Photography Professional Practice and Portfolio Course is a full-time course providing one day’s tuition per week, on Saturdays. The course runs as one 20 week course split over two terms with a break for the Christmas holidays in between. You are expected to work on your projects outside of class time, and allow approximately 15 hours a week for self-practice and portfolio creation.
Autumn Term
The first part of the course is taught progressively, with practical and technical skills being covered. These skills will then be applied to the projects that will form the bulk of your portfolio in the second part of the programme, so that you are then in a strong position to apply for the BA and MA courses.
Spring Term
During the second stage of the course you will be asked to develop an idea for a self-initiated project that you would like to develop and undertake. Your individual research project will be the main focus of your studies for the second stage of the course. You will be supported throughout by workshops, lectures, tutorials and group feedback sessions.
Curriculum / learning and teaching
Subjects covered on the course include:
- Alternative processes
- Analogue darkroom skills
- Digital workflow
- History of photography; looking critically at photographs, exhibitions and Roland Barthes’ Camera Lucida
- Medium and large format cameras
- Printing, scanning and colour management.
- SLR
- Studio skills
These topics are taught by means of workshops, lectures, demonstrations, visits and individual tuition.
Pathways and routes
The course aims to serve the needs and ambitions of three main student groups:
- Those seeking to build a portfolio for application to BA Fine Art at Central Saint Martins, BA Photography at London College of Communication or Camberwell College of Arts, or elsewhere
- Those seeking to build a portfolio for application to MA Photography at Central Saint Martins, London College of Communication, or elsewhere
- Professionals seeking to renew their creativity through personal projects, new processes and produce a fresh portfolio with a distinctive London edge.