British Academy of Photography

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Adamcski

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Morning folks, I hope all is well.

My local photography course ends in 4 weeks and I've been looking at some additional courses to further my understanding and development.

I've stumbled across the British Academy of Photography site (and a couple of others) and wondered if anyone here had completed the diploma course (or had any feedback on completing any of their courses).

Now, I appreciate some people will have comments / opinions that courses are rubbish, they've never been on one and have been in business XYZ years and that's great (for you).

I'm only really asking for any comments / feedback on the sessions and if people studied the home route or went in for the classes.

I'm considering the diploma as I like to study things that interest me. I'm currently completing a PGCert in blended and online education and I'm not a teacher, but it interests me...(I'm one of those odd folk who likes to read, develop, take exams).

This is why I'm considering the course.

Cheers
 
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I've no idea where you are in your photography journey - I guess if you want to do a course that covers the basic technical stuff on how to use a camera, etc.. then this course might be ok. It does seem expensive though imo

I never had formal training or took classes. It was a mixture of reading websites, watching YouTube, attending workshops, and a growing photobook addiction

I do have a creator pass on CreativeLive that I do not use nearly as much as I should - that has a whole load of on-demand classes and it's cheaper than the one you suggested, but gives access to things other than photography so that might interest you. It is a bit american though, but the content is good. Similar on-demand platforms have appeared in recent years, e.g. skill share.

My view is, there is only so much expense and time you can put into how to use the camera from a technical perspective. It's learning visual language and where you point the thing is when it gets more interesting.
 
From memory there was a thread on here about this a year ago.
If you can find it it may be helpful.

Here it is ( a search reveals a few more over the years so keep digging)

www.talkphotography.co.uk

Are none formal academic organisations worth getting qualifications from?

I was looking at The British Academy of Photography which isn't formally a college or university and they are accredited to BTEC for HNCs and HNDs in photography. For the HNC the home study is £1,195 which isn't bad at all compared to a college or university that would charge £9,000 for tution...
www.talkphotography.co.uk www.talkphotography.co.uk
 
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I did a couple of City and Guilds modules, for the first one I had to write;
The history of photography and my path through it,
Cameras the 3 interdepend parameters expressed in my own way and my personal opinions on their use,
Photographs a series of images with the reasons I took each one with full techie details,
References to other photographers who may have used similar images with a critique of each image I chose,
A study of photographic practice taking a famous photographer and explaining some of their images and why I thought they'd taken them,
Acknowledgements and bibliography looking back over what I'd done what I had learned and what I was going to do in the future,
Diary a week to week record of the whole module
All in a folder with my contact sheets and negatives

I was guided by the Tutor and the final arbiter was a Moderator, I obtained a Distinction.

And I still have my workbooks.

Cheers - J
 
Adamcski said:
Morning folks, I hope all is well.

My local photography course ends in 4 weeks and I've been looking at some additional courses to further my understanding and development.

I've stumbled across the British Academy of Photography site (and a couple of others) and wondered if anyone here had completed the diploma course (or had any feedback on completing any of their courses).

Now, I appreciate some people will have comments / opinions that courses are rubbish, they've never been on one and have been in business XYZ years and that's great (for you).

I'm only really asking for any comments / feedback on the sessions and if people studied the home route or went in for the classes.

I'm considering the diploma as I like to study things that interest me. I'm currently completing a PGCert in blended and online education and I'm not a teacher, but it interests me...(I'm one of those odd folk who likes to read, develop, take exams).

This is why I'm considering the course.

Cheers
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I am currently doing the Diploma, with face to face classes. I paid 2k for it. It is literally 2K thrown in the bin. The teaching is terrible, classes are chaotic and disorganised. They are in a conference room near Oxford Circus with zero photography equipment. The resources on the site are difficult to find and nothing is straight forward. Everyone in my class thinks exactly the same. Do not waste your money and time, go study elsewhere. Everyone in my class is literally fuming at how bad it is.
 
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I'm very sorry to hear this Veronica, but it doesn't surprise me at all. :sorry:

I'm sure there are good value courses out there somewhere, but IME photography is a lonely journey - it needs to be studied over a period using a combination of home study and experience. Sadly, there are no known 'quick fixes' that I've ever heard of and I've been doing it since the sixties. :snaphappy:

BTW - Welcome to TP. :cool:

@Adamcski - save your money and buy some decent books (poss. videos) if you must spend money, as they'll always be there for reference. I only ever bought a handful over the years, but in my day we mostly borrowed from the library. It's even easier now as most people have the library of the world in their pocket - no need to pay anyone else . . .
 
I think if you want to study the history of photography, like Art History in more a Photography condensed perspective, it would be good. I personally would look into something like the Open University, get an actual degree out of it, even if said degree won't mean much in the real world, its all about portfolios.

But if i were to want to study, i'd go a degree.
 
TinkerBrute said:
I am currently doing the Diploma, with face to face classes. I paid 2k for it. It is literally 2K thrown in the bin. The teaching is terrible, classes are chaotic and disorganised. They are in a conference room near Oxford Circus with zero photography equipment. The resources on the site are difficult to find and nothing is straight forward. Everyone in my class thinks exactly the same. Do not waste your money and time, go study elsewhere. Everyone in my class is literally fuming at how bad it is.
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WoWza.

Sorry to read this.

A relative of mine did a degree and from what they told me much of it seemed useless if intending to make a living out of actual photography.
 
There has been a number of organisations over the years set up to offer "training/mentoring/qualifcations" most fall by the wayside, a google search will show you why. Many were set up to enable photographers to get letters after their name, even though meaningless in most cases. Personally IMHO the only one worth having is a proper college degree, even thats of limited value in real world terms these days.
 
Raymond Lin said:
I think if you want to study the history of photography, like Art History in more a Photography condensed perspective, it would be good. I personally would look into something like the Open University, get an actual degree out of it, even if said degree won't mean much in the real world, its all about portfolios.

But if i were to want to study, i'd go a degree.
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I've just enrolled with the open college of the arts - now owned/linked to the open uni. The degree will take 6-9 years, I'm going to do the first year and see how I get on. I'm not particularly interested in a career in photography - I'm happy with my current line of work.. I'm just interested in learning more about photography - but not the technical stuff.
 
swanseamale47 said:
There has been a number of organisations over the years set up to offer "training/mentoring/qualifcations" most fall by the wayside, a google search will show you why. Many were set up to enable photographers to get letters after their name, even though meaningless in most cases. Personally IMHO the only one worth having is a proper college degree, even thats of limited value in real world terms these days.
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and then run competitions, so you can all yourself award winning :)
 
All it actually needs is
1= how to put in the battery into the camera
2= switch the camera on
3= put it in auto setting
4= point the camera at what you want to photograph
5= push the trigger shutter switch
6= print the photo

Doesn't need any acadamy or professional training or diplomas to be able to do that. ;). Even I can teach anyone how to do it.:pint:
 
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I kind of agree with Wayne above, but also note Ben's post. The OCA courses have the benefit of being properly externally accredited and moderated qualifications (HNC/HND/Degree) mainly.
To be a photographer, amateur or pro, you don't need qualifications, but some of us like to study and have a formal structure to our learning, so I understand why people seek courses. Probably the best one I'm aware of is the Falmouth College degree, but there are other such degrees with varying levels of still photography or videography in them - my ex wife did a "Media Production with Photography" at Plymouth Art College 20 odd years ago, and only really did still photography; on award she was also able to sign up as ARPS and ABIPP if I recall, fwiw. (Not that she used her qualifications sadly.)
 
Adamcski said:
Morning folks, I hope all is well.

My local photography course ends in 4 weeks and I've been looking at some additional courses to further my understanding and development.

I've stumbled across the British Academy of Photography site (and a couple of others) and wondered if anyone here had completed the diploma course (or had any feedback on completing any of their courses).

Now, I appreciate some people will have comments / opinions that courses are rubbish, they've never been on one and have been in business XYZ years and that's great (for you).

I'm only really asking for any comments / feedback on the sessions and if people studied the home route or went in for the classes.

I'm considering the diploma as I like to study things that interest me. I'm currently completing a PGCert in blended and online education and I'm not a teacher, but it interests me...(I'm one of those odd folk who likes to read, develop, take exams).

This is why I'm considering the course. But there is one thing I don't really like when it comes to studies- writing tasks. Some of them can be so complicated, and I'd just stick to my main field of interest. But some time ago, I figured out that there are so many different sites where you can get a lot of educational information and help. For example, here is one page https://studydriver.com/informative-essay/ I used as a help not a long time ago because those informative essay examples helped me not to fail and miss deadline. I know that such tasks are also important because they develop writing skills, but I want to focus on photography and and other spheres of interest, so I prefer using such help.

Cheers
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Hello! Have you managed to find some more info about the British Academy of Photography and its courses? I'm thinking about taking there a course too, but know no one with such experience.
realspeed said:
All it actually needs is
1= how to put in the battery into the camera
2= switch the camera on
3= put it in auto setting
4= point the camera at what you want to photograph
5= push the trigger shutter switch
6= print the photo

Doesn't need any acadamy or professional training or diplomas to be able to do that. ;). Even I can teach anyone how to do it.:pint:
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Good points actually! But you know for some people it's important to have an educational background to be more confident in what they do. And I'm one of such people, that's why I need such "proofs" of my skills)
 
@kaylarichs Noted that you are looking for specific feedback on BAP, but it is worth being clear what you are aiming for in deciding on a course. Are you looking for a recognised qualification (HNC/HND/Degree) or just a course that will teach you about photography in a practical way, covering various genres etc? I would caution you to be very wary of anything offering a "diploma" as this makes it sound like a qualification, but unless it is one of those I mentioned, any certificate or diploma is meaningless. On the other hand, the associated course may give you in practical terms exactly what you want.
I opted to go for the OCA courses that gradually progress towards HNC then D then degree, but very quickly realised how academic they would become and how much course content was of no interest to me. I am now instead doing a series of evening courses at my local FE college in Kettering, initially covering stuff I mostly already know, but gradually progressing into what I don't, which is perfect, and it's not leading to externally validated qualifications, which keeps it cheap (£120/£150 a term).
 
I must admit I'm often a little bemused by the thought of courses. If only because I'm not sure what they can actually teach you that isn't perfectly obvious. I suspect the skill comes in dressing it up. But each to their own.
 
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My ex bother in law now has a BA Honours degree (or something like that) in photography.
He can't take a photograph to save his life.

Unless you really want some useless letters to put behind your name just teach yourself. There is so much free information available and nothing beats getting out with the camera and trying things.
 
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Plain Nev said:
I must admit I'm often a little bemused by the thought of courses.
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I agree.

If you are working in the scientific, industrial or legal areas then I can see the value of learning all the applicable techniques and gaining appropriate qualifications. If your interests lie in what a commercial photographer once described to me as "pretty pictures", then I think little beats going out, recording the images and showing them to people who you think might be interested.
 
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