Course Summary
Can you imagine a world without photographs?
We are looking for a new generation of photographers who understand how photography shapes the world and want to know how to push the boundaries, explore new processes and use their knowledge to work for change.
We will support you to gain advanced skills in photographic production, while developing a sophisticated understanding of the historical and contemporary uses of photography.
As part of the unique Art and Design Cluster, you will have opportunities to collaborate on inter-disciplinary projects, preparing you to engage in a competitive job market equipped with skills for the fourth industrial age (4iR).
You will develop a professional photography portfolio reflecting both your specific interests and your career aspirations whilst gaining confidence in a wide range of creative practices from medium/large format cameras, self-publishing, audio and moving image production to e.g. 3D fabrication. You will also have access to one of the largest darkrooms in London to explore analogue photography.
WHAT YOU'LL LEARN
Some sessions run in the Visual Arts Subject Cluster alongside other disciplines, equipping you with expanded skills to produce professional outcomes with confidence. Professional Practice: Mental Wealth and Cultural Manoeuvres sessions will allow you to further develop your creative understanding and engagement with the creative industries.
The course offers you a range of activities for personal and professional development where you will gain a wealth of transferable skills. You can promote your practice to a range of audiences in the form of external publications, collaborations, film screenings, community practice and exhibitions.
You will learn from a team of international practitioners who are leaders in their field, and will be able to take advantage of our extensive links to professional organisations and networks in London such as the Photographers’ Gallery and Autograph. You will also get opportunities to meet our highly successful alumni who will join your pin ups, exhibitions and portfolio reviews. Each year we also host an innovative week of guest talks called Detour Ahead, where you will have an opportunity to learn from inspirational photographers, designers, film makers, curators, picture editors, artists and experts in professional practice essentials such as copyright, tax and self-employment.
The common level 4 cluster structure allows you to switch between BA (Hons) Photography and BA (Hons) Commercial Photography depending on your personal development.
HOW YOU'LL LEARN
In your first year you will gain an understanding of the role of research in professional practice and in supporting the development of creative projects. You will experiment with ideas and explore a range of responses through projects designed to help you to identify your personal strengths and begin to explore skills appropriate to working in the creative industries. Workshops and projects will include analogue and digital photographic techniques and processes, as well as studio and location lighting. The cross-disciplinary Professional Practice: Mental Wealth and Cultural Manoeuvres sessions will allow you to further develop your analytical skills and engagement with the creative industries.
At each level, you will take a contextual studies module, gaining an appreciation of the role of photography in cultural development and the contribution of technological innovations to visual culture.
In the second year a more experimental approach is taken, where you expand on the skills and knowledge gained in the first year but with an emphasis on exploring areas beyond your usual practice. You will have opportunities for advanced image production and experimentation, refining your approach to photography and developing your personal style. Contextual studies and research-into-practice modules allow for cross cluster fertilisation of ideas and will support your understanding of your practice. Working on cross-collaborative projects will help to develop your professional skills, especially in our flagship Mental Wealth module where you will take on the role of a ‘producer’.
Elective workshops and projects in both your first and second year of study include eg., print making, 16mm film, art therapy, digital fabrication, InDesign, AR/VR and more, allowing you to develop extended skills for the 4iR (fourth Industrial Revolution).
In your final year of study, you will produce of an independent major project, proposed and owned by you, presented as a professional outcome at the degree showcase. The final Mental Wealth module will prepare you for gaining employment, self-employment, entrepreneurship or postgraduate study. Level 6 allows you to focus on your career ambition and develop a professional outcome to fulfil your aspirations.
The modules in level 6 are designed to be inclusive to each students’ discipline and respond to differentiated assessments needs. You will have the option of working towards an Extended Research Project. This is a written project, allowing you to contextualise your practice through research into a subject of your choice. The Global Photography option module examines the emergence of globalisation as a fundamental force in reshaping the production, dissemination and reception of contemporary photography, focusing on cultural debates and diverse – and often non-western – practices in the expanded field. The photography research into practice route is assessed as a new media project, responding to the expanded practices of photography and the development of new media as part of photography discourse.
Many well-known external creatives regularly visit the photography department delivering talks and workshops. Recently these have included Eileen Perrier (Photographer), Alixandra Fazzina (Photo journalist), Jenny Matthews (documentary photographer), Emma Bowkett (Director of Photography FT Weekend Magazine), Mike Trow (previously a picture editor at British Vogue), Aron Mörel (Morel Books), Steve McLeod (Photographer and Director of Metro Imaging), Laura Pannack (portraiture and social documentary photographer), Rhiannon Adams (portraiture and social documentary photographer), Mimi Mollica (documentary photographer), Luke Archer (Loupe Magazine), Nick Dunmur (Association of Photographers), Hannah Watson (Director of TJ Boulting Gallery), Vivienne Gamble (Director of Seen Fifteen), Marisa Bellani (Director of Roman Road), Sabina Jaskot-Gill (Curator, Photographs, National Portraiture Gallery) Azeema Magazine, Fransesca Maffeo (Director, Fransesca Maffeo Gallery), Cheryl Newman (Picture editor), and Bindi Vora (Curator, Autograph).
Follow us on Instagram: @ba_photography_uel
• Guided independent study
We are investing in key areas beyond your studies including our career services, library and well-being, to be available both face-to-face on campus and online with many of these available 24/7. We have new, modern library facilities on both campuses offering inspirational environments for study and research. Libraries contain resources in print and digital formats, a range of study spaces and dedicated librarian who can assist with your learning.
• Academic support
Students are supported with any academic or subject related queries by an Academic Advisor, module leaders, former and current UEL students.
If you need a bit of extra help with certain skills such as academic writing, maths or IT, our Skillzone and English for Academic Purposes we offer workshops, drop-in sessions and one-to-one appointments to help our students achieve their potential. You can receive advice and guidance on all aspects of the IT systems provided by the university from our IT Service Desks located on all three campuses. Our Student Support hubs in Docklands and Stratford feature centralised helpdesks to cater for your every need. UEL provides also support and advice for disabled students and those with specific learning difficulties (SPDs).
• Workload
Each year you will spend around 300 hours of timetabled learning and teaching activities. These may be lectures, workshops, seminars and individual and group tutorials. Contact hours may vary depending on each module.
The approximate percentages for this course are:
Year 1: scheduled teaching – 300 hours; guided independent study – 900 hours.
Year 2: scheduled teaching – 300 hours; guided independent study – 900 hours.
Year 3: scheduled teaching – 300 hours; guided independent study – 900 hours.
The size of classes can vary depending on the nature of the course, module and activity. This can range from large groups in a lecture theatre setting, to smaller groups taking part in seminars and collaborative work. You will receive your personalised timetable at the beginning of the academic year dependent on your course.
Who will teach on this course:
You will learn from an international team of practicing professionals with specialisms in fine art photography, documentary, editorial and portrait photography, landscape, performance and publishing. Our team includes experts in visual studies related to the contemporary city, art and social movements, writing and curating.
Dr. Carmen Aleman
Rob Pyecroft
Dr. Antigoni Memou
Dr. Debra Shaw
Facilities:
- Large professional advanced shoot studio with rigged lights
- Large immersive studio with continuous lights and green screen
- Black and white darkroom and film processing area
- Digital darkroom
- High quality digital printer for portfolio and exhibition printing
- Large format printer for poster printing
- 3D Fabrication facility including 3D printers and laser cutters
- Photography store containing a wide range of equipment for loan including high end DSLR cameras, medium and large format analogue cameras, Bowens and Pro-Foto portable lighting kits, Tascams and microphones (for audio), fig rigs, tripods and much more.
YOUR FUTURE CAREER
Our course shapes and nurtures top-quality photographers. Don’t just take our word for it, though. When photography icon and East End boy David Bailey collected his honorary doctorate from UEL in 2014, he and former National Portrait Gallery Director, Sandy Nairne praised the exceptional standard of our students’ work.
It is little wonder then that so many of our graduates have gone on to carve out successful careers in various areas of the business and have found careers with, for instance, a collective of freelance photographers, with an award winning feature and documentary director, as studio and production managers and as freelance re-touchers and image makers, collaborating with well-established photographers. Some of our alumni have found success with their own studios. White Rabbit in Shoreditch and Espero Studios off Brick Lane were both set up by UEL Photography entrepreneurs.
The changes in digital technology and distribution in photography have provided opportunities for a new generation of photographers and graduates more able to adapt to the opportunities in multi-disciplinary and expanded practice aided by high quality moving image capabilities of the current DSLR cameras. This has allowed our graduates to become videographers, freelance camera operators, production assistants, producers, social media managers, stylists, freelance designers, and even curve ambassador and activist such as our photography alumna Felicity Hayward. Others have set up innovative publications such as Tirade and Bricoleur.
Explore the different career options you can pursue with this degree and see the median salaries of the sector on our Career Coach portal.
How you'll be assessed
You'll be required to present work for assessment in the form of exhibition, portfolio presentation, oral presentation or in the form of an evaluative learning journal, report or essay.
The course includes 20-credit and 40-credit modules which are assessed at the end of each term. The marks from the second and third years are used to formulate your final degree award.
My name is Kavisha Prince Anthony, and I always had a dream of studying abroad. Thankfully, that dream came to life since I applied to the Study Advisor. I was able to receive my visa within four days. I also had some visa refusals in the past; I had about six UK visa refusals in the past, but thankfully, it was not an issue since the Study Advisor was able to make things work this time. I highly recommend Study Advisor for your dreams of going abroad, whether it be the UK or any other European country there is.