What about photography school?

[badwolf18]

Hello! I would like to start off by saying that I love photography and I have been shooting as a hobby for several years now. I usually use my old film SLR camera since I don't have much cash, but recently I have been borrowing my dad's DSLR to shoot pictures of my sister for her fashion blog once a week. I am considering starting a freelance photography business, but I am not sure about where to start.
My main question is should I go to school for this? I am considering signing up at the New York Institute of Photography and I am wondering if this is a good school and if it would be worth the time and money to go there, or to any other school for that matter. I live in Albuquerque and relocation is not an option at this time, so if the best school is on the east coast or some such place then obviously I am unable to go there. I am just curious what you guys think on this subject and your help would be appreciated, thanks!

 

[KmH]

Take business classes - accounting, marketing, financial management, salesmanship, etc.

 

[Designer]

Aside from a formal business education as above, you can benefit from free online help sites that will help with artistic expression.

 

[CCericola]

There are tons of free resources to learn photography. The NYIP is a joke. Check your local community college (many have online classes as well as traditional classes) for a degree in Business. That will help with the hard part. And practice practice practice shooting. This is the only way you get better.

 

[pmckenna]

NYIP is a joke.

IAgree 100%. I took the full program, and it took me almost 3 years of forcing myself to listen/read/watch all the outdated curriculum. The only reason I finished it was because my employer paid for it and I didn't want to have to pay back the +$700 that it cost.

Don't waste your time or money. There is so much online now, that's current, and much more relevant.

The only good thing I really got out of this course was a pretty diploma.

Maybe join a local photography club and get out and shoot.

Of course, that's just my opinion. :blushing:

 

[usayit]

Business and apply photography to it.

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk

 

[W.Y.Photo]

Personally, I just graduated from a 4 year program at Rochester Institute of Technology and I loved every second of it. The only thing I'd say is make absolutely sure that you want it. As long as you have the motivation to do photography for a living then I'd say RIT is the place for you. I was taught not only the intricacies of photography as an artform but all the technical aspects and the business of photography. A minor in business would help as well

 

[Light Guru]

I am considering starting a freelance photography business, but I am not sure about where to start.

Take business classes - accounting, marketing, financial management, salesmanship, etc.

If you want to start your own business then do this ^^^

More photography business fail because they don't know those things then because they are bad at photography.

 

[KmH]

There is a big difference in what a 4 year private university (RIT) can teach, and how much an online/by mail correspondence course (NYIP) can teach.

We won't even discuss the differences in the cost.

So William, having graduated are you now working as a photographer?

 

[W.Y.Photo]

I am currently working for a production company as an event photographer which doesn't even come close to paying the bills, but I have taken on a full time job as a data analyst in order to fund my photography business. I am always looking for weekend gigs assisting established photographs but as I have just recently started my full time position I have had very little spare time.

The business is all about making connections, plenty of which I have gotten through photo school but many of which I am yet to make and am in the process of making. I use all my spare time looking to meet photographers in order to get my name out there and possibly do some freelance work.

I make a pretty penny in this data analysis position so I am using this opportunity to save as much money as possible in order to further my career in photography.

So i guess the answer is technically yes, but not nearly as much as I would like to be. It all comes with the territory though. Getting established is one of the hardest and most important parts so having some funding and taking a dip before I dive in head first is what I feel to be an ideal first step in preparing for a very long swim.

As I am very passionate about photography as an artform I am also looking into internships at art galleries and getting my work into gallery exhibitions as another venue for integrating myself into the photography world and getting my name out there. I also visit gallery openings every Thursday night in downtown Manhatten in order to meet with other artists and photographers which is an excellent way to make connections!!


PS: cost is a very big consideration as KmH stated. I owe 6 figures in loans for my education. #Deptforlyfe :???:

 

[Browncoat]

Unless you're working for an ad agency or a company with a dedicated art department that utilizes photography, a degree isn't worth the paper its printed on. Not in the real world. And this is coming from the voice of experience. Photojournalism is dead. Even the largest newspapers on the planet (a dying industry by the way) have let go of their staff. Local studios might hire you, but probably not. Even if they did, you wouldn't get paid enough for it to be worthwhile. If your goal is to freelance and go into business for yourself, you'd spend your money better by taking business classes.

Truth is, you can learn all you need to know through workshops, books, etc. I'd say mentoring, but those are largely dead also.

 

[chuasam]

I went to photography school but I haven't completed the program. Neither did my GF. We are doing better than many of the graduates. Is it a waste of money? No, you make valuable industry contacts. You push yourself harder. You gain great friends and alliances within the industry.

Take the classes but don't worry that much about graduating.

 

[rexbobcat]

Well whatever you do, don't go to Brook's Institute.

 

[W.Y.Photo]

Unless you're working for an ad agency or a company with a dedicated art department that utilizes photography, a degree isn't worth the paper its printed on. Not in the real world. And this is coming from the voice of experience. Photojournalism is dead. Even the largest newspapers on the planet (a dying industry by the way) have let go of their staff. Local studios might hire you, but probably not. Even if they did, you wouldn't get paid enough for it to be worthwhile. If your goal is to freelance and go into business for yourself, you'd spend your money better by taking business classes.

Truth is, you can learn all you need to know through workshops, books, etc. I'd say mentoring, but those are largely dead also.

Though you are not wrong about much of what you've said I feel that a good photography school can enhance your skills on a very big level. I've seen utterly crap photographers become skilled and professional level image makers in a years time. That being said, I've also seen people who seemed to have cared about photography but despised the school/institutionalized nature of the major drop or fail out. Some of these people went on to do photography for a living.

By and far the degree isn't what the program is about. As you've said it's almost a useless piece of paper in our feild. (unless you plan on going into a technical feild of photography like biomedical photography or color sciences) It's about the education and experience you get being there. Its my feeling that the connections I've made in the photo industry through school alone are more than enough to pay for tuition and then some. but that remains to be seen.

 

[Browncoat]

...I feel that a good photography school can enhance your skills on a very big level.

I agree. Like with any degree program, some institutions are better than others, but I didn't mean to imply that a person wouldn't learn anything. Just that the money could be better spent. You can get the same education through other means at a fraction of the cost. At least if the goal is to become a working photographer. At least in my program, we spent a lot of time on general art courses. While not completely outside the realm of photography, some of those classes were clearly just a money grab. I also remember having to take a design class, which again, connections can be made, but we spent most of our time designing logos. WTF?

Buying Zack Arias' book Photography Q&A and the OneLight 2.0 video series contained more usable information about photography than my entire 1st year of school. And it cost about $10,000 less.