Photography AS evening class

[shiv]

It an 'adult' evening class and I'm enrolling tonight...so bloody excited! But I was wondering if any of you out there had any tips for studying a night course and having a full time job? Im pretty unorganised and I'm looking to change that.

Also if anyone has studied a photography course then what were your thoughts on it... and any SLR camera suggestions??....my dad is letting me borrow his untill i save up for one.

 

[mike dogi veer]

very nice mate..i just love photography..best of luck !!

 

[shiv]

thanks! start this monday maybe ill enter the blue light photo comp soon :D

 

[addictivepersona]

Not so much a camera suggestion but just a "get organized" tip: If the camera used is film-based, make sure you take and develop your negatives as early as you can--Don't wait around. Film always has the possibility of not developing. Pain in the ass when you have a deadline, so now you not only have to reshoot and redevelop the negatives, but you *still* have to develop the prints. In half the time.

 

[shiv]

thanks for the tip addictive...the tutor gave us a tour and theres a dark room in the college...ta take advantage of that!

 

[addictivepersona]

Not to derail the thread, but I love the smell of darkrooms. And the quietness. We had quite the cool group in our photography class--No one fucked with anyone's shit. Was in another class playing catchup and you had to watch your stuff like a hawk or risk someone mishandling it intentionally or otherwise.

Have fun in the class!

Oh, another few things with organization (if you don't mind me throwin' this out there--If you mind, stop reading, lol): Negative keepers are a life-saver. They're clear plastic sheets with spaces for rows of negatives. This way you can write on the plastic and know what the negatives are without having to examine them. Clear plastic sheets for keeping prints are also a life-saver. On that note, a 3-ring binder will be quite helpful. 1" should suffice, but maybe get a 2". Can of compressed air comes in handy.

 

[thujone]

i also took a photography night class. the toughest part is finding time to shoot (aka do the homework) when you have to work all day. having a digital SLR will definitely make it easier to always get your work done but the learning experience will be a lot more thorough with a 35mm SLR because you really have to LEARN how to shoot instead of just taking a bunch of shots at a bunch of different settings and looking at a screen to see which one came out looking the best. also, excellent 35mm SLRs can be had for pretty cheap and will be able to do things that digital SLRs in a reasonable price range won't be able to due to various limitations that CCD sensors can have.

the most obvious limitation i can think of is ISO range. digital SLRs get costlier the better ISO range you demand, but with a film camera all you have to do is swap out the film to get to the ISO you want to shoot with. on the flipside, this is a problem because having to shoot a whole roll just to change ISO isn't a very versatile solution. different CCD sensors also have different quirks which might or might not be significant to you. as you develop your eye, small drawbacks will become a major annoyance. there are advantages and disadvantages to both but generally a digital SLR will make your life easier and Canon tends to equip their offerings in the low price range better than the competitors do. although, once you step up to mid-tier and above Nikon becomes the better choice.

 

[shiv]

thanks guys!

@addictive yh i so agree with you, when he put the red lights on and we all stood there in the dark room it was such a nice atmosphere.... like it would be just you and your photos...lol luckily we are the only class that will be using the dark room and if anyone DARES touch my stuff they will pay (evil face). All tips are really appreciated btw i fucked up at college too many times im gonna ace this one!

@thujone there was a guy in my class with film cameras and he said he saw some online for about £50 which is awesome...i know what you mean about using film instead of digital but whilst im learning the basics im going to use digital and when i get more confident ill use film.