Proficiency In Camera, Darkroom, And Printing Skills
The Bachelor of Arts Degree in Photography will provide students pursuing a liberal arts degree and an emphasis in Photography with camera, darkroom, and printing skills.
Objective
Demonstrate Camera Skills As Well As Darkroom And Printing Techniques
Students will demonstrate proficiency in camera skills as well as traditional darkroom and printing techniques.
Indicator
Senior Portfolio
Students will be required to take ART 495 and produce a final portfolio that will demonstrate expertise in photography and creative use of photographic equipment and techniques. The portfolio will include 20 printed images, 20 digital images, an artist's statement, and a resume. The portfolio will:
consist of a cohesive body of work.
demonstrate technical proficiency with use of cameras.
demonstrate proficiency in photographic printing techniques.
demonstrate the students ability to express and communicate ideas and concepts through the medium of photography.
demonstrate ability to articulate a conceptual direction in a written artist’s statement
Criterion
Portfolio Criteria
The portfolios will be evaluated by a committee of Photography faculty. The faculty will use a rubric developed and adopted by the committee. Using a scale of 0-100%, it is expected that at least 80% of students receive a score of 80% or greater.
Finding
Improvement Needed In Conceptual Development
Only 33% of the students scored above 80% on an evaluation of the work in their Senior Portfolio. The scores show that the weakest areas in the work were in the evaluation of the students' ability to express and communicate ideas through the medium of photography followed by the ability to produce a cohesive body of work.
Indicator
Traditional Darkroom Techniques And Processes
Students will be required to take ART 232 and use black and white film and darkroom developing and printing techniques. Students in ART 232 will produce a portfolio of prints. The portfolios will: • demonstrate individual and expressive solutions to creative problems. • demonstrate the ability to use a camera to produce a properly exposed negative. • demonstrate the ability to develop film and control the contrast of a negative. • demonstrate proficiency in black and white printing by including prints that have an appropriate range of tones and contrast. • include archival prints that are properly fixed to insure longevity.
Criterion
Traditional Darkroom Criteria
The portfolios will be evaluated by a committee of Photography faculty. The faculty will use a rubric developed and adopted by the committee. Using a scale of 0-100%, it is expected that at least 80% of students receive a score of 80% or greater.
Finding
Improvement Needed In Creative Expression
Only 64% of the students evaluated received scores above 80. Of the students who scored below 80, the lowest scores were for the demonstration of individual and expressive solutions to creative problems.
Action
Eliminate The BA In Photography
Eliminate the BA in Photography. Students who wish to major in Photography will be directed to the BFA in Photography.
Goal
Proficiency In Digital Imaging Skills
Students seeking a liberal arts degree and an emphasis in photography will become proficient in digital imaging skills.
Objective
Demonstrate Digital Imaging Skills
Students will demonstrate proficiency in the creation and manipulation of digital images.
Indicator
Senior Year Portfolio
Students will be required to take ART 495 and produce a final portfolio that will demonstrate expertise in photography and creative use of photographic equipment and techniques. The portfolio will include 20 printed images, 20 digital images, an artist's statement, and a resume. The portfolio will:
consist of a cohesive body of work.
demonstrate technical proficiency with use of cameras.
demonstrate proficiency in photographic printing techniques.
demonstrate the students ability to express and communicate ideas and concepts through the medium of photography.
demonstrate ability to articulate a conceptual direction in a written artist’s statement
Criterion
80% Of Students Score 80% Or Higher
The portfolios will be evaluated by a committee of Photography faculty. The faculty will use a rubric developed and adopted by the committee. Using a scale of 0-100%, it is expected that at least 80% of students receive a score of 80% or greater.
Finding
Weakness In Camera Use And Printing Techniques
Approximately 50% of students scored below 80% on an evaluation of Camera use and printing techniques in the work in their Senior Portfolios. The fact that almost all of work that was evaluated was created with digital cameras and printed from digital files shows that the students have the ability to create and manipulate digital images. However, the scores indicate a need for improvement in the specific areas of the use of digital cameras and techniques used to produce archival ink jet prints from digital media.
Action
Eliminate The BA In Photography
Eliminate the BA in Photography. Students who wish to major in Photography will be directed to the BFA in Photography.
Goal
History Of Photography
Students seeking a liberal arts degree and an emphasis in photography will be well-versed in the history of photography.
Objective
Articulate The History Of Photography
Students will demonstrate knowledge of the History of Photography and an understanding of contemporary photographic art and its relationship to the continuum of history.
Indicator
History Of Photography Analysis
Students will be required to take ART 334 and write a two page evaluation of two photographs of their choice. One photograph must have been taken and printed in the 19th Century and the second must be an image created after 1975. The evaluation will discuss the formal attributes of the photograph, the style, the social or political influences, the technology used, and the subject matter.
The essays will • provide a clear introduction and draw conclusions supported by visual and contextual evidence. • move from specific examples to general statements. • describe the works accurately and clearly. • use vocabulary introduced in classroom lectures and photography history textbooks. • convey a clear and convincing image of their perspective. • use external information about the cultural context and photographic techniques gathered from readings and presentations. • present an understanding of the works in a way that is convincing and supported by detailed evidence. • sum up major ideas and draw convincing conclusions grounded in visual evidence and contextual information.
Criterion
Historical Evaluation Criteria
The papers will be evaluated by a committee of faculty in the Photography Program. The faculty will use a rubric developed and adopted by the committee. A scale of 0-100% will be used to determine successful completion of the requirements. It is expected that at least 80% of the students will score 80% or higher.
Finding
Improvement Needed In Critical Thinking And Written Expression
75% of the students scored 80 or higher on an evaluation of the papers. The scores indicate that the students did well describing the works they chose for their comparisons and placing them in a cultural context. The weakest scores were on the ability to sum up major ideas and draw conclusions from the evidence they presented. Evaluators noticed a tendency to describe the photographs as different or similar without assimilating the information and creating an original idea or statement about the works.
Action
Eliminate The BA In Photography
Eliminate the BA in Photography. Students who wish to major in Photography will be directed to the BFA in Photography.