Are you self taught or did you formal training?

cscurrier · Dec 16, 2012

Mainly self taught. Playing around and learning the relations between aperture and shutter speeds on my own, burning through some film. In college, I did take a few photography courses, which focused mainly on digital, so as I continued on with film it was more by teaching myself. Though with those college courses, I had access to a nice darkroom which my instructor helped me with and I just experimented as I always have with my photography. Otherwise, being the only film shooter in my classes, I had the freedom to go my own way and learn, as I continue to do so!

Wade D · Dec 16, 2012

Self taught from age 12 to 17. Then I majored in photography in college and ended up with a BA. Mostly I knew the technical end of things before college.
The degree was geared for working photographers with heavy emphasis on business skills. From there were 25 years of weddings and commercial work. All while holding down a full time career as a commercial printer for 30+ years. I was able to retire at age 54 with a very nice pension and benefits. Now all of my photography is for my own edification.

Jerevan · Dec 16, 2012

Self taught - read and re-read Ansel Adams three books, talked to a lot of people with more experience and then tried things by myself. But I had a mentor when I started out, Tom M Braastad, and I am forever grateful for his help and advice. I just wish I had started much earlier, at the age of 15 rather than at 25.

blansky · Dec 16, 2012

StoneNYC said:
So then click "yes and no"....

The problem with any poll that says yes and no, is that it doesn't really answer the question that the poll is trying to ask.

If I made a poll that asked how many on this site are sexual deviants and the choices were yes definitely, no definitely and "yes and no". It would only tell me that all were either sexual deviants or liars. The problem is the "yes and no" people would skew the vote so I couldn't tell exactly how many liars there were.

Ricus.stormfire · Dec 16, 2012

OK......more valid points raised.....

the "yes and no" would include, workshop, lectures and such, but not full courses at colleges and universities.

This is a badly worded poll....so sue me, English is not even my first language....

Another thing that occurred to me, in retrospect and in clarity of thought is that "taught" is past tense, as in completed, and most of us honestly are still being "taught" or still learning......I am

maybe I should have worded it differently, to make more sense to you all. with options like A: Yes, I did not attend a college/university course,
B:No I have studied photography at a college.
C: I have attended workshops and courses but did not study photography fulltime
D: I am a hipster

ok the last one is a bit of a joke....so lighten up a bit

Maybe the mods should just lock this poll before you really start getting nasty to each other, which happens more and more on APUG I have seen.

Jeff Kubach · Dec 16, 2012

Self taught in the beginning but later went to a community college.

Jeff

grahamp · Dec 16, 2012

I started out as self-taught. I picked up some technical instruction while at college - I was studying geology at the time and being able to make accurate photographs with microscopes, large format cameras, and in the field on the side of a hill in the pouring rain was considered a valuable skill. I remember some of it

Sirius Glass · Dec 16, 2012

blansky said:
The problem with any poll that says yes and no, is that it doesn't really answer the question that the poll is trying to ask.

If I made a poll that asked how many on this site are sexual deviants and the choices were yes definitely, no definitely and "yes and no". It would only tell me that all were either sexual deviants or liars. The problem is the "yes and no" people would skew the vote so I couldn't tell exactly how many liars there were.

Exactly my first response. I answered "Yes and no", but I only took one class. Is being told or shown how to do something count as a class? :confused:

emjo · Dec 16, 2012

Self-taught. If taught is what I am. Still learning though... Above all I have a fun time with my cameras!

Ricus.stormfire · Dec 16, 2012

Sirius Glass said:
Exactly my first response. I answered "Yes and no", but I only took one class. Is being told or shown how to do something count as a class? :confused:

and that is the correct box you selected. But I see the point you are making.... Was it a one class deal, or did you just take the one class and didn't do the rest?

What option "A" means is NO INSTRUCTION BY A PHYSICAL PERSON, written word, trial and error ON YOUR OWN.

but like I said earlier, we are all still learning,whether we are, formally educated, on your own with books, or somewhere in between (via short courses, workshops, assisting a professional, belonging to a camera club etc.) to claim one is fully learned is a lie (or you are some super genius or something), wouldn't you agree?

I do apologize if I worded it badly.

Sirius Glass · Dec 16, 2012

Ricus.stormfire said:
and that is the correct box you selected. But I see the point you are making.... Was it a one class deal, or did you just take the one class and didn't do the rest?

One one day class

Ricus.stormfire · Dec 16, 2012

Sirius Glass said:
One one day class

Yes that would count as a "workshop" to use a loose term, so "Yes ans No" is correct

cepwin · Dec 16, 2012

I took a rec program class when I was home from college during the summer years ago but I don't really consider that formal training. Pretty much everything I've learned recently is from the internet (youtube and a lot of help from apug), books and DVD's.

StoneNYC · Dec 16, 2012

I'm a sexual deviant.... Definitely yes.. Hehe

~Stone

The Noteworthy Ones - Mamiya: 7 II, RZ67 Pro II / Canon: 1V, AE-1 / Kodak: No 1 Pocket Autographic, No 1A Pocket Autographic

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

polyglot · Dec 16, 2012

Ricus.stormfire said:
What option "A" means is NO INSTRUCTION BY A PHYSICAL PERSON, written word, trial and error ON YOUR OWN.

Most people I think would consider self-directed book-learning to be "self taught". Obviously none of us has rediscovered the whole of photographic history and technology, we had to learn it from someone else.

I would expect the majority "self taught" responses would probably indicate this interpretation - it just means they've been to no classes or workshops.

blansky · Dec 17, 2012

Self taught is a meaningless term.

The only way to be self taught is to live on another planet with no instruction available from any source, no books, no DVDs, no friends, no mentors, no other photographers work to examine .....nothing.

The minute you receive instruction from any source you are no longer "self taught".

The difference between going to a school for a few years, and doing what I did, is that I controlled the curriculum. I made the decision who to see, who to train with and what instruction I wanted to receive.

I'm not knocking the original posts interest in how the members here learned, but there are many answers to this kind of question. People that attended formal schools still very often have self directed learning after they graduate. People who didn't have formal schooling still can learn a lot more in self directed learning by choosing their own avenues for learning and their own teachers from various workshops. A person "self taught" can still read all the text books that a formal school students learns from. A person can apprentice with a working photographer and learn more that any person in a formal school will learn.

BradS · Dec 17, 2012

I think it is counter productive to bicker about the finer meaning of the term "self-taught". I'm pretty sure that we all understand what is meant by "self taught" and that we all have pretty much the same understanding. Give the guy a break...let's not degenerate into a group of grumpy old men engaging in one long, multi-episode pissing contest.

TheFlyingCamera · Dec 17, 2012

blansky said:
A person can apprentice with a working photographer and learn more that any person in a formal school will learn.

I don't know you could say "more" - certainly different. What someone who attends Brooks Institute will learn is very different from what someone who attends RISD will learn, and both are different from an apprenticeship, because the apprenticeship will show you how ONE photographer who makes a living from it works, complete with good AND bad habits. Some things you'll get much faster, studying under the working pro, others, maybe not at all, and yet others you'll get non-standard approaches because they're what works for that individual, but you may never know WHY he/she did it that way because they either never thought about it or they don't know how to articulate it.

lxdude · Dec 17, 2012

lancekingphoto said:
As others have pointed out, I think "self-taught" is a bit of an oxymoron. You can't teach yourself what you don't know

It's called experimentation. Most of what I know professionally I learned that way. Nobody taught me.

Steve Smith · Dec 17, 2012

lxdude said:
It's called experimentation. Most of what I know professionally I learned that way. Nobody taught me.

Same here (as I mentioned earlier).

Also known as trial and error (often mostly error!).

Steve.

JBrunner · Dec 17, 2012

I'm self taught in that I received no formal training or education regarding the artistic or technical aspects of photography, however over the years I have had various mentors, attended a few conferences and workshops, and attempted to mimic certain things I was interested in, etc.

Part of any education involves exposure to the field of endeavor, so in that manner, I have received information and guidance from others. I don't believe there really is an opportunity to be self taught, unless you somehow invent and develop something from the ground up.

Brian C. Miller · Dec 17, 2012

Self taught. I'm using the meaning as, "no formal education." I have read books, and I have run many rolls and sheets of film. Load, expose, develop, print, repeat.

While an educational course may open avenues for you such as teaching, I never wanted to learn how to photograph to teach photography. I became interested in photography because, as I was driving home one night, I became entranced by the moonlight on the landscape. It wasn't a grand landscape, it was just suburban-rural stuff. But that was the motivational spark. And then I bought a very used Pentax 6x7 and a 90mm leaf shutter lens, which is still going strong.

What is important to learning is remembering why I want to photograph things. I remember what I saw that first moonlit night. I remember when clouds lined up into a pagoda, with the moon in the center. I remember the morning when the rising sun painted a hillside in shades of red, bright to dim. I remember these things, and so I strive to continue with photography.

lightwisps · Dec 17, 2012

A bunch of both. Had a great high school instructor, then a great one at Junior College and what can you say about Cal Arts? Top notch. Then was an apprentice to 3 well known phtographers, mostly printing for them. That gave me a great foundation to build on. Funny how you either love photography or hate it. I love it

Are you self taught or did you formal training?

are you self taught or not?

Yes, I am

No I have had formal training

Yes and no

I don't know what I am doing

cscurrier

Wade D

Jerevan

blansky

Ricus.stormfire

Jeff Kubach

grahamp

Sirius Glass

emjo

Ricus.stormfire

Sirius Glass

Ricus.stormfire

cepwin

StoneNYC

polyglot

blansky

BradS

TheFlyingCamera

Membership Council

lxdude

Steve Smith

JBrunner

Moderator

Brian C. Miller

lightwisps

Are you self taught or did you formal training?

are you self taught or not?

Yes, I am

No I have had formal training

Yes and no

I don't know what I am doing

Membership Council

Moderator

Privacy & Transparency

Privacy & Transparency