Online photography classes.

December 20, 2010 6:15 AM

Can you please direct me to reputable photography online schools?

I am a photography newbie and I am looking into doing online classes. I subscribe to several photography tutorial newsletters but I am still interested in classes (paid or free) that I can take online- having diploma or certificate at the end of the course will be a plus too.

Merry Christmas everyone! :)

posted by LittleMissItneg to Education (5 answers total)

There is enough quality information available for free that paying is pointless. An online diploma or certificate is useless. I would suggest the Photo.net community as an excellent resource for most photographers. It offers the ability to get good critiques of your work and there is a wealth of information about photography. The forums will answer any question you have from a community of experts.
posted by JJ86 at 6:26 AM on December 20, 2010

I agree with JJ86 that there is more information online than you can ever assimilate. You probably don't have to pay for the information or critique. However, I completed a correspondence course from the New York Institute of Photography years ago (all film, no digital cameras then) and would still recommend it enthusiastically. I had already been shooting pictures for many years when I took the course. I just wanted to cement my understanding of both technical and artistic aspects of my work. In retrospect, it was the pairing of specific photo assignments with specific topics of didactic instruction that was most valuable. However you go about it, learn as much as you can! Shoot as many frames as you can and edit, edit, edit.
posted by txmon at 6:51 AM on December 20, 2010 [1 favorite]

Internet forums are not a replacement for class critiques and discussions in any way. There are plenty of technical resources on the internet, but the technical part of photography is the easy part.

I went to the physical SCAD campus, but they have an accredited, online BFA program also.
posted by bradbane at 10:58 AM on December 20, 2010

There's no point in attending a online course when you have so many free resources available.
www.digital-photography-school.com

If you feel like you need a class, then try to find one in a local community college. Online classes are nothing more than charging money for the same thing a good forum will do for free.
posted by WizKid at 8:06 AM on December 21, 2010

I've been a big fan of the forums at fredmiranda.com. If you're determined to pay for something, you can check out the trainings at kelbytraining.com - It's not a "school", just a series of videos, but they're from pretty good instructors. Access is $25/month or $200/year, but if you have some time, you can get through the entire set of content in one month. You can also take a look at all of the available courses, and they make the first few mins of each video available for free so you can see what it's like.
posted by um_maverick at 7:44 AM on December 29, 2010