Multimedia Foundations

Multimedia Foundations

by Vic Costello
Released October 2012
Publisher(s): Focal Press
ISBN: 9781136023613

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Book description

Understand the core concepts and skills of multimedia production and digital storytelling using text, graphics, photographs, sound, motion, and video. Then, put it all together using the skills that you have developed for effective project planning, collaboration, visual communication, and graphic design. Presented in full color with hundreds of vibrant illustrations, "Multimedia Foundations" trains you in the principles and skill sets common to all forms of digital media production, enabling you to create successful, engaging content, no matter what tools you are using. Companion website features a wealth of web resources, illustrations, and video tutorials demonstrating the key techniques presented in the book. Improve projects with core principles of visual communication and graphic design. Learn necessary strategies for project planning, organization, and asset management. Understand the intricacy of design and production workflows. Effectively navigate postproduction and the distribution of multimedia content. Utilize the companion web site video tutorials and links to go along with each of the chapters.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Halftitle
  3. Title
  4. Copyright
  5. Dedication
  6. Contents
  7. Acknowledgements
  8. About the Author
  9. About the Website
  10. Introduction
  11. Section 1 • Multimedia Foundations
    1. Chapter 1 Understanding Multimedia
      1. What It Is … Is Multimedia!
        1. Social Media
      2. Defining Multimedia
        1. Understanding Multimedia
        2. Evolving Media Industries
      3. From Old Media to New Media
        1. The Characteristics of Old Media
          1. Large Organizations
          2. Large Audience
          3. Simultaneous Delivery
      4. Characteristics of New Media
        1. Five Principles of New Media
          1. Numerical Representation
          2. Structural Modularity
          3. Automation
          4. Variability
          5. Cultural Transcoding
      5. Chapter Summary
    2. Chapter 2 The Computer
      1. The Digital Revolution
        1. From Bits to Bytes
        2. History of the Personal Computer
      2. Computer Hardware and Software
        1. Computer Hardware Basics
          1. Processor Speed
          2. System Memory
      3. The Human Interface
        1. The Mouse and the GUI
        2. The Keyboard
          1. Keyboard Basics
      4. Saving and Managing Digital Files and Project Assets
        1. Digital Storage Solutions
          1. Fixed Storage
          2. Removable Storage
          3. Network-Attached Storage (NAS)
      5. Connecting Drives and Devices
      6. Chapter Summary
    3. Chapter 3 Planning and Design
      1. A Road Map
      2. Creativity
        1. The Three Ps
          1. Preproduction
          2. Production
          3. Postproduction
      3. The Client and Producer
        1. Initial Client Meeting
          1. Needs Assessment, Fact Gathering, and Research
        2. Idea Generation and Concept Development
        3. Previsualization Tools
          1. Treatment
          2. Storyboard
          3. Script
          4. Wireframe
          5. Mockup
          6. Prototype
      4. The Design Process
        1. Specify Requirements
        2. Analyze Users
        3. Build a Working Prototype
        4. Evaluate and Revise
      5. Chapter Summary
  12. Section 2 • Multimedia Design
    1. Chapter 4 Visual Communication
      1. Visual Communication
        1. Content and Form
        2. Aesthetics
      2. Elements of Design
        1. Space
          1. Two-Dimensional Space
          2. Positive and Negative Space
        2. Dot
        3. Line
          1. Straight Lines
          2. Curved Lines
        4. Shape
        5. Form
          1. Lighting
        6. Texture
        7. Pattern
        8. Color
      3. The Principles of Design
        1. Unity
          1. Proximity
          2. Alignment
          3. Similarity
          4. Repetition
        2. Emphasis
          1. Contrast (Value)
          2. Color
          3. Depth
          4. Proportion
        3. Perceptual Forces
          1. Balance
          2. Continuation
          3. Figure-Ground
          4. Psychological Closure
      4. Chapter Summary
    2. Chapter 5 Multimedia Page Design
      1. Organizing Content on a Page
      2. The Gutenberg Diagram
      3. Breaking Out of the Box
        1. F-Layout
        2. Z-Layout
        3. Chunking Body Copy
        4. Headings
      4. Bringing Order to Chaos
        1. The Grid System
          1. Graph Paper Grid System
          2. Common Grid Structures
          3. Single-Column Grid
          4. Multicolumn Grid
          5. Modular Grid
        2. Tables
          1. Defining Tables
          2. Splitting and Merging Cells
      5. Page Templates
      6. Static and Dynamic Pages
      7. Fixed Layouts
      8. Fluid Layouts
      9. Chapter Summary
    3. Chapter 6 Interface Design and Usability
      1. User Interfaces
        1. Interactivity
        2. Types of User Interfaces
          1. Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs)
          2. Touch Interfaces
        3. User-Centered Design
      2. Designing User Interfaces
      3. Components and Features
        1. Navigation
          1. Menus
        2. Tabs
          1. Managing the Hierarchy
        3. Organizing Content
          1. Thumbnails
          2. Carousels
          3. Pagination
          4. Archives
          5. Tag Clouds
      4. Forms
      5. Tailoring
        1. Personalization
        2. Customization
      6. Usability
        1. Learnability
        2. Efficiency
        3. Memorability
        4. Error Management
        5. Satisfaction
        6. Usability Testing
        7. Soliciting and Applying Feedback
      7. Making Interfaces Accessible
      8. Chapter Summary
    4. Chapter 7 Web Design
      1. How the Web Works
        1. HTML
        2. Browsers
        3. The Network
          1. The URL: Your Address on the Web
          2. Servers and IP Addresses
          3. Intranets
      2. Planning Site Structure and Navigation
        1. Defining a Site and the “Root Folder”
        2. Establishing a Hierarchy
        3. Maintaining Site Uniformity and Consistency
      3. Page Design and Layout
      4. Ensuring Site Usability
      5. Marking Up Your Content
        1. Headings
        2. Paragraphs and Block Quotes
        3. Lists
        4. Creating and Managing Hyperlinks
          1. Linking within the Website
          2. Linking to External Sites
          3. The Navigation Bar
        5. Linking Images and Adding Image Information
        6. Creating Tables
      6. Controlling Appearance: Cascading Style Sheets
      7. Characteristics of Appearance
        1. Margins
        2. Background and Text Colors
        3. Font Type and Style
          1. Absolute Sizes
          2. Relative Sizes
        4. Link Characteristics
        5. Interactive and Multimedia Web Content
      8. Checking your Code and Compatibility
        1. Accessibility Issues
      9. Uploading the Site to the Server
      10. Chapter Summary
  13. Section 3 • Static Media
    1. Chapter 8 Graphics
      1. Graphics and Images
        1. Graphics
        2. Images
      2. Digital Imaging
        1. Raster Images
          1. Resolution
          2. Color speace
          3. Defining the Raster Image
          4. Scaling
          5. Resampling
          6. Anti-Aliasing
          7. Raster Image Formats
        2. Vector Graphics
      3. Display Screen Standards
        1. Aspect Ratio
      4. Moving Images
        1. Raster Scanning
          1. Progressive Scanning
          2. Interlaced Scanning
        2. Television Standards
          1. Digital Television
      5. Chapter Summary
    2. Chapter 9 Text
      1. An Introduction to Typography
      2. Legibility and Readability
      3. Characteristics that Define Typefaces
        1. Stroke, Contrast, and Stress
        2. Weight: Regular, Boldface, and Light
        3. Posture: Roman, Oblique, and Italic
        4. Proportions and Letterform Parts
      4. Categorizing Typefaces
        1. Serif Typefaces
          1. From Blackletter to Oldstyle Typefaces
          2. Transitional Typefaces
          3. Modern Typefaces
          4. Slab-Serif Typefaces
        2. Sans-Serif Typefaces
        3. Decorative Typefaces
        4. Script Typefaces
        5. Symbol Typefaces and Special Characters
      5. Computers and Typefaces
      6. Font Styles: True and Faux
        1. Italics and Boldface for Emphasis
        2. Condensed or Expanded Type
        3. All Caps and Small Caps
        4. Underline and Strikethrough
        5. Font Size
        6. Font Color
        7. Baseline Shift
        8. Superscript/Subscript
        9. Anti-Aliasing
      7. Character and Line Spacing
        1. Kerning and Tracking
        2. Leading
      8. Alignment, Justification, and Distribution
      9. Font Transformations
      10. Some Final Tips
        1. Limit the Number of Typefaces
        2. Text First, Type Second
        3. Less Is More
      11. Chapter Summary
    3. Chapter 10 Photography
      1. Photography
        1. Consumer Cameras
        2. Prosumer and Professional Cameras
        3. Video Cameras
      2. The Imaging Chain
        1. The Lens
          1. Prime Lenses
          2. Zoom Lenses
        2. The Iris
          1. F-stop
        3. The Shutter
        4. The Image Sensor
          1. Film Speed
          2. Film Size
          3. File Size
      3. Exposure
        1. Measuring Light Intensity
          1. Evaluative Metering Mode
          2. Center-Weighted Metering Mode
          3. Spot Metering Mode
      4. White Balance
      5. Focus
        1. Autofocus (AF)
          1. AF Target Point
        2. Manual Focus (MF)
      6. Depth of Field
        1. Aperture Size
        2. Focal Length
        3. Subject/Camera Distance
      7. Exposure Modes
        1. Automatic Modes
          1. Fully Automatic Mode
          2. Portrait Mode
          3. Landscape Mode
          4. Sports Mode
          5. Night Mode
        2. Semi-Automatic Modes
          1. Aperture Priority Mode
          2. Shutter Priority Mode
          3. Program Mode
        3. Manual Mode
      8. Image Stabilization
      9. Downloading Images
        1. Digital Image Management
          1. Renaming Images
          2. Image Folders
      10. Chapter Summary
  14. Section 4 • Time-Based Media
    1. Chapter 11 Audio Production
      1. Sound and Audio
      2. What Is Sound?
        1. Amplitude
        2. Frequency
      3. Digital Audio Sampling
        1. Pulse-Code Modulation
        2. Sampling Rate (or Sample Rate)
        3. Bit Depth
      4. Codecs and Container Formats
        1. WAV and AIFF
      5. Sound Recording
        1. Microphones
        2. How Do Microphones Work?
        3. Classifying Microphones by Transducer Type
          1. Dynamic Microphones
          2. Moving-Coil Microphones
          3. Ribbon Microphones
          4. Condenser Microphones
        4. Classifying Microphones by Polar Pattern
          1. Omnidirectional
          2. Bidirectional
          3. Cardioid (Unidirectional)
        5. Classifying Microphones by Form Factor
          1. Handheld Microphones
          2. Lavaliere Microphones
          3. Shotgun Microphones
          4. Boundary Microphones
        6. Internal or External Microphones
        7. Wireless Microphones
        8. Digital Microphones
      6. Audio Connectors
        1. Balanced Audio Connectors
          1. XLR Connectors
        2. Unbalanced Audio Connectors
          1. TS and TRS Connectors
          2. RCA Connectors
          3. Adapters
        3. Cable Management 101
      7. Audio Monitoring
        1. Audio Metering (Objective Monitoring)
          1. The Sound Check
        2. Listening (Subjective Monitoring)
          1. Headphones
      8. Chapter Summary
    2. Chapter 12 Sound and Video Recording
      1. Motion Picture Film Recording
      2. Magnetic Recording
      3. Professional Videotape Formats
        1. Analog Tape Formats
          1. U-Matic ¾-Inch
          2. Sony Betacam and Panasonic M
          3. U-Matic SP
          4. Betacam-SP and MII
        2. Digital Tape Formats
          1. D1 and D2
          2. Panasonic D3
          3. Sony Digital Betacam, Betacam SX, HDCAM
        3. High-Definition Tape Formats
          1. MPEG IMX
          2. Panasonic D5, D5HD
        4. DV Formats
          1. DVCPRO and DVCAM
          2. HDV
          3. DVCPRO HD
      4. Two Types of Video Compression
      5. Consumer Formats
        1. Betamax and VHS
        2. MiniDV
      6. File-Base Recording Formats
        1. Open Standards for File-Base Recording
          1. MP3
          2. MPEG-2
          3. MPEG-4 - Advanced Video Coding (AVC)
        2. Proprietary Standards for File-Base Recording
          1. Professional Disc and SxS
          2. P2
          3. Proprietary Card Formats
          4. AVCHD
      7. Chapter Summary
    3. Chapter 13 Time-Based Editing
      1. Nonlinear Editing
      2. The Building Blocks of an Edited Sequence
        1. Scripted Action and Dialog
        2. Unscripted Action and Dialog
          1. Sound Bites
          2. Voiceover (VO)
          3. B-Roll
          4. Natural Sound
          5. Titles
        3. Full-Screen Graphics
        4. Music and Sound Effects
      3. Continuity Editing
        1. Cut-Ins
      4. The Project Folder
        1. The Project File
        2. Media Files and Media Clips
          1. Capture Files
          2. Render Files
      5. Components of an NLE Interface
        1. Project Window
        2. The Timeline
          1. Video Compositing and Audio Mixing
        3. The Preview and Program Monitors
          1. Virtual Monitor Components
          2. The Image Frame
      6. Adding Clips to the Timeline
        1. A Simple Editing Scenario
          1. Step 1: Set an IN Point and OUT Point in the Preview Monitor
          2. Step 2: Set an IN Point in the Timeline
          3. Step 3: Perform the Edit
          4. Step 4: Repeat Steps 1–3 for SOT #2 and VO #2
          5. Step 5: Add B-Roll over VO Segments
          6. Step 6: Add Titles, Transitions, and Effects
        2. Transitions
          1. Cut
          2. Fade
          3. Dissolve
          4. Wipe
          5. Transition Properties
      7. Chapter Summary
  15. Index

Product information

  • Title: Multimedia Foundations
  • Author(s): Vic Costello
  • Release date: October 2012
  • Publisher(s): Focal Press
  • ISBN: 9781136023613