BA(Hons) in Photography
UWE Bristol
Key Information
Campus location
Bristol, United Kingdom
Languages
English
Study format
On-Campus
Duration
3 - 6 years
Pace
Full time, Part time
Tuition fees
GBP 15,250 / per year *
Application deadline
Request info
Earliest start date
Request info
* home students per year: £9250 | international students per year: £15250
Introduction
This course is affiliated with the leading professional body for photographers in the UK and beyond, the Association of Photographers.
Why study photography?
Images are everywhere. Studying photography enables you to understand the language of images and develop your 'visual voice' to communicate effectively and with confidence.
It helps you understand the contexts in which images exist and circulate, and locate opportunities to get your images published, exhibited and commissioned.
Becoming a photography professional opens doors to a wide range of careers within a global landscape of creative industries.
Why UWE Bristol?
BA(Hons) Photography is based in the city of Bristol, a vibrant arts and media community that will challenge and inspire you.
The course offers a vibrant, collaborative environment, modern facilities, supportive workshop instruction and expert input, all underpinned by theory and critique.
Study at Bower Ashton Studios, part of our City Campus, where exceptional facilities and resources include industry-standard digital media studios.
Explore traditional tools and the latest technology in our production and fabrication workshops. Develop your creativity and the high-level practical skills needed to become a successful photographer. Work across all areas of the discipline, from editorial and documentary to fashion, advertising and fine art.
We'll encourage you to transform your broad-based photographic practice into an individual visual style. On graduation, you'll have a unique and compelling body of work for the marketplace.
Work to briefs set and assessed by external individuals and organisations, including photographers, filmmakers, publishers, clothing labels, product designers, theatre groups, musicians and festivals. Build your CV with work experience, and access to job opportunities, throughout the course.
Our partnerships with Bristol Photography Festival and IC Visual Lab, two highly reputable Bristol-based photography organisations with national and international influence, will provide you with a wide range of work experience placements and live briefs to work on. You'll also have access to industry talks, events and opportunities to display your work at prestigious exhibitions and venues.
Our City Campus is a creative powerhouse. It spans across Bristol and is made up of Bower Ashton and renowned contemporary art centres Spike Island, Arnolfini and Watershed.
Attend talks from creative professionals and visit photographers' studios, agencies and picture libraries. Showcase your work to talent scouts and potential employers at the final year Creative Industries Degree Show and graduate with an impressive portfolio of work.
Where can it take me?
Our graduates work in fields from editorial and fashion to movie stills and medical photography. Employers include the BBC, Sunday Times Magazine and the Tate.
Past students have assisted photographers such as Steve McCurry, Zed Nelson and Tim Walker, and have been published and exhibited in FT Weekend, Vogue Italia, Oh Comely, The Photographers Gallery, National Portrait Gallery and the Tate.
Graduates have also established important collectives and exhibiting networks such as The Lost Light Recordings, Loupe Magazine and Splash and Grab.
Some graduates go on to further study at the Master's level, including our own postgraduate MA Photography course.
Program Outcome
Professional accreditation
This course is affiliated with the leading professional body for photographers in the UK and beyond, the Association of Photographers (AOP), which promotes the good professional practice and protects the intellectual property rights of its member practitioners. Our affiliation is a testament to the department's commitment to professional practice.
Placements
Students who get work experience tend to graduate with better degrees. Experience also hones your skills, industry knowledge and professional network, making you a sought-after graduate.
Find work experience assisting photographers, set designers and curators, or helping with picture desk, agency and gallery work.
The thriving city of Bristol offers opportunities for work experience and placements. We have close relationships with the BBC, Spike Island, the Arnolfini, Watershed, Bristol Museums and Galleries and the M Shed, the Royal Photographic Society, IC-Visual Lab, Knowle West Media Centre, local schools and community groups.
Our partnership with the Prince's Trust has seen students working with young people and vulnerable adults. This is particularly valuable for students intending to become teachers or art therapists.
Where possible, you could also spend the second semester studying abroad at one of our partner institutions in Rotterdam, Barcelona, Taipei, Hong Kong, Berlin, Bologna, Linz, Ghent and Bergen.
Get help to find placements and support throughout from department staff and our award-winning careers service.
Fieldwork
Where possible, you will visit photographers' studios, agencies and picture libraries, throughout the course.
Photography is an international business and where possible, you'll have the opportunity to visit cities like New York, Paris, Marseilles, Barcelona and Vienna for photography festivals.
Professional practice is incorporated into these trips wherever possible. Our recent trip to Berlin included studio talks from photographers Jan von Holleben and Jorg Bruggemann, and talks from curator Ann-Christin Bertrand at C/O Gallery and from alumni Steph Third and Mel Flash about working in Berlin.
Career Opportunities
Photography is largely a freelance practice and students with experience in live briefs are best placed to make a smooth transition to the industry. By tailoring what and how you study, you can shape the course towards your chosen career path.
Our graduates work in fields including editorial, fashion, fine art, advertising, movie stills and medical photography for employers such as the BBC, Sunday Times Magazine, FT Weekend, the Tate and the National Portrait Gallery, French Connection, Prix de la Photographie Paris, We Folk, British Journal of Photography, the Department for Education and Aardman Animations.
Careers include:
- Freelance photography (editorial, fashion, advertising, portraiture)
- Photographer's assistant
- Picture research
- Photographer's agent
- Studio work
- Publishing
- Teaching and art therapy
- Arts and gallery administration
- Further postgraduate study/academic research
Award-winning careers service
Our award-winning careers service helps you develop your employment potential through career coaching, a vacancy service for internships, placements, jobs, global opportunities, volunteering and community activity plus support for entrepreneurial activity, and access to employer events.
Creating employable students
UWE Bristol places a strong emphasis on employability and skills development at every level. Through work placements, volunteering, study abroad and initiatives nurturing talent and innovation, you will have opportunities to gain valuable real-world experience, allowing you to graduate with diverse career opportunities and a competitive place in the job market.
Curriculum
Content
The optional modules listed are those that are most likely to be available, but they may be subject to change.
Year one
You will study:
- Exploring Practice in Photography 1
- Photographic Foundations
- Exploring Practice in Photography 2
- Introduction to Professional Practice in Photography.
Year two
You will study:
- Developing Practice in Photography 1
- Photography in Context
- Enterprise and Marketing in Photography.
Plus one optional module from:
- Developing Practice in Photography 2
- International Exchange.
Final year
You will study:
- Extended Study in Photography 1
- Independent Research Study in Photography
- Extended Study in Photography 2
- Career Strategies for Photography.
The University continually enhances our offer by responding to feedback from our students and other stakeholders, ensuring the curriculum is kept up to date and our graduates are equipped with the knowledge and skills they need for the real world. This may result in changes to the course. If changes to your course are approved, we will inform you.
This structure is for full-time students only. Part-time students study the same modules but the delivery pattern will be different.