Photography
Our Vision
Within the Art department our aim is to provide students with an exciting and inspiring Photography curriculum full of subject knowledge and explorative experiences.
In Photography, our vision is to inspire students to be creative thinkers; looking, learning, thinking about and communicating ideas. Photography means ‘drawing with light’ and that is what photographers do when they take a picture. Our aim is for our photographers to explore various techniques to create images that make a personal statement about things that have interested or concerned them, capturing the world as they see it.
Key Stage 4
We follow GCSE Photography specification. In this practical course students learn by doing. They will be guided to create imaginative work through series of workshops and the creation of a portfolio leading to an independent project in Year 11.
In Year 9 students are introduced to camera functions, composition, perspective, lighting, viewpoints, aperture, depth of field, shutter speed and movement to name a few. Alongside this they learn about digital processes and digital editing.
In Years 10 and 11, students work on their portfolio through teacher-led workshops and independent exploration of themes. Students are encouraged to take risks and be more independent with their selections of materials and subject matter. They are guided to create outcomes that show off their strengths which also means our art/photography studios are buzzing with creativity and variety from every student.
At Key stage 4, home learning is important as it forms a continuation of their classwork developing a strong portfolio.
Year 10 and 11 students are encouraged to attend weekly ‘open studio’ sessions whereby students can spend more time on their GCSE Photography projects. This time allows students to utilise the art/photography studio and have access to a wide variety of art materials and support outside of their normal art/photography lessons. They will complete a series of projects and activities exploring the following possible areas:
- Portraiture
- Landscape photography
- Still-life photography
- Documentary photography
- Photojournalism
- Fashion photography
- Abstract photography
- Multimedia
Throughout the 3-year GCSE, students will also be introduced a variety of photographers and use these as inspiration. They will develop creativity and independence, learn to express themselves visually and let their imagination flourish. Photography is a great companion to all other subjects as creativity, imagination and problem solving skills can give you great ideas for other areas.
Enrichment Opportunities
Students are offered several extra-curricular opportunities in order to further their arts experience, which includes: KS4 open studios, Photography Ambassadors as well as photographing the many aspects of school life.
Assessment
Assessments take place every half term and are focused around one of the 4 assessment objectives. All students will be marked on their use of written responses to explain their ideas, developments and evaluations throughout each project.
Students will complete extended projects and workshops which will form their portfolio; this will account for 60% of the overall GCSE grade.
The exam portfolio and final exam outcome accounts for 40% of the overall GCSE grade.
There is a requirement to draw on this course but this can be in the format of quick sketches to plan out a photoshoot and is not as detailed as GCSE Fine Art. Students will also be required to include written annotations throughout their portfolio.