Photography
A.S. Degree
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Photography
Photography is used to illustrate, advertise, communicate, and express. Emerging digital technologies are expanding the realm of what is possible in photography and, at the same time, fueling the demand for outstanding creative images. In the photography program you will concentrate on developing skills in the use of black and white photography, color photography, digital photography, and will explore the integration of video and moving images. Student work is on display at the Photography department site. Students are also encouraged to submit writing and art work to the Kelab Art and Literary Journal, a collaborative effort of the Creative Writing, Graphic Design, Photography and New Media programs along with the Writers' Guild.
You will integrate the computer into your art-making process in the first semester and continue to build and refine your technical and aesthetic skills throughout your four semesters. Additionally, you will learn to use the web as a content-delivery tool, become fluent in technologies that allow images to be integrated with motion, sound, animation, and interactive dialogue. You will also gain a firm grounding in traditional visual arts studies. There are art foundation courses including drawing and design that will help you to fully understand and communicate the visual experience.
In addition to technology-based skills, you will approach photography as a fine arts activity and acquire a traditional broad foundation of study in the visual arts. Seven art courses address the topics of design, drawing, and art history in order to provide a solid grasp of visual fundamentals.
Degree Requirements
Careers on Career Coach
You will be prepared for the increasingly electronic environment that commercial creative work requires. There are many areas of concentration and job classifications within the field of photography that graduates can consider. Among the areas of concentration are architectural photographer, medical/scientific photographer, stock photographer (freelance and agency), fine arts photographer, photojournalism and press photographer, fashion photographer, commercial photographer, advertising and editorial photographer, and visual artist.
Digital technology is allowing the creative artist to redefine what is possible in photography, and offers the opportunity to embark on an exciting journey into the future of creative imaging. Thus, it is difficult to predict the full range of employment opportunities that will become available, as new technologies and new opportunities will continue to unfold. At present, the two largest areas of activity are:
- Creative digital photography - commercial digital photography such as travel, sports, photojournalism - digital photographic illustration - digital multimedia content production - and digital artist.
- New media content production - multimedia - moving image and animation - web content production - media artist.
Learn more about related jobs:
Program Chair
Christine Shanks
Associate Professor, Graphic Design
I am an image maker, designer, and educator. I feel at home on the computer and working by hand in the studio.
Transfer Options
This program is intended to facilitate transfer to a four-year college with studies in photography or related visual disciplines. In almost all cases, the degree will satisfy the requirements of the first two years of study at the transfer institution. Recent graduates have transferred to:
- University at Albany
- Buffalo State College
- Cornell University
- SUNY College at Cortland
- Ithaca College
- SUNY New Paltz
- SUNY College at Oswego
- Rochester Institute of Technology
Featured Faculty
Student Showcase
Liz Frantz
Photo by Liz Frantz
Tompkins Cortland 2008 graduate Liz Frantz's photographs have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, on The Rachel Maddow Show, and on Full Frontal with Samantha Bee; and she is an award-winning photojournalist with the Concord Monitor in Concord, NH.She writes:
"TC3 allowed me to explore my interests in photography and introduced me to photojournalism through Kathy Morris’s elective. The emphasis on independent projects throughout my time in the photo program allowed me to further develop those interests. Since graduating in 2008, I’ve gone on to complete a BA in Photojournalism, complete several internships up and down the East Coast, and work as a staff photographer at a daily New Hampshire newspaper where I covered the 2016 presidential primary election. I’ve been recognized in annual contests by the New England Newspaper Awards, Boston Press Photographers Association,Stu and the National Press Photographers Association."
Benjamin Torrey
Photos by Benjamin Torrey
"I dropped out of high school my sophomore year and had trouble finding the footing to resume my education after getting my GED. Once I finally did start taking classes full-time at TC3, it was a really formative period for me - I learned a ton, gained a lot of confidence, and discovered how much I loved photography, which I really didn't know anything about before hesitantly declaring it as my major. Working as a photo lab monitor there was the first job I ever had that I enjoyed, and I felt useful being able to help other students make their work. And I'm still proud of the art that I made there as a student. Even after transferring to Ithaca College and graduating with a B.S. in filmmaking, I consider TC3 my alma mater first and foremost. The amazing staff and wonderful facilities there were crucial for me developing a sense of work ethic, interest in learning, and self-assurance."Sarah Clapp
Sarah M. Clapp is a portrait photographer from Ithaca and is student at Tompkins Cortland Community College. She is best known for her documentary-style photography, capturing the extraordinary in the ordinary and highlighting the day-to-day with a sense of wonder. Her main medium is digital photography, though she often experiments with a collection of film and Polaroid cameras. The relationships Sarah cultivates allow her to capture candid, honest moments where the subjects of her portraiture are truly, in their element.