Art and Design (Photography)

Course summary

Photography is one of the most important and influential means of communication in the world today and is highly significant within the creative arts. Photography combines both creative and intellectual skills and allows students to develop ideas and express their concepts effectively. Photography is a very popular subject within Fine Arts College. In 2012 the College won an award for the best Photography A-level results in the UK and has earned many other accolades since the department was founded. We have a fully equipped photography studio with a purpose-built darkroom, lighting studio, and computer-installed work areas allowing students to engage with techniques not widely available elsewhere. The first year of the A level teaches basic analogue and digital techniques including conventional film and darkroom processing together with the use of Photoshop manipulation. In the second year of the A level, teaching and project work is more personalised and tailored to suit the student’s individual needs or interests. It also uses and builds upon the skills and techniques acquired in the first year. Both years of the course contain a written element in the form of a journal, where students place their work in the context of the work of other photographers. Students must demonstrate knowledge and understanding of contextual references through research, extracting useful information about the working methods and practices of other photographers.