Pro Photographers: Did you go to photography school?

[Wolfeye]

I had a high school class in photography, circa 1978 or so. Had I not had that class I doubt I'd be as "skilled" as I am today. Even so, as a learner, I was, and always am to blame for my own misperceptions. See, in the class we learned about apertures. In my Minolta XG-1 manual there was another photographic description of apertures, showing this pretty oriental gal at f 2.8 and at f11. Why, look at how sharp *everything* is at f11! What kind of idiot would shoot at f2.8? Look at how blurry the trees are in the background!

Only those who are willing to be taught can learn. Only those who will listen and not misconstrue can be taught.

 

[analoguey01]

Let me address this more elaborately -might answer the OPs question better as well .

This isn't my first straight out of college profession. No.
I worked for s good 10 years in 2 different industries (which I was qualified for/specialised in) before moving to photography. And during those is when I developed my interest in photography, bettered my skills etc.,

Maybe I'm biased because I work in the Visual Arts department at a college with a thriving photography department. I see people come here with no knowledge whatsoever about photography and watch them progress from barely capable snapshot takers into stunning photographers who enter, and win, juried shows and shows at prestigious galleries. If formal education doesn't work for you, personally, it certainly does work for many.

Will a college course work for an 18yo? Absolutely -probably most courses would. (then again, I hear undergraduate study in the US is mostly not about specialisation, I don't know - it's very specialized here).

Will it work for someone competent at a different industry moving into this? Probably not.

But if you're saying 'it's so difficult to Google this stuff up or RTM and I need a 3/4yr course ' I would ask how can one do such a course when googling or looking up stuff on the net is tough.

The awards and galleries Pt buttresses what I said about networking - it puts you in touch with people who, post yat graduation will likely pay you - if youre looking for galleries and those kind of stuff.

I know when I started to get more serious about photography part of my "problem" was that I didn't know what I didn't know. I didn't know there was (so much!) science behind the art of photography much less understand it. I think many people assume all artistic endeavor is purely subjective when, in fact, it's not. Not even.

But managing a business as a photographer, learning on the job, managing failures and cockups at a client location, regular firefighting etc., - these are what will take up your time more than what Iso setting or what camera is better etc.,
You don't learn that at mva, do you?

 

[Pretzel]

I know when I started to get more serious about photography part of my "problem" was that I didn't know what I didn't know. I didn't know there was (so much!) science behind the art of photography much less understand it. I think many people assume all artistic endeavor is purely subjective when, in fact, it's not. Not even.
....

Hittin' the nail on the head as far as what I got out of my classes. The science behind the art. Not only did my instructor cover the science by way of instruction, he also presented us with real life application, assignments to reinforce the learning and application, and constructive critique of our attempts to do what he asked. All from a photographer still in the business, plying his trade daily. BONUS: Unlike a YouTube video, any time someone needed something explained in a slightly different way, or had a related question that might lead into other topics, he could stop and answer. Videos can only be replayed to relay the same exact information in the same exact way.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all about YouTube tutorials and such, but I feel I received a higher quality of education in the classroom. For me, it's not about the certificate or degree, but rather the knowledge itself. Should I end up getting that certification as well (which I probably will), it's just a fancy bonus that will make it possible for me to earn even more business from people that insist on those things.

 

[Horoscope Fish]

Will a college course work for an 18yo? Absolutely -probably most courses would. (then again, I hear undergraduate study in the US is mostly not about specialisation, I don't know - it's very specialized here).

Will it work for someone competent at a different industry moving into this? Probably not.

I don't mean to say any one thing will, or does, work for everyone. I said a formal education in photography tends to make people better photographers because in my fifteen years at this college, I've seen formal education make people better photographers. I've also seen it *not* work for a lot of people. My point was, and still is, a formal education in photography will make you a better photographer, generally speaking.

But if you're saying 'it's so difficult to Google this stuff up or RTM and I need a 3/4yr course ...

I'm not saying that.

But managing a business as a photographer, learning on the job, managing failures and cockups at a client location, regular firefighting etc., - these are what will take up your time more than what Iso setting or what camera is better etc.,
You don't learn that at mva, do you?

I'm not saying a college degree prepares you for every possible situation as a professional; I said formal education in photography helps make most people better photographers. And I fully agree there's no substitute for experience. Nothing I was taught in college prepared me for managing failures, cockups and regular firefighting on my job either; that came with experience. By the same token, much of what I did learn in college helped me figure out and subsequently implement appropriate solutions when I found myself faced with a failure/cockup/"fire".
....

 

[Horoscope Fish]

Hittin' the nail on the head as far as what I got out of my classes. The science behind the art. Not only did my instructor cover the science by way of instruction, he also presented us with real life application, assignments to reinforce the learning and application, and constructive critique of our attempts to do what he asked. All from a photographer still in the business, plying his trade daily. BONUS: Unlike a YouTube video, any time someone needed something explained in a slightly different way, or had a related question that might lead into other topics, he could stop and answer. Videos can only be replayed to relay the same exact information in the same exact way.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all about YouTube tutorials and such, but I feel I received a higher quality of education in the classroom. For me, it's not about the certificate or degree, but rather the knowledge itself. Should I end up getting that certification as well (which I probably will), it's just a fancy bonus that will make it possible for me to earn even more business from people that insist on those things.

Exactly.
....

 

[analoguey01]

I don't mean to say any one thing will, or does, work for everyone. I said a formal education in photography tends to make people better photographers because in my fifteen years at this college, I've seen formal education make people better photographers. I've also seen it *not* work for a lot of people. My point was, and still is, a formal education in photography will make you a better photographer, generally speaking.




I'm not saying a college degree prepares you for every possible situation as a professional; I said formal education in photography helps make most people better photographers. And I fully agree there's no substitute for experience. Nothing I was taught in college prepared me for managing failures, cockups and regular firefighting on my job either; that came with experience. By the same token, much of what I did learn in college helped me figure out and subsequently implement appropriate solutions when I found myself faced with a failure/cockup/"fire".
....

I think we are essentially saying complementary things which look at the issue from different perspectives.


I meant the ' if you can't rtm and expect to complete a 3/4yr course ' in a generic manner, not addressing you, as such - I understand where you're coming from.

Also, I was actually curious if there were or are any courses included in an mva /bva that actually dealt with nitty gritty that comes with being on your own as a Photog. Great value add, imho.
To my knowledge there aren't any in the present time.

 

[SkvLTD]

Very bottom line is networking though. If you're excellent at that, you can be a total s$%^ of a photographer and make more money than some award or competition winner would outside of such venues. I know couple of such people, and their utter lack of skill or much of an eye irks me to a point where I'd rather pave my own way forward (and they mostly do misc. type work like headshots, lower-end production quality videos, etc, but for LOTS of people who can't tell good from bad really).