F1308 Digital Tools for Humanities, Caterina Balletti, Francesco Guerra

The digital imaging in Humanities and Cultural Heritage has become commonplace generally to provide accurate and detailed records, and to facilitate detailed analysis of objects, documents, buildings, and artefacts, to increase public access. Digital imaging technologies have developed rapidly in the last ten years, becoming more popular nowadays than their analogue counterparts, and increasing expectations from the general public about the range and quality of digital image material which should be made available by heritage institutions. Today there are many tools, techniques, and methodologies in creating and disseminating digital image representations of cultural heritage, architecture and territory. Cultural Heritage Imaging (CHI) fosters the development and adoption of technologies for digital capture and documentation of the world's cultural, scientific, and artistic treasures.  

The aim of the course is to provide the basis of acquisition, processing, storage and spread of digital images to support urban, architectural and archeological documentation, mainly describing :

- digital image acquisition;

- digital photographs;

- aerial images; - geometric and radiometric processing;

- high dynamic range; - panoramas;

- photogrammetric rectification;

- geotagging;

- 3D stereoscopic images;

- multi-image based modelling.  

Teaching Method

Lectures are aimed at providing a theoretical explanation and a consistent knowledge on digital documentation; a pratical lab will be done to obtain an active participation by the students through class-exercise and case analysis. Slideshows, videos and software application are to be considered essential part of the programme.  

Learning objectives:

The course covers the principles and techniques to create digital images by integrating the traditional of Computer Graphics with the most innovative one of Computational Photography.

At the end of the course, students will have the knowledge to:

1- develop an understanding of the digital processes of documentation;

2- choose the right digital tool respect their field of interest. Moreover they will have a collection of software (freeware and shareware) and the knowledge to use them, considering their field of interest.