Is a foundation degree in photography worth it?

Question

is it worth me going to uni for a photography degree or just building my own portfolio as I already work in a family portraiture studio, where I'm learning quite a lot, really fast...

Answer 1

Well i'm doing an undergraduate degree in photography and it's been great for me. Without it i wouldn't have made the contacts i have, gained the knowledge i have, gotten to use the amazing equipment i have or visited the places i have.

BUT, you're already getting experience from the studio you work at so it may be that going to university could become an unnecessary expense.

Answer 2

The degree itself is pretty much worthless since photographers are self employed.

That being said, the knowledge that you gain while obtaining the degree can very useful.


Edit:
I have photographed for big magazines like Outside and National Geographic. I now own my own wedding photography studio that brings in over $5,000 per day. Not once in the last 10 years has a potential employer asked be about a degree.

Answer 3

having taken a foundation art degree i firmly believe in them. they teach you alot of the basics about the very foundation of the craft in which you are working, things that you may not learn working in the family business because its not needed, but you may want to use it some day. also, should you want to go and study it in university, a foundation degree will help you build up your portfolio to the greatest it can be so that you can get into a good school. i say do it - i gurantee you'll learn things you never knew and will apply in future work.

Answer 4

Becoming A Better Photographer?

Answer 5

Yeah, check out this one...my school offers it: http://www.santafeuniversity.edu/ProgramsOfStudy/Photography/Overview.aspx