Photography BA and Photography BA Top-Up Welcome Pack
Welcome to Photography BA and Photography BA Top-Up 2023.
Our Photography BA (Hons) and Photography Top-Up BA degrees take a practical approach to exploring the photograph within a range of contemporary practices and contexts. This will extend to a critical understanding of photography subjects and allows the scope for you to develop your creativity and professionalism.
During your undergraduate photography course, we will challenge you to consider traditional silver processes and digital technologies, evaluating photographic production and studying the still image in relation to both the moving image and newer interactive technologies.
To prepare for your study, we ask you to read some of the recommended books highlighted in this welcome pack. In particular, it would be great if you could familiarise yourself with the history and theory of photography. You are also required to do some preparatory work over the summer.
- New students (Level 4): download your summer work for BA (Hons) Photography here.
- Top-Up students (level 6): download your summer work for BA (Hons) Photography Top-Up here.
On this page, you will also find other relevant information about the course and the University that will allow you to familiarise yourself to the new processes and ways of working at here.
We hope that you enjoy your experience here at the University of Northampton. You will have supportive tutors, great technical resources and a superb library resource available through the Learning Hub.
Engaging fully with what is on offer both from the Photography Department and the wider University opportunities will enhance your experience and reap rewards.
Indicative Timetable BA Photography Year One (Level 4 Stage 1) 2023-24
- During your first year (Level 4 Stage 1) of study it is hoped that you will successfully complete six 20-credit modules.
- In order to do this, you will be expected to attend for sessions in Semester 1 (September-January) and Semester 2 (February-May) on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesdays (Wednesday afternoon is for Personal Academic Tutor and Students’ Union activities/clubs/team sports) and some Thursdays each week.
- There is an opportunity to meet me online to ask any questions on the 7 September (see below).
- Your first meeting in person will be a meet and greet with myself and your Personal Academic Tutor on Monday 18 September at 10am in the Creative Hub, Room CH322
Indicative Timetable BA Photography Top-Up Year Three (Level 6 stage 3) 2023-24
This is for Top-Up students only who are being admitted directly to the final year of study
- During your first year (Level 6 Stage 3) of study it is hoped that you will successfully complete one 40-credit module and one 80-credit module. In order to do this, you will be expected to attend for sessions in Semester (September-January) and Semester 2 (February-May) on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesdays (Wednesday afternoon is for Personal Academic Tutor and Students’ Union activities/clubs/team sports) and some Thursdays each week.
- There is an opportunity to meet me online to ask any questions on the 7 September (see below). Your first meeting in person will be a meet and greet with myself and your Personal Academic Tutor on Monday 18 September at 10am in the Creative Hub, Room CH322
Please make sure you have enrolled and have your student ID badge before welcome week! Enrolment in person is available 13-18 September. In the meantime, visit our Instagram page.
We look forward to you studying with us.
Programme Leader
Richard Whitehead (BA, MA, PGTL & HE, ABIPP, FHEA)
Senior Lecturer/Programme Leader Photography
Richard.whitehead@northampton.ac.uk
Welcome and Induction sessions
To welcome you to Photography BA course, please attend our online welcome and induction session to clarify any issues you may have prior to starting:
Equipment
List of suggested equipment and starter books for BA Photography
We realise that a photography course makes a number of financial demands upon you. With that in mind we have put together a list of some of the things we would see as essential items.
We have asked some of our current Level 4 (Stage 1) students to indicate the costs involved in buying materials and prints for project submission. It is hoped that this will give you a clearer idea how much you should expect to spend to complete your work. The amount is on average between £150-£200 – you may spend more or less on materials, but this covers film, photographic paper, prints (digital and conventional) and mounting.
Essential Items
- Paper – writing (lined and plain)
- Pens, pencils, highlighter pens
- Memory sticks
- SD cards - available from Amazon and specialist camera shops
- Hard drive
- A smart phone that can record sound and video (networks and cost is personal, but you can find good deals for cheap for unlimited calls and texts per month so shop around)
- Enthusiasm!
There is an Art Shop – where you will be able to purchase all the usual items.
Although you are welcome to do so, you will NOT need to purchase your own cameras immediately. It would be more sensible to explore the range of cameras available and see if they are appropriate to your needs. Someone who is interested in sports photography may need a camera that can store information quickly, whereas someone who is interested in studio work may prefer larger files sizes to attain better detail.
Please be aware that our stocks of digital cameras are primarily Nikon, some Canon, some Pentax and some Fuji, and we have a range of lenses. We do have some Canon lenses that can be used on Canon cameras. There is also a stock of tripods, lighting equipment and other items that will be available on loan from the equipment store. There is no cost for hire kit.
The following is a short list of recommended equipment you will need within your first year on the course:
Portable external hard drive for backing up all work
Suggested makes include Iomega, Freecom, LaCie, Hitachi, Western Digital. Suggested size 1TB/2TB, ensure Mac compatible – as the computers within the department are Macs. Some suggested suppliers:
Your own SD cards
We suggest 3-4 which have at least 32GB of memory. These are essential if you are borrowing our DSLRs and video equipment. Suggested makes include SanDisk & Lexar:
Archival/Portfolio Photographic Boxes
For presentation and storage of photographic prints. (These are recommended, but you can discuss this with a tutor and acquire these after you start. Consider getting together as a group and you may save money through a bulk order). Suggested retailers include:
- Portfolio Store
- Nomad Plc
- Seawhite
- Tiny Box Company
Memory sticks/USB Flash drives
16/32GB – for transferring files and storing lecture slide presentations. Amazon are very cheap for these.
Negative Folder for black and white and colour negative storage (Wex, etc.)
Paper sleeves are supplied by the University.
Please remember it is often cheaper to buy online – watch for deals.
Some useful tips from our current students:
- Developing/buying colour film, go to Skears. It’s not cheap but it is better quality!
- If you need any colour or BW darkroom film, look for deals on Ebay and Amazon, it’s much cheaper.
- If you want your own film camera, buy from Ebay. I got one (plus a 50mm lens) for £50.
- If you need sketchbooks, go to the Works. Cheap sketchbooks and portfolio boxes.
Indicative Reading List
You are not required to read or purchase all of these books by the time you arrive in September, but you are advised to source at least one text dealing with photographic history and theory (choose any one from the first three on the list), and one text covering technical and practical aspects of photography (next three on the list below), You can begin to explore these texts and develop a sense of what may be covered in your first year at the University of Northampton:
Photographic History and Theory
- Bate, D. (2016) Photography: The Key Concepts. 2nd Edition. Oxford: Berg.
- Clarke, G. (1997) The Photograph. Oxford University Press.
- Wells, L. (2015) Photography: A Critical Introduction. 5th Edition. Oxford: Routledge.
Technical
- Farrell, I. (2017) A Complete Guide to Digital Photography. London: Quercus.
- Freeman, M. (2017) The Photographer’s Handbook: Equipment, Technique, Style. London: ILEX.
- Langford, M. (eds. Fox, A. and Sawdon-Smith, R. ) (2015) Langfords Basic Photography: The Guide for Serious Photography, Focal Press, New York and London.
- Silber,M. (2017) Advancing Your Photography: Secrets to Amazing Photos from the Masters. Miami: Mango.
Theory
- Davis, W. (2011) A General Theory of Visual Culture, Oxford: Princeton University Press.