Black-and-White Photography

This is an analog black-and-white photography course. Students will learn the technical functions of the 35mm camera; specifically, proper film exposure through shutter speed and aperture control. Students will also learn how to develop their own black-and-white film. An emphasis will be made on learning a wide variety of techniques for the printing and enlargement of black-and-white film onto silver gelatin, fiber-based photographic paper. Weekly shooting assignments will facilitate the development of a personal vision. The class will engage students in a critical discourse of their own work, as well as that of their fellow students. Class time will be spent on technical lectures, lab demonstrations, and critiques of student work, as well as on slide lectures on historical and contemporary photography. This course is designed to engage the student in a creative photographic dialogue within a productive year. Use of the medium to express a personal aesthetic vision will be stressed, culminating in the student completing a portfolio of prints by the end of the course in which form, subject, and meaning are closely considered.