:
(Right-click each image and save to your computer, then open them in Photoshop.)
Part I: We will begin with the Gondola picture (p_start.psd):
  • Select VIEW > FIT ON SCREEN (shortcut is CTRL+0) to see the image as large as possible
  • Select the RULER tool (sometimes it's hidden under the EYEDROPPER) -- a shortcut is SHIFT+I which toggles through that toolset.
  • Drag the ruler along an edge that should be straight (i.e. the edge of the tower).
  • Select IMAGE > ROTATE CANVAS > ARBITRARY...
  • A suggested rotation is already in place based on your ruler line (this tool is trying to make the ruler line vertical or horizonal)... so click OK.
  • Use the RECTANGULAR MARQUEE tool (the box shape) to select as much of the picture as possible without including the black border (it's okay if you don't get all of the photo in the square).
  • Select IMAGE > CROP
  • Select VIEW > FIT ON SCREEN (again, to see the maximum image size)
  • Select IMAGES > ADJUSTMENTS > LEVELS
  • Drag the "black triangle" in toward the very beginning of the "mountain range" -- and do the same for the "white triangle" (click the "Preview" box to toggle this change to preview what it is doing) then click OK.
  • You now have a brightened, cropped image to work with for the next part.
Part II: Removing the Motor Boat / Using the Clone Stamp
  • Click the CLONE STAMP tool
  • Move your pointer over to a clear area of water -- about the same distance/depth as your motorboat (i.e. somewhere in the same horizontal line) and ALT+CLICK.
  • Move your mouse over to the center of the motorboat and slowly paint over the boat.  Notice the "+" shape where the CLONE STAMP is copying from.
Part III: Adjusting Highlights and Shadows
  • Click the DODGE tool (it looks like a black pushpin) and set the Range for HIGHLIGHTS and the Exposure to around 10%.
  • Adjust your brush size as necessary with the [ and ] keys.
  • Brush over the red and white striped tarp and notice how the highlights are getting brighter.  Try this on other tarps and the side of the boat which seems to get shinier.
  • Click the BURN tool (it looks like a hand pinching and is found under the DODGE tool) and set the Range for SHADOWS and the Exposure to around 5%.
  • Adjust your brush size as necessary with the [ and ] keys.
  • Brush over the boats/tarps just to get a little contrast.
Part IV: Replace the Orange Tarp
  • Use the ZOOM tool (it looks like a magnifying glass) to zoom in on the orange tarp -- making sure you can see the entire thing.
  • Use the LASSO tool and draw around the orange tarp (making a selection)
  • Select IMAGE > ADJUSTMENT > REPLACE COLOR
  • Click on the orange part of the orange tarp.  You should see a faint "mask" of the orange shape appear in the Replace Color box.
  • Hold down the SHIFT key and Click and Drag around the orange tarp trying to select ONLY the orange areas.  If you over-select (i.e. you accidentally go into the black) you can start this step over.
  • When you feel like you have a nice, sharp "mask" of the orange tarps shape, drag the HUE slider left and right.  Notice the colors changing on your image.
  • If you adjust the SATURATION slider and the LIGHTNESS slider, you can actually match the colors of the other tarps on the boat.
Part V: Make Blue Skies From Gray
  • Open the Clouds picture (p_clouds.psd).
  • Click on SELECT > ALL (or do CTRL+A)
  • Select EDIT > COPY (or do CTRL+C)
  • Go back to your Gondola picture.
  • Click the MAGIC WAND tool (SHIFT+W toggles this)
  • Click in one of the "gray" areas of the sky and notice how it selects some of the building tops.  We don't want that.
  • Drop your TOLERANCE down to 10 and see how that works.  Notice that it [probably] doesn't select the entire piece.  We can compensate for that by holding SHIFT and clicking in the "unselected" areas.
  • Continue SHIFT-Clicking the other "gray" areas of the sky throughout the picture.
  • Select EDIT > PASTE INTO (not PASTE)
  • Notice how ugly and unnatural this looks?  Don't worry -- go over to the OPACITY setting (above your LAYERS) and drag that down until it looks natural.  Mine is about 37% [this time].
  • When you are satisfied with your final product, select LAYER > FLATTEN IMAGE.
Part VI: Make the Before and After
  • Go to IMAGE > CANVAS SIZE
  • Change "inches" to percent and change the width (since this is a picture that is taller than it is wide, a side-by-side comparison works best -- so we will adjust the width) and change the 100 to 200 (making it twice the width).
  • Click on the Right Arrow (this means you want your current picture -- the "after" -- to be on the right) and click OK.
  • Copy your original image (in this case, p_start.psd) and Paste it into your finished image.  Use the MOVE tool (the black arrow) to drag it to the left side.
  • You may want to use your FREE TRANSFORM to rotate and resize the original so it fits better.
  • Add your name to the finished image.
  • Save your completed file as a JPEG image to your Thawspace. 
Part VII: Add to Your Portfolio
  • Go to your Blog (http://www.blogger.com/) and sign into your account.
  • Click New Post and make sure "Compose" is selected.
  • Click the IMAGE/PICTURE button.
  • Browse for your picture (from your Thawspace).
  • Add a description about the steps you completed or the process you used in putting this together.  You could even add the reason you did the project (e.g. A virtual client wanted you to clean up an image to use for print/online media).
  • Click PUBLISH POST.
  • Click VIEW BLOG.
If you have difficulty following along and would like to work on this from home, here is a tutorial using the same images: