**From lighting and framing a dramatic fashion shot to visualising concepts for retail, commercial photography has the power to influence and inspire. This course will help you succeed in today’s competitive photographic industry, and give you the broad range of skills that you’ll need, combining technical excellence with visual awareness, innovation, business acumen and enterprise.**
This programme will equip you with advanced technical skills in studio and location, lighting, digital capture and post-production techniques. Industry-oriented assignments, supported by hands-on workshops using sophisticated camera and lighting equipment, will also develop your technical skills.
With support from our teaching and technical team, as well as practitioners from industry, you’ll develop your confidence in responding to client briefs while demonstrating creative problem-solving and conceptualisation skills. Then, in your second year, you’ll work with real industry clients to build a professional portfolio. Recent contributors include Getty Images, Met Office, Mercedes-Benz, and Pro-Direct Sport.
You’ll acquire a broad range of entrepreneurial abilities in marketing, self-promotion and business development, and develop financially sustainable practices, fundamental to your success in the industry. You’ll also benefit from our affiliation with the prestigious Association of Photographers (AOP). Our photographic resources include industry-standard studios, one of which provides an infinity cove to create seamless backdrops for shoots. We also provide access to lighting and high-end digital camera equipment, large-format scanners, post-production suites and 6000 pieces of kit that are free to hire from our Equipment Resource Centre.
Our students attend world-class events including the annual Visual Culture Symposium in London, where speakers have included picture editors from The Telegraph and The Guardian, amongst acclaimed international photographers. You’ll also be encouraged to enter graduate showcases and awards, with one of our recent graduates winning Best in Show - first runner up, at Free Range 2019.
Our curriculum includes a rich schedule of visiting lecturers and photographers, many of whom also take an active role in running practical workshops, contributing to group critiques and seminar discussions, and providing portfolio review sessions. And we are regularly visited by talented photography alumni, including industry professional Harry Borden, Suki Dhanda, Tom Oldham and Candice Farmer. Many also provide work placement and assisting opportunities.
Graduates can become:
- Commercial photographers
- Fashion photographers
- Advertising photographers
- Digital retouchers
- Digital editors
- Publishers
- Picture editors
Course Details - Modules
We provide a distinctive and contemporary programme of study in a learning environment where students with a range of aspirations can flourish creatively, academically and professionally.
We help students to acquire a broad range of entrepreneurial abilities in marketing, self promotion and business development, enabling them to develop financially sustainable practices, and the ability to thrive in the industry.
We also help students acquire the skills, attitudes and behaviours that enable them to apply their learning confidently in different situations, both within the field of photographic practice and in wider creative, professional and collaborative contexts.
Course Details – Assessment Method
Assessment Methods are not listed for this Course.
Course Details – Professional Bodies
Professional Bodies are not listed for this Course.
How to Apply
26 January This is the deadline for applications to be completed and sent for this course. If the university or college still has places available you can apply after this date, but your application is not guaranteed to be considered.
Application Codes
Course code:
W643
Institution code:
P65
Campus Name:
Main Site
Campus code:
Points of Entry
The following entry points are available for this course:
Year 1
Entry Requirements for Advanced Entry (Year 2 and Beyond)
Entry Requirements for Advanced Entry are not listed for this Course.
International applicants
Standard Qualification Requirements
Although many of our students do come in with top grades and high UCAS points, these aren’t necessarily essential for entry. We typically ask for a minimum of 112 UCAS points, but we understand that talented artists, designers and makers can have a wide range of relevant strengths and skills beyond formal qualifications. We’re just as interested in exploring your portfolio and discussing your creative experiences as we are in seeing your grades.
Your application will tell us about your qualifications and previous experience, but studying the arts is about more than can be captured on forms. We need to find out about your creative potential, your abilities and idiosyncrasies, so we will invite you to talk about your work with a member of our HE academic team. You can tell us about your aspirations, and why you want to study at the college. It is also a good moment to find out what we can offer you.
We encourage you to visit the college, so that you can see our facilities, meet our teaching and technical staff, and discuss any other queries you may have; however we appreciate this may not be possible, and are happy to talk to you via an online platform (such as Google Meet or similar).
We accept a range of international qualifications and will look at each application individually.
Please click the following link to find out more about qualification requirements for this course
