Teachers limiting your photography

[patrickt]

A teacher, whether teaching art, English, politics, or history isn't presenting the Truth or the Gospel. They have some knowledge or skill which you want to learn but they also have foibles or plain nutty ideas that you pass on. I was visiting a photography tour group led by a college professor of photography. He was an Artist and was teaching these folks that you never have anything interesting in the photo because then the content takes away from the art. He preferred rocks, a row of trash cans, or something else "abstract".

I think that's nutty but he's certainly entitled to his opinion. You learn what you want to learn, discard the rest, and go on with your work. Don't sweat the small stuff.

 

[Yemme]

Ummm well my wife (yep the boss) asked me to not be making nude art in the basement. Yep that limits things. So now I gotta do the nudes outside.


J/K


D.E.

:shock: Oh no you didn't.... DeadEye.... did you want to loose the other eye! Man you got balls... I'll give you that. So.... Define... "nudes outside"? (Just curious)

 

[Yemme]

Crimson-Cannon I will tell you that many people will not like your work. Just don't allow someone to take away the passion that you have. Two years is a long time. People have their favorites and it doesn't mean that they will succeed more than another. As a matter a fact I wanted to do a post about people compromising their integrity just to get ahead. Just Do You.... and believe me you will have an audience.

 

[Battou]

Lets try this again shal we.....my computer froze last time I tried to reply to this thread.....

She then gave me a rather distasteful look and told me "Those are two MALE manikins and I will not have THAT in my classroom!"

Hrmm... in what universe does she live where wooden mannequins of ANY kind have ANY gender?

Did you ask her to show you the female mannequin box, you know, the ones with breasts and female gennitalia? You would be interested in redoing the shot.

That was my first thought as well, I would have demanded she provide a female a manikin to redo the shot with, then when she was proven unable to do so I would have told her to stand the F*** down, but that is just me.


@ the OP:

I've never had anysuch experience with any of my art teachers. My photography instructor never once made any attempt to limit anything we did...Actually she did once when a couple of the other students where printing off hundreds of wallet sized photos of one of the school staff....but that is a different story all together.

I don't think you where being limited so much as you are being put off by closed minded asshats in key positions pertaining to your artistic experience inducing a dry spell. Induced dryspells like that I do however I have some experience with.

I have never denied that I contribute to the field of hentai (Sexual/Perverted illustrations) predominately in the Americain cartoon field. When I lost my approval status on the site I start the internet display of my illustrations on for the reason of "Failure to meet quality standards" I was seriously put off of the whole shooting match.

Imagery like these fail to meat the quality standard of the site

http://www.picaroni.com/21636.jpg - Moderate NSFW

http://www.picaroni.com/2180_2.jpg - Mild NSFW

http://www.picaroni.com/10597.png - Strong NSFW

Now, no, they are not perfect but if you go through and look at official art for all four of the existing charachters (one is an OC to me, that would be the female in the Johnny Bravo image) there is no reason to pull the quality control flag over them.

It boils down to some self righteous douche bag in a position of power telling you they don't like what you have to offer and using their position for prevent others from viewing your work. Nothing more, nothing less, never the less it's inappropriate to do so.

Best thing you can do is push throught it, by force if neccessary. It's your right to create the imagery you feel is worth the effort. Don't let ignorance rule supreme over your work, I've been down that road my self, if you do you will get no where fast as you learned over the last two years, correct. I still to this day have difficulty producing a new illustration due to letting me self get brought down by stupid people. You would be better off standing your ground.

 

[Mendoza]

What can you say? I remember my high school photography teacher showing the class a graphic shot of Robert Mapplethorpe with a bullwhip inserted into his anus, and then openly criticizing me for using profanity as a character in a school play. (He may have had a point, but would he have been offended if I was depicting anal intrusion onstage as opposed to using harsh language?)
Your teacher would have done better to critique the actual photograph (lighting, composition, etc..) as opposed to jumping to reactionary conclusions about "apparent" depictions of homosexuality, but in a Christian school her response is not too surprising. Personally I see it as a depiction of human love; I'd have to work to read any sexual content into it.

 

[UUilliam]

another support as to why im anti-christian (i dont hate christians i feel they are an evil cult although the members have been brainwashed to think it is good and is freedom, but with so much rules and contradictions...)

 

[fwellers]

another support as to why im anti-christian (i dont hate christians i feel they are an evil cult although the members have been brainwashed to think it is good and is freedom, but with so much rules and contradictions...)

My brain has been saved from all religion. Don't get me started. Not on a photography forum. :lmao:

 

[JerryPH]

Just thought of another one:
I would have said... its not homosexuality... its 2 women... and when she started on lesbians, I wold have looked at her and said... "what??? YOU never hugged YOUR mom or something???? How SICK!!!" :lmao:

 

[AlexColeman]

Or reply in a perverted voice, " So any man/man relationship is ok, and any male/female relationship is ok?"

 

[lewandowski]

I took like 5 photo classes in college all with the same teacher. Not once did I have a specific photo assignment or was told anything to shoot. I think it was actually more difficult then if I had a focus.


Was very fun thoughhhh


but seriously, for an art teacher to be doing that is whack. Its art, it shouldn't be limited really (except like racist things lol)

 

[Overread]

Interesting points - some here seem to be saying that teacher should put no limits on what their students create - a very dangerous move in the line of art, where with enough waffle a few unwashed coffee mugs on a table can be classed as highlevel art and be sold for £10000s.

I think the roll of art teacher is a horrid one for composition and creativity - key skills like lighting, compositional theory, exposure, editing, scene selection, etc... Those are the easy parts - giving over hard facts that don't change nor bend. That is where the teachers should (IMO) focus their attentions, giving the students the skills needed to help realise their vision - because without the skills all the vision in the world is still wasted if you can't create what is in your minds eye.

However many teachers are going to limit the creativity or their students, or focus them in a certain direction - at school level this is easily understandable - the teachers have to make sure the students don't take on tasks to big for themselves as well as make sure that art produced is likley to get good marks (it helps the student and reflects well on the teacher as well). Thus students, whilst free, are not fully free and they should take this into account - pushing aginst the flow and going in a different direction takes guts and energy and if you know your peers are likley to mark you low because of subject matter or content then that is a risk your art might have to take if it means that much to you. Of course you can appeal against such things, there is provision and right for you to do so, so by all means remember that you can fight for your art - but if you are you better make sure its worth that much do you.

Also remember that school is not everything - at the end of the day what you walk away from that others see is a bit of paper and a grade - so you might have to take photos slightly different from what you want to to get that grade, so what? You can still shoot your own work in your own time and you can still present that work in a portfolio to future employers or even sell the work - but getting that grade might help you a lot in getting to that stage.

In the end I say learn from your teachers - learn from your reading - learn from the forums and take it all in. Remember that not everyone will love your work and that many might say what is wrong in their view - listen, understand and digest this - then use it. Consider peoples words and weigh them up and then see if your work does need to change

 

[Overread]

Its art, it shouldn't be limited really (except like racist things lol)

hmm so you say art should not be limited in content unless it harms another by viewing or by the message it contains?

In that case is not an image depicting possible homosexuality insulting to a person of strong Christian belief? And thus by that argument should not the original image in this thread thus not have been taken, or at least not shown to the teacher in question?