CSE 185: Introduction to Computer Vision
UC Merced · Fall 2026 · Prof. Ross Greer
Your interactive syllabus — everything you need to navigate the course, in one place.
About this course
How does a computer make sense of an image? CSE 185 introduces the foundations of computer vision — from low-level image processing to modern deep learning models that recognize, segment, and reconstruct the visual world.
We will cover visual representations, projective geometry, image understanding, and object recognition, including topics like feature detection, image filtering, segmentation, motion analysis, 3D reconstruction (stereo, photometric stereo, structure from motion), and neural networks. Time permitting, we'll explore face recognition, pose estimation, detection & tracking, action recognition, transformer networks, and vision–language models.
Prerequisites
Required: CSE 031, CSE 100, MATH 024.
Strongly recommended: Linear algebra, multivariable calculus, probability/statistics, Python, and data structures & algorithms. If you're rusty on any of these, that's okay — come to office hours and we'll point you to refreshers.
Course staff
How to reach us: use Piazza for course questions so the whole class benefits. Use email only for private matters (grading concerns, accommodations, personal circumstances).
Key dates
Assignment and midterm dates are tentative and will be confirmed in the first week. Final exam date is set by the registrar.
8–11 AM, in-person
Lecture schedule
Meets Mon / Wed; classes run through Dec 9. Topics are tentative; cancelled dates shown in grey.
| Mon | Topic | Wed | Topic |
|---|---|---|---|
| — | Aug 26 | Welcome & What is Computer Vision? | |
| Aug 31 | Image Types and Representations | Sep 2 | Optics, Radiometry, and Geometry |
| Sep 7 | No class | Sep 9 | Acquiring Digital Images |
| Sep 14 | No class | Sep 16 | No class |
| Sep 21 | Camera Parameters — HW 1 due | Sep 23 | Midterm 1 |
| Sep 28 | Image Noise and Filtering; Image Gradient | Sep 30 | Edge Detection, Corner Detection, Hough Transform, RANSAC, SIFT |
| Oct 5 | Camera Calibration | Oct 7 | Stereopsis 1 |
| Oct 12 | Stereopsis 2 — HW 2 due | Oct 14 | Midterm 2 |
| Oct 19 | Stereopsis 3 | Oct 21 | Optical Flow 1 |
| Oct 26 | Optical Flow 2 | Oct 28 | Structure from Motion (SfM) |
| Nov 2 | 3D Reconstruction — HW 3 due | Nov 4 | Midterm 3 |
| Nov 9 | Image Recognition and Object Detection | Nov 11 | No class |
| Nov 16 | Template Matching | Nov 18 | Convolutional Neural Networks 1 |
| Nov 23 | Convolutional Neural Networks 2 | Nov 25 | No class |
| Nov 30 | Convolutional Neural Networks 3 — HW 4 due | Dec 2 | Midterm 4 |
| Dec 7 | Vision Transformer | Dec 9 | Computer Vision for People |
| Dec 14 | Final Exam — 8:00–11:00 AM, in-person | ||
How you'll be graded
Midterm grace: your highest midterm score replaces your lowest — one free pass built in.
Grade scale
An A+ category, reserved for exceptional performance, is determined at the end of the semester.
Assignments
There are four assignments, one per course unit. Each combines the conceptual practice and the hands-on coding work for that unit into a single deliverable — so what you study in lecture is what you build in lab.
Working on them
Thursday lab sessions (3 hours) are your built-in work time, with TAs on hand to help. Attendance isn't graded, but the labs are where most students do their best learning. If your section fills up or you want extra time, you're welcome to drop into additional sections.
You're encouraged to discuss concepts with classmates, but every solution you turn in must be written by you, in your own words.
Late work & slip days
Everyone gets 4 slip days to use across the four assignments. One slip day extends a deadline by 24 hours. No need to ask — just submit late and we'll count it.
Once you're out of slip days, late work earns no credit. Staff prioritizes assignments with active deadlines, so plan ahead. All work must be submitted by 11:59 PM on the final exam date.
Hitting a real obstacle (illness, family emergency, technical disaster)? Reach out early — the sooner we know, the more we can do.
Exams
Midterm quizzes (4)
- In-class, in-person — no alternative times.
- Your highest score replaces your lowest, effectively giving you a free quiz.
- Dates are TBD and will be announced in the first week.
Final exam
- Monday, December 14, 8:00–11:00 AM
- In-person, no alternate times.
- If you have a known conflict (e.g., religious observance, official UC event), report it before the first midterm.
- Bring a fully charged laptop unless told otherwise.
Policies
Academic integrity
Academic honesty is taken very seriously at UC Merced. Talk to each other about concepts — that's how you learn. But when it's time to turn in a solution, write it yourself.
Not allowed:
- Sharing or receiving solutions before or after a deadline.
- Submitting a friend's work to test the autograder.
- Examining someone else's solution for "ideas."
- Submitting ChatGPT / GitHub Copilot output as your own solution.
- Posting course solutions or materials publicly.
- Code obfuscation to dodge detection.
Penalties: first offense → the negative of the assignment's maximum points (and it cannot be dropped). Second offense → automatic F in the course. All cases are reported to the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities.
Participation bonus
Up to 2.5% added to your grade for active engagement in Piazza, lab, and lecture.
Good participation looks like:
- Public Piazza posts (private when posting unreleased solutions).
- Searching before posting to avoid duplicates.
- Asking specific, detailed questions.
- Using the quality vote buttons instead of "+1" replies.
Not part of participation:
- Filming, photographing, or recording class without permission.
- Disrupting others' work time during lab.
Inclusion & classroom climate
You belong here. We welcome students from every background, identity, and path. If your name or pronouns differ from official records, let us know — we'll use what you prefer. If a religious holiday conflicts with an exam, tell us early and we'll work it out.
If something about the classroom environment isn't working for you, please bring it to us directly or by email. We can't fix what we don't hear about.
Extenuating circumstances
Circumstances outside your control — health crises, family emergencies, technical disasters — can qualify for extra support. Tell us early. The more lead time we have, the more options we have.
If you're running out of slip days and a tough week is coming, reach out before you fall behind.
Campus resources
- Counseling and Psychological Services — mental health support.
- Office for Prevention of Harassment and Discrimination — for survivors of sexual violence.
- 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline — call or text 988.
- Technology Resources Program — laptop and technology support.
- Dean of Students — (209) 228-3633.
- Student Accessibility Services — (209) 228-6996, access@ucmerced.edu.
Books & resources
Textbooks (all optional)
- Computer Vision: Algorithms and Applications — Szeliski (free online)
- Introductory Techniques for 3D Computer Vision — Trucco & Verri
- Computer Vision: A Modern Approach — Forsyth & Ponce
- Digital Image Processing — Gonzalez & Woods
- Multiple View Geometry — Hartley & Zisserman
- An Invitation to 3D Vision — Ma, Soatto, Kosecka, Sastry
Supplemental
- Deep and Shallow: Machine Learning in Music and Audio — Dubnov & Greer
- Research papers on FCN, U-Net, R-CNN, YOLO, Vision Transformers, contrastive learning, CLIP, and Segment Anything.
- 3Blue1Brown neural network series
- Hough Transform visualization by Isaac Sousa (CSE 185, 2025).
FAQ
Click a question to expand.
How do I get help when I'm stuck?
Post on Piazza first — classmates and staff respond there, and your question probably helps others too. Come to office hours (Prof. Greer: Wed 2:45–3:45 PM, SE2 209), or grab help during Thursday labs. Email is for private matters.
Can I use ChatGPT or Copilot?
Not as a solution generator. Pasting AI output as your assignment answer counts as an academic integrity violation. Using AI to learn concepts or debug your own code is fine — the line is what you submit.
What if I miss a midterm?
There are no make-up midterms. The good news: your highest midterm score replaces your lowest, so missing one is effectively your "drop." If something serious happens, contact Prof. Greer right away.
What if I have a conflict with the final exam?
Report it before the first midterm so we can plan ahead. The final is December 14, 8–11 AM. There are no alternate times unless your conflict was reported and approved early.
How do slip days work?
You get 4 slip days total to spend across the four assignments. Each one extends a deadline by 24 hours. Just submit late — we'll count them automatically. No request needed.
Can I collaborate on assignments?
You can — and should — discuss concepts with other students. But you must write your own solutions in your own words. If you can't explain it to me on the spot, you don't own the solution yet.
Do I have to come to lecture / lab?
Attendance isn't graded, but the lab is where most students cement what they learned in lecture. We strongly recommend showing up. Bonus participation points reward active engagement.
I need accommodations. What do I do?
Contact Student Accessibility Services ((209) 228-6996, access@ucmerced.edu) and forward your accommodation letter to Prof. Greer. Reach out as early as possible so we can make sure everything is in place.
I'm worried about my grade. Now what?
Come talk to us early — don't wait until week 14. Office hours exist for this. We can talk through study strategies, point you to resources, and help you figure out where the gap is.
Can I record lectures?
No filming, photographing, or audio recording of lectures without permission. If you need a recording for accessibility reasons, work through Student Accessibility Services.
Where will the schedule appear once dates are set?
On this page and on Piazza. We'll announce midterm and assignment dates in the first week of class.