Why did I decide to go and study Photography in University?
Hello again, hope you’re all good :)
As I said in my last post, I do really want to come here and write more often. I definitely have lots of topics on my mind.
Today’s topic is why I decided to go to uni and study photography instead of just taking a course. So I’ll start with a small background. I started studying Architecture back in my home town in 2013. I was so sure this is what I want to do, even though deep down in my soul I knew I shouldn’t. I got my first DSLR camera (semi-professional but definitely more than good enough for the start) for my 18th birthday because “I wanted to have cool pics from my holidays”…. little did I know hahah. Somewhere around the age of 19, while studying Architecture I picked up my camera to take photos of architectural models for uni. After I brought them to class a few people started noticing them and saying I should think about going further with this. At that time, I didn’t even think that this could be a career, definitely not my career. As the time was passing I started to be interested more in photography than architecture so I got into a 3 months course where I finally learned how to properly use my camera. For the next year my friend and I were volunteering for theatres, events etc. When we were not covering events or shows, we were walking around the city and photographing. Or photographing each other. All of this brought me to Berlin, where in 2016 I started studying photography. And why did I decide to do that?
During all this time I learned how to use my camera, I tried out different things, different genres but I wanted to know more and do more. I wanted my work to have some meaning and quality. After researching and talking to people I decided that for me this would be a good move. And I don’t regret it. During university I got the chance to dig deeper into my brain and my work. I got the chance to learn from people with a lot of knowledge. I got the chance to actually study this and not just learn about it. We had to write papers and then the thesis, and all this I wouldn’t have the chance to do if I didn’t start university.
For me personally, I loved our theory classes where we had to read and write. It gave me more sense of what photography is all about. I definitely got a much broader thinking. Whenever I am doing my personal projects, I want them to tell a story, I want them to have a deeper meaning, not just pretty pictures, I want my projects to communicate with the audience, to evoke emotions. I’m not saying you need university to come to this conclusion, you could read on your own, but having the possibility to discuss with professionals, with your classmates, to hear other people’s opinions, to be taught by the professors, is definitely something I could never achieve without uni. Since I was a child, having education was always top priority in my family, and well even if I didn’t really like it while I was a kid, I definitely started to love it when I grew up. For me education is definitely on the top of my priority list, and university education is definitely on a different level comparing to a 3 months course, well it also lasts 3.5 years.
You also get the chance to go deeper in each genre of photography, and choose your own path. Some will go into fashion some into documentary. And some will go and learn both and decide later. But having the chance to have a semester working on one genre is an amazing opportunity.
On the other hand, in my university, we had the chance to take some classes from different courses. I took lots of classes from the Communication Design course. Being in university means you will meet lots of people like you, and you will grow together. Will you separate at the end? Probably. But some will stay, and for me those friendships are very strong. Most of my closest friends I’ve met here in Berlin in my university. Being in this field of art and design you want to have people like you in your surrounding. Your IT or Business friends will rarely understand your life path, they are just being prepared for something else.
For those that are not planing to have photography as their career, there are some great courses out there where you can learn a lot. Pre announcement here, I am currently working on my own courses, not only webinars, but courses. :)
Again, I am not saying that everyone has to go into university in order to become a photographer, but did it bring me value? Most certainly it did!
I think I have covered most of my thoughts on this topic, if you have any questions, feel free to ask :)
