photo degree
Brian Hanser
< To get the (Photography) degree, I would need to take to take one more
year's
<worth of classes -- mostly art history. **Is it worth it? Does a photo
<degree count for anything more than beans in the PJ job market??
Mike,
I have a BFA in Photography from the University of Washington in
Seattle. My advice is to skip the Art History classes at all cost. Every Art
History class I ever took should have been renamed "Parrot Talk 101". All we
were expected to do was memorize this painting or that Cathedral, when it was
made, where it was made, etc.... Take the money and time you would have spent
on that extra year in school and go to Europe and study Art History first
hand by taking photos.
NOW, if you wish to study just photography, on the other hand, I
highly recommend it. Take as many photography classes as electives that your
English or Photojournalism program will allow, and then some.
Whether or not a photo degree amounts to a hill of beans depends
on how well you apply what you learn. Any experience you gain by working on
the staff of the school paper will far out way anything you'll learn in an
Art History class (in my opinion).
Brian Hanser
David R. Lutman
out another year in school and get a second degree in art. Brian Hanser
advised the following...
>>Every Art History class I ever took should have been renamed "Parrot Talk
101". All we
were expected to do was memorize this painting or that Cathedral, when it was
made, where it was made, etc.... Take the money and time you would have spent
on that extra year in school and go to Europe and study Art History first
hand by taking photos.<<
While I can not deny Mr. Hanser his experience with art history classes, I do
not share his point of view. I have enjoyed spending many a splendid hour in
museums all over the world, but my appreciation for what I was viewing was
only possible because my eyes had been "trained" to look for specific things.
Not all art history professors are as dry as a "polly's cracker." Some are
capable of bringing art to life.
I advise all students to take a class or two in art history. Learn how the
masters have used light, composition, color and space. Learn from what angle
they chose to paint their subjects. Examine who their subjects are. Look for
irony. Look for symbolism. Look for realism.
Don't forget to study the history of photography and the history of
photojournalism.
As you understand the building blocks upon which all art is based, you will
be prepared for taking your craft one step farther.
David R. Lutman
NPPA Secretary
Stacy Rosenstock
every editor I've ever worked with was more concerned with my images than my
degrees. Photo degrees are good if you want to teach someday, and they add to
your resume, but that's about it.
If your school offers latter half 19th Century French Art, Twentieth Century
Art, or a History of Photography, these should give you a better perspective
of the interaction between Photography and the "Fine Arts," like the
relationship between the work of Muybridge and Degas. Photo History will give
you a better understanding of what other photographers have done before you,
and why some images are considered important while others aren't.
If your school only offers Greek Vase Painting or Abstact Expresionism, think
about spending your tuition of film and talkng some workshops on Photo
History latter.
Stacy
Scott Lewis
position, true. However the opportunity to be in a community of serious
minded photographers, one that just plain does not exist among undergrads for
a number of reasons, is well worth it. The contacts that can be made through
people with a diversity of interests and specialties affords a wider
perspective on the industry as well as your own possibilities. All of this,
of course, leads to you making better images, getting better jobs, having
more respect for your opinion, etc.......