Paying for Your Education in Photography

[Overread]

reseach and reading are nothing without experience - and then you have teacher student interactions to take into accout. Payment is no garantee - test scores are no garantee - views of others are no garantee - all together is a good buffer to possible problems and making the wrong chioce, but till you are there and in person you won't know for sure

 

[mooimeisie]

So, paying a little bit is fine, but for critique you won't?

I wouldn't mind paying for critique as I feel it is a major part of learning. Not much different than taking piano lessons and no one every hearing your music. I would pay but I have absolutly no idea where to turn for that.

 

[abraxas]

reseach and reading are nothing without experience - and then you have teacher student interactions to take into accout. Payment is no garantee - test scores are no garantee - views of others are no garantee - all together is a good buffer to possible problems and making the wrong chioce, but till you are there and in person you won't know for sure

So how do you get experience in photography?

 

[abraxas]

I wouldn't mind paying for critique as I feel it is a major part of learning. Not much different than taking piano lessons and no one every hearing your music. I would pay but I have absolutly no idea where to turn for that.

What I'm wondering is if the class you're taking is as far as the school goes? Is your current class a prerequisite for more advanced classes?

 

[Overread]

experience as I was using in my line is describing the experience of taking paid tuition from another - either as part of a group or in one to one. You can research the teacher/institution - talk to previous students and search on the backstory of the person giving the lessons - but till your in the classroom with them teaching you you won't know if they are any good at teaching you!

Its like all things - you don't get experience (or the experience) until you try - just like photography you won't get experience unless you shoot - of course lessons, tuition, reading, research, advice and tips are all things one can take into the field with themselves to increase their chances of success (as to is one coming to an understanding of what success is for them) but till you get there you won't know.

 

[abraxas]

experience as I was ...

... you won't know.

Interesting enough thoughts.

Free internet forums are an acceptable substitute and a safer bet than taking a class or course of study?

 

[Overread]

they are a different route and safer in terms of time and money - many people just don't have the money for a dedicated course and also don't have the time to dedicate to such a course - children, work, school are all things that can take time.
Forums don't (by general assumption) cost and those that do tend to cost marginal amounts for perks only. Basic fuction is for most a free component and in many ways its no different to joining a photography club or society - again in both cases the memebers make the society and that will define what you can get out of it. Some are going to be no good - others will just shower empty praise - and some will give good and constructive advice.
As for time they are easy in that they don't in general, tie you down to specific times like a course will - so they can easily fit in around other things in life. Though of course all forums will have peek and trough times - times when its best to post and times when ones post is likley to be lost or just missed.

Acceptable is also subjective - forums can't and won't be in the field with you and even if you do take your laptop or mobile phone with wireless internet with you you can't garantee that the person you need to help will be present when you need them to be. Thus forums are by design a good post shooting event aid as well as a good planning aid - but they can't be there for you during the event. A tutor can be (if that is the nature of the course).

 

[abraxas]

So your education depends solely on your budget and holds little regard for the imposition on other's time? It doesn't bother you?

 

[Seefutlung]

I paid for my Communications/Journalism degree. Most major news organization won't hire you if you do not have such a degree (or a ton of experience coming up the ropes).

For journalism, knowing what/how to report is equally as important as knowing exposure. Having been a photo journalist for major news organizations .. yeah ... the paid classes worked for me. For more than a decade, photo journalism gave me an unbelivable and incredible ride ... one I would have missed without a formal education.

Gary

 

[mooimeisie]

What I'm wondering is if the class you're taking is as far as the school goes? Is your current class a prerequisite for more advanced classes?

The class I am taking is the first of 4 core courses. It is beginners course that teaches you what all the buttons on the camera are, how to use them and how they can affect a photo. This is not a diploma or degree program. I'm a little too old to be changing careers and the photography is a hobby for me, but I also am of the belief that if you are going to do something, do it right.

 

[abraxas]

The class I am taking is the first of 4 core courses. It is beginners course that teaches you what all the buttons on the camera are, how to use them and how they can affect a photo. This is not a diploma or degree program. I'm a little too old to be changing careers and the photography is a hobby for me, but I also am of the belief that if you are going to do something, do it right.

It sounds like you may become more involved with what you want as time goes on. One of the problems I see with the web is that it is too easy to go from point A to point D without B & C being in between.

 

[aldrinmirambel]

What kind of Photography you mean?
Taking pictures?

________________________
Art Framed, Posters, Art Prints

 

[mooimeisie]

It sounds like you may become more involved with what you want as time goes on. One of the problems I see with the web is that it is too easy to go from point A to point D without B & C being in between.

Can you please go into a little more depth on this topic please?

 

[abraxas]

Can you please go into a little more depth on this topic please?

Well, as far as what I feel is doing it right, there's a progression that many are prone to skip parts of that effect their shots down the line. This skipping around can really muddy up the potential of a photographer. An example that immediately comes to mind is working with HDR before learning how to make a proper exposure. Another is ignoring and not practicing guidelines for what may be considered commonly acceptable composition simply because there are no rules. I see quite a few requests for C&C on advanced techniques where what I feel a better result could have been had if fundamentals had not been skipped over. Or, heavily processed photos that have absolutely no sense of compositional aestheic. Undisciplined. Of course everything is subjective and we want what we want. But I believe the internet has laid waste to potential. We skip around and pick brains rather than develop discipline and a solid grasp of fundamentals.

 

[captainkimo]

For newbies, I think it is recommended for them to enroll to basic photography courses if they do have the resources. But I will not suggest to them to take it further and enroll to advanced classes. I think it will be better to learn on the get go since they are already equipped with basic photography knowledge. They can spend their money for travels or for other photography stuff.