Placement research:Part 2

The Arts:

This group emphasised how broad the arts can be, and how many opportunities are out there if you look in the right places. Tom Owens was a member of this group and made a mind-map to list the possible jobs available after graduation.

It has become clear through the groups research and my own additional research, that networking and work experience is very important when trying to earn money from your art. Developing friendships and contacts within the industry will get your work notices and could lead to future employment. Gaining work experience could also have similar effects, the more experience you have the better. When it comes to looking for jobs in the arts, and getting the latest art news, The Arts Council website is a great place to visit. Subscribing as a member will allow you to receive almost weekly newsletters, which will list art jobs and news. This is a link advised by group 1: www.artsjobs.org.uk/arts-jobs-listings/

Education:

Group two researched into what a postgraduate would need to do in order to work in education. I have gathered from researching, that you need to obtain a PGCA. This can be done at some universities and colleges, and takes one year full-time to complete, or two years part-time. Through the PGCA you can get a Qualified Teacher Status (QTS), which is needed to teach in any state primary or secondary school. After receiving a PGCA it is possible to go on and obtain a NQT, which stands for Newly Qualified Teacher and results in being observed for a year in a school environment. This can also be completed full-time or part-time, the induction being assessed across the equivalent of three full school terms. At the end of each term, you meet with your induction tutor or head teacher for a formal assessment, which focuses on your progress. It is the head teachers job to report to the local authority (LA) or the Independent Schools Council Teacher Induction Panel (ISCtip), stating whether you have met the core professional standards. In order to become a university lecturer, you need an MA, which requires at least a 2:2 at degree level. Funding for post-graduate study is rather problematic though, an student loans are no longer offered. There are other ways of gaining the funding though, for example:

• University Scholarships - many institutes offer a few scholarships to entice people onto their courses. If these are offered the university will display as such on their website.
• Sponsorship from your Employer - if a person is working, but wants to study part-time, their employer may offer to with course fees or offer more flexible hours.
• Charities and Trusts - grants are sometimes provided by these, usually awarded to students from disadvantaged backgrounds, or students that have achieved continuous academic excellence.
• UK Research Councils -  UK Research Councils do fund some research-focused Masters programmes, which then tend to carry over to a PhD. The funding usually covers course fees and a maintenance grant which is tax free.

It is also possible start your own teaching workshop business, or become employed to do so. Becoming employed usually means you need to have a degree and industry experience. If you decide to work for yourself, you need to register as self employed. 

Publishing:

The are several jobs in publishing that post-graduates could try for, these just being a few:

• Editor - usually have an input in every aspect of publishing a book, from thinking of an idea all the way to writing on the book jacket.
• Designer - controls what the book will look like and feel like, most publishing houses use freelance designers rather than in house ones. The designed works with the production team to come up with every aspect of the book.
• Production department - usually deal with ordering paper, getting quotes, and negotiating prices on typesetting, printing and binding. They take a manuscript and transform it into a book, working to a strict deadline set by shops.
• Contracts department - make sure that all contract documents are correct and keep with the original agreement created with the author.
• Rights departments - take responsibility for selling rights to people who are interested in buying them – for example, an Asian company might want to translate a book into Chinese and sell it in their market. Translation, serialisation, film/TV rights and merchandising rights are usually owned by the publishing house, but can be sold on if wanted.
• Marketing and publicity - this department is in charge of generating interest in a book, by planning a campaign and producing promotional material. They try to set up promotional events (e.g. book signings) and plenty of press coverage.

Below is a list of publishers found by this group, who offer opportunities within the publishing industry:

http://www.aperture.org/

http://www.dewilewispublishing.com/

http://www.manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/

http://www.phaidon.co.uk/

http://www.reaktionbooks.co.uk/

http://www.scalo.com/

http://www.thamesandhudson.com/

Photo labs:

This group found a few different photo labs, but the most well known is London's Metro Imaging, which provides almost every service you could possibly want. Another photo lab found was Genesis Imaging. These both offer printing, framing, mounting, retouching, and film processing. There are several jobs on offer in photo labs:

• Forensic photographer 
• Laboratory manager
• Processing machine operator
• Photographic process worker
• Film processing technician
• Photo lab assistant

Non-photographic:

The possibilities for this section are endless really, but one popular option is writing. You don't need a creative writing degree, or a degree in anything actually, many successful writers don't have degrees. Having a degree would be helpful though, and make you stand out in a group of job candidates. Creative writing and poetry are difficult areas to get into though, so journalism is seen as a better route to take. Some newspapers will offer trainee positions, which provide basic training under a training contract. Script writing is another possible path, which tend to be judged more on creativity than qualifications. Cinematography also goes under this category, including cameramen and directors of photography. This website shows a list of job opportunities in the film industry. The roles of art editor, illustrator and art director are also possible options to follow up. 

Professional Practise Task 1 – Placement research:Part 1

My university course requires me to do a work placement, and our year were organised into six groups. Each group were given an area to investigate; the Arts, Education, Publishing, Commercial photography, photo labs, and non-photographic. I was placed into the commercial photography group, and below is the information we found.

What classes you as a commercial photographer?
•             Money can be paid for the photograph, or the subject in the photograph.
•             Work is not classed as art.
•             Organisations with a specific budget may employ a photographer.
•             Working to a time scale and specific brief.
•             Draws from and influences high art as well as popular culture.
•             Collaboration between the image maker and company/person setting the brief.
•             Combining business + creativity.
•             E.g. Nadav Kander worked with Take That

How to Find Commercial Photography Leads and Work:
If you are starting out in commercial photography, it can be difficult to get work and find clients. As a self-starter, most professional commercial photographers have had to overcome this first hurdle before they can become a success. Whatever role you would like to play in the field of commercial photography (freelancer, agency stock photographer or employee), there are a few tips that you can follow in order to find work and employment.

Materials Needed
•             Camera, preferably digital
•             A portfolio
•             A degree
•             A good eye
•             Attention to detail
•             A neat and tidy appearance

Collect a Portfolio
No client will take you seriously unless you have an extensive portfolio to present to them. You should gather together any previous work that you have done, plus any stock shots that you have taken, with a brief text explaining the purpose of the photo and any detail of the work involved. Some well-known photographers have entered the field by submitting their portfolios to magazines and famous photographers.

We found a list of agencies that commercial photographers can sign up to. It is a good idea to call the recruitment consultant at least once a week, because this will allow you to build a relationship with them. They’re much more likely to remember you this way, and will think of you when the next job comes in.
http://www.martinmedia.co.uk/
http://jobs.guardian.co.uk/st/jobs-photography.html
http://www.creativematch.com/directory/Recruitment/
http://www.monster.co.uk/
http://www.reed.co.uk/
http://www.creativerecruitment.co.uk/
http://www.nucreativetalent.co.uk/
www.formrecruitment.com/creative
www.impact-london.com/
www.redsofalondon.com/
www.majorplayers.co.uk
http://www.creativepool.co.uk/
www.ipswichrecruitmentagency.co.uk/
www.profilescreative.com/
www.polkadotfrog.co.uk/

Cindy Sherman ‘Film Stills’ Analysis

Cindy Sherman ‘Film Stills’ Analysis

Sherman is a photographer widely known for her ‘Untitled Film Stills’. She is the model in all the images, which has continuously created debate over whether or not her work is self-portraiture. Never the less, it is with these film stills that she creates her narrative. As I read in ‘Untitled Film Stills; Cindy Sherman’, narrative photography has been in circulation since Victorian times, with Henry Peach Robinson’s melodramatic posed images. All of Sherman’s images depict one woman, who is always alone and looks to be venerable or scared of something out of shot. Her work is influenced massively by film noir, and explores the different ways in which women and their bodies are represented by the media, historical sources and contemporary artists such as herself.

The narratives within the images revolve very much around drama and suspense, making the viewer think about what could possibly be happening. I chose the image ‘Untitled Film Still #5’ because it’s composition stood out to me, I like how she is filling the right side of the frame and looking off to the big empty space on the left. It makes me wonder who she is looking at, or what she’s seen, there is evidently concern or fright in her eyes. I believe this is what Sherman intended viewers to think, feel, and question when looking at her images. 

Film stills are seen as what can, ultimately, make or break a film. The only difference here being; Sherman isn’t trying to sell a film. Instead the images spoke out to what were called a generation of “baby bloomer” women; housewives who were so used to seeing such imagery on TV, and began to see it as their possible future.

Taking the series into account as a whole, with their titles present, it could be seen to have a linear narrative, as well as their individual narratives based on Sherman’s film influence. However, if they didn’t have their titles at all, they would make a non-linear narrative. ‘Untitled Film Still #27’ shows the woman crying, and stood out to me because of it’s crop and framing. Her head has been cropped off, yet this isn’t something that bothers Sherman. Being a contemporary artist means she doesn’t find the technical or aesthetic aspects as important as the subject matter. I like this view on photography a lot, and I like how they are all black and white, because it gives them a sinister feel.

First blog post: Duane Michals

For my first blog post ever, I thought I’d talk about my first Uni lecture of the year. It was about the Artist Duane Michals, who I’d heard of before but didn’t know anything about him really. He talks about his work and his thought processes, and I’ve decided I really like him and his views on photography-his views on life in general actually. Our first project for this year was called Constructing Narratives, and Michals very much constructs narratives in his work.

The first thing that stood out to me in this video, was when Michals said he doesn’t carry a camera around with him all the time. That’s something I’ve never really done either, I don’t like to rely on a ‘happy mistake’ because what if there are none? Of course, I’ll carry a camera with me on trips, but even then I’m not specifically going out to take photos. I’ll photography what interests me, or makes me laugh, and if I happen to come across a ‘happy mistake’ then that’s great too.

I really like Michals’ work, but in all honesty I think I like the idea of constructing narratives as a whole. I can vaguely remember such work interesting me when I first got into photography. The way the photos create a story just appeals to me, my mind likes to see things in order and I like being able to follow a story to see where it goes.

The above image: Chance Meeting (1970). I put it in here because it basically shows how a lot of Michals’ work is set out, and it displays the obvious story being told. I like this set of images, my favourite thing about them being how each man looks back at the other. It makes me wonder what they’re thinking, what their first impressions of the other person was, just from walking past them. The way they’re looking back gives off a curious vibe to me, especially the man walking towards the camera, with his hand on his chin like that.

Michals has also used text with his images, the first one we looked at was A Letter From My Father:

I really love the text and photo together, and I think putting the text after instead of before was a good idea. This is because it gives you a chance to study the image before you find out any information behind it, and the text then completely changes how you look at it and process it in your head. I find the text quite moving too, the way Michals talks about wanting affection from his Father. I think everyone can relate to this, though it may not be love of their Father they want. The composition of the image is another thing I like about it, the way they are stood and how you can only see Michals’ brother’s profile. I would have liked to have seen all three figures in focus, but I completely understand why the focus is on his Father.

Lastly, I did a little more research through Michals’ work and found a few images with text entitled This Photograph Is My Proof:

The ones I found included couples, and I just really love the idea and story behind them. Relationships have always interested me, and I really enjoy capturing them on camera. These images appealed to me greatly, because the text answers a lot of questions I think of when observing the image. However, the text also creates more questions, which relates to a quote from Michals:

A photo is justified only if it says something “This can also be read that the photo must ask and require something new”

Below is the video we watched in our lecture: