The Photographic Essay
Adult Class | This program is completed
This intermediate and advanced workshop-style course is for photographers who want to make a meaningful body of work. It is open to undergraduates, graduates, emerging and mid-career professionals who are seeking a community space to share work and expand their photographic practice.
The photo essay, in its simplest form, is a series of pictures that evokes an emotion, presents an idea or helps tell a story in a visually compelling way. In this course, students propose and complete a 10-week documentary project that explores a social, environmental, cultural, political, or personal issue that communicates a story. Students will examine and practice the various aspects of conceptualizing, planning, and photographing their projects through discussions, personal assignments, and photo critiques. The curation of photographs, the sequence, and juxtaposition are all important aspects of the photographic essay. Students will learn how to select the best images to create an impactful sequence of images. The course focuses on three endeavors: make new work, analyze existing work, and deepen your practice.
Topics include:
- Developing a personal project
- Writing a project proposal
- Editing & sequencing
- Discussing photographic approaches
- Researching
What you will learn:
1. To develop a photographic essay with a documentary approach
2. To create, analyze and edit photographic images
3. To expand your documentary practice
4. Improve proposal writing & research
Note that this classroom is accessible by stairs only; please contact Fleisher for more information.
This is an advanced course for those who have fluency with their DSLR cameras. You may also photograph film however you’ll need to have your negatives developed or processed, scanned & printed for class each week. Each week you will print 5-6 new images for review. In addition, you should already have a photo editing software, such as Adobe Bridge or Lightroom (or Photo Mechanic/Photoshop). You should also have a (pocket size or reporters’) notebook to take notes while photographing your project and for critiques.
Required materials:
• DSLR Camera (or film camera) + necessary accessories
• Photo Paper- TBD
• Photo editing software (Adobe Bridge, Lightroom or Photo Mechanic)
• 8x20 archival box to hold your prints
• Notebook
Lianne Milton
Lianne Milton (she/her) is a documentary photographer and educator whose work investigates environmental issues, human rights, and cultural narratives. For two decades, Lianne was an assignment photographer throughout Latin America and Southeast Asia, including Brazil where her work brought global attention to the Zika crisis and security issues in the favelas. Lianne is an adjunct professor of photography in Philadelphia, and continues her longform projects in Brazil.
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