Enrolled in a photography class...??

Artograph · Aug 18, 2007

I'm just curious if anyone here is/was enrolled in a class....and what kind...college...on-line....what..?? Do you recommend it??

Also, if you've never taken photography classes....where did you learn all that you know so far (besides here!! LOL!!)?

:blushing:

am_photoer · Aug 18, 2007

I took a year in highschool and plan and taking a photo class next semester. They are helpful but you really only learn what you want to. I learned the most about photography on my own though when i really became interested and not in the class. If you want to learn more a class is a great way to get one on one and serious critiques and advise.

daybreak · Aug 18, 2007

i've taken a photo class in high school where we learned the basics on 35mm, and I feel it was a lot of help. I'm taking a digital photography class at a community college and also one at the academy of art in san francisco.

I would recomend taking any kind of photo class that you can.

bellacat · Aug 18, 2007

I took a couple classes in college when i was getting my BS degree in Graphic Design. I'm looking into going back to school for my masters at the Academy of Art in San Francisco

Iron Flatline · Aug 19, 2007

I studied photography in college 20 years ago in New York City. Took LOTS of courses, and had a number of brilliant teachers - one in particular.

Eight years ago I got one of the first digital point-and-shoots, followed by one of the first dSLR cameras about 6 years ago, and have been taking classes ever since. At first it was a series of Photoshop classes, then I found a great class called "Intermediate Digital Photography" which was a class for advanced hobbyists and pros who wanted to transition from film to digital. I learned to shoot RAW, deal with WB, how to set certain parameters like Sharpness, Contrast, Hue and Saturation, etc if you just want to shoot JPG, and on and on.

Since then I've been taking at least one class a year, just to keep honing my skills and to get out of the house and have some fun. I've taken classes on photographing architecture, as well as studio work. There was a week-long seminar on street photography, or just a one-day course on suggested cataloging and annotation techniques.

It is one of the great things about living in Los Angeles - tons of great classes being offered all over town at any given time. Check out UCLA Extension, Julia Dean Photo Classes, or Sammy's Camera. There's also people offering specific skills as one-on-one classes, look for their ads on Craig's List or fliers at the big camera stores like Samy's or Bel-Air Camera.

I just moved to Berlin, and I haven't researched it thoroughly yet. But it's a town with four major universities, and a huge creative community - I'm sure there's a lot here.

But I know I'm a city kid, I don't know how some of you live out of town. :sexywink:

:lmao:

daybreak · Aug 19, 2007

bellacat said:
I took a couple classes in college when i was getting my BS degree in Graphic Design. I'm looking into going back to school for my masters at the Academy of Art in San Francisco

sweet, did you get your Graphic Design degree from the academy? I'm currently an MPT major there.

scottdg · Aug 19, 2007

I have been trying to make the decision about the Academy of Art and the online courses. They are expensive and I just don't know if it is worth it. I have a family to consider and $2,000 per class is a lot of money. The only problem is I am going to work towards a degree in photography or something else and if I do it in something else I am not sure I will ever find the time between work, family and school to take any pictures of anything other than my kids.

daybreak · Aug 19, 2007

I live in the Bay Area and I take classes both at the SF campus and online as well. They have a great online program, but I try to only take online classes for lesser hands on stuff like Film History/Art History. I personally don't know if it's worth it if you're going to be doing all of your schooling online considering the $600 a unit factor :meh: . While the online classes are great, I feel very disconnected from the teacher/students and nothing beats being in an actual classroom.

bellacat · Aug 19, 2007

daybreak said:
sweet, did you get your Graphic Design degree from the academy? I'm currently an MPT major there.

I got my BS in Graphic Design from Woodbury University in Burbank, CA. I actually started out as an Architecture major and changed to graphic design. what is MPT?

daybreak said:
I live in the Bay Area and I take classes both at the SF campus and online as well. They have a great online program, but I try to only take online classes for lesser hands on stuff like Film History/Art History. I personally don't know if it's worth it if you're going to be doing all of your schooling online considering the $600 a unit factor :meh: . While the online classes are great, I feel very disconnected from the teacher/students and nothing beats being in an actual classroom.

I still haven't looked into the financial aid for the program though I hope it will cover the cost. I am a little afraid of the feeling of being disconnected from the students as well. I live in Santa Rosa which is North Bay so you know what kind of drive that would be to SF for school. Unfortunately I do have a 6 mo baby at home which means I have to hold of on taking any classes on campus for just a little bit longer but I am looking into all my options. How do you like the school so far?

sorry to high jack the thread Artograph

DSLR noob · Aug 19, 2007

Well if you really want to know an interesting fact, I've learned more in here than I did when I took a photography class. Mostly everything I know was from reading the forum, or from magazines. EVERYTHING I know didn't sink in until I physically did it with my camera in my hands.

bellacat · Aug 19, 2007

I agree a lot can be learned from reading books, magazines and forums. at the same time i also agree that going to school has a lot to offer. Having the direction a school has to offer can sometimes give you that added advantage earlier than someone who i searching for answers. What i mean is that there are some things that can only be learned when taught by a pro who has been working in the biz with experience. I think of school as a one stop shop for training and answers. You get what you pay for and i love the idea of being able to be taught by the pros and being able to pick thier brain when needed. this is not to say that the exact same information can not be learned on your own through books but for myself i learn better in school environment.