Other Courses

Photographer


Introduction
"A great photograph is one that fully expresses what one feels, in the deepest sense, about what is being photographed"

Said Ansel Adams, one of greatest photographers and environmentalist who would always be remembered for his black and white photographs of the American West, especially Yosemite National Park. 

 MapMyTalent offers complete career information about Photography as a career:

A photographer is the person behind some of the best moments captured alive. We are so often amazed by some of the desktop wallpapers, pictures in newspapers, photos on websites, pictures of weddings, sceneries etc. All these stunning pictures or photographs are the work of a photographer.

To put in the simplest of words, a photographer is a person who takes photographs. However, there is much more to photographs than just picking up a camera and shooting pictures. For instance, one needs to be aware of the lens aperture, the amount of light exposure, ISO speed etc. It is a photographer who works on these minute details to bring out the best of a present scenario.

A professional photographer usually works for firms, newspapers, magazines, websites, blogs or freelancer. The importance of photographers simply cannot be neglected as they are required in lots of fields. With time, the base of photographers and demand of their work is spreading. As a result policemen, real estate agents and even scientists need photographers for their aid. A few photographers do not work for anyone but themselves. Once they are done with their pictures they put it up for display or sell.


A photographer is also at times responsible for moving pictures and at such times they are called as cinematographer. There are quite a few types of photography and it depends solely on the interested person, which field they wish to choose. For an instance one can take up street photography, document photography, wedding photography, forensic photography, war photography, photojournalism, fashion photography or commercial photography.What really separates a professional photographer and a casual photographer is the amount of stress given to minute details which make a photo better or perhaps, the best. A photographer has a different perception of life and things and tries his/her best to bring along emotions along with creativity. It is only when people feel they are connected to a picture or photo that a photographer can claim that he or she is successful.


Courses & Eligibility


There is an immense demand and career opportunities available for photographers not only in India but abroad as well. There is no such eligibility criteria for becoming a photographer, however to succeed in the field of photography, one needs to have lots of creativity and ability to perceive things in various ways. The only reason for going for a course is to learn the technical aspects so as to enhance and hone up your creativity. This is the very reason that lots of colleges and institutes have introduced professional photography courses in their curriculum. The following is a list of all the courses that one may find suitable for taking up photography seriously.


  1. Certificate Course in Advanced Photography
  2. Certificate Course in Basic Photography
  3. Certificate Course in Digital Photography
  4. Certificate Course in Fashion Photography
  5. Certificate Course in Photography
  6. Diploma in Fashion Photography
  7. Diploma in Motion Picture Photography
  8. Diploma in Photography
  9. Diploma in Professional Photography
  10. Foundation Degree Photography
  11. The Bachelor of Photography
  12. Bachelor of Arts Design : Photography


Being a photographer opens up a world of possibilities and that is the reason one must not hesitate in taking it up professionally. The presence of so many institutes can only make things better as one gets a chance to learn things very minutely. There is no educational qualification required for photography as such, but if you are willing to join a Diploma course, then one must have completed their intermediate (10+2). One can also take up part time course along with their college degree so that they do not invest additional time in the same.Though there are lots of institutes and universities providing courses for photography, most of them do not require you to undergo any sort of entrance tests.

Course Fees


 The duration of the course and the fee structure depend greatly on the course one wishes to pursue along with the institute. The usual duration of photography courses range from 2 months to 3 years. Depending on the courses and duration, the fee ranges from Rs. 8,500 to Rs. 70,000 for the high end courses.

Where To Study



  1. National Institute of Design(N.I.D), Ahemdabad - NID is one of the premier most institutes of the nation and has been providing world class courses and training for students interested in photography. The institute provides one year post graduate program in photography design.
  2. Sir JJ School of Applied Arts, Mumbai - The institute has created a niche for itself with all credits to the kind of training and courses that it has been providing in the past years. One can get a bachelors degree in Fine Arts from the institute which is very helpful for the candidates aspiring to be photographers.
  3. College of Art, Delhi University - The college was established in the year 1942 and offers bachelors degree for photography under Delhi University. Interested candidates can also pursue Masters degree from the institute.
  4. Xavier Institute of Communications, Mumbai - The name Xavier in itself says volumes, so any course from the same would obviously mean a lot in the industry as well. The institute provides with certificate course in basic as well as advanced photography.
  5. Jawaharlal Nehru Technology University, Hyderabad - The institute is one of the premier institutes in the country when it comes to photography. It offers a part time post graduate course in photography and visual communication.


Some other leading colleges in the nation for photography are as follows




  1. Shari Academy of Photography and Digital Imaging, Mumbai
  2. Sri Aurobindo Centre for Arts and Communication, New Delhi
  3. Bangalore School of Arts and Photography (B.S.O.A.P), Bangalore
  4. National Insitute of Photography, Mumbai
  5. Ambitions 4 Photography Academy, chennai
  6. Shoot School, Thrissur
  7. Center ofr research in Art of Film and television (CRAFT), New Delhi
  8. Academy for Photographic Excellence (Apex), New Delhi
  9. Udaan School of Photography, Mumbai
  10. Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, Hyderabad
  11. Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapith, Varanasi
  12. Barkatullah Vishwavidyalaya, Bhopal
  13. Deen Dayal Upadhya (DDU) Gorakhpur University, Gorakhpur
  14. Light and Life Academy, Ooty
  15. Fortune Institute of Communication and Television, New Delhi
  16. Academy of Photography, RabindraBhartiUniversity, Kolkata - Diploma Course
  17. Dept of Continuing and Adult Education and Extension Work, Church gate Campus, SNDT Women’s University, Mumbai
  18. Camera Art Institute, Triveni Kala Sangam, 205 Tansen Marg, New Delhi
  19. Film & Television Institute, Pune - Diploma Course (motion Picture Photography)
  20. Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute, E.M. Bye Pass Road, Kolkata - Diploma Course (motion Picture Photography)
  21. Jiwaji University, Gwalior - Integrated course in Photography in Bachelor of Arts
  22. University of Pune, FergussonCollege, Pune - Integrated course in Photography in Bachelor of Art
  23. Film and Television Institute of Tamil Nadu, Chennai - Photography as a subsidiary subject




Pay & Remuneration



The remuneration and pay scale offered to a photographer largely depends on his or her field along with the experience levels. To start off his or her career one generally assists professional photographers and one can expect to get somewhere between Rs.3500 to Rs.7000 as per the national salary data. However, with experience one can get up to Rs.25000 a month. For a good creative and hard working professional photographer the earnings can be very high also.


Career Prospects




A picture is worth a thousand words and this clearly conveys the propects for a good photographer. With the advent of online media, the need for good photographers has also gone up. Today, there are good opportunities available for photographers, for instance, one can take up a job that is highly technical while someone else may take up a job that requires high creativity. Learning finer points from professional photographers can open up lots of other opportunities as well. As mentioned earlier there are lots of fields in which one can get into such as press photographer, editorial photographer, commercial photographer, feature photographer, portrait/ wedding photographer, advertising photographer, fashion photographer, fine arts photographer, digital photographer, wild life photographer, forensic photographer and at last free lancer.

Famous Personalities



It is with lot of experience and knowledge of minute details that a photographer turns into good and later on a great photographer. Every generation sees a photographer whose work remains long after they are gone. Some of the most famous personalities are below.
If the talk is going on about the most famous and great photographers of all times, the name of Ansel Adams is sure to feature in the list. Stunning landscapes and an unparallel ability to use contrast to great effect keeps him on the top.
Almost all the photographs taken by Yousuf Karsh have a story in them, which one can easily understand. It is ability to capture stories and yet express it effortlessly through pictures that he is counted as one of the best photographers.
Dorothea Lange’s photograph during the Great Depression of a migrant mother is considered to be one of the best historic pictures ever.
When it comes to historic pictures, the name of Murray Becker would always be celebrated in the world of journalism for his picture of the burning airship Hindenberg.


A Day in Life
A typical day in the life of a photographer would differ and vary from not only their specializations but also area of work. The following is the schedule of a wedding photographer’s life.

9.30 am: Reach studio, review and communicate with each other regarding the schedule for the day and the tasks to be undertaken.
9.45 am: Get started with the post for Facebook or Twitter.
10 am: Respond to emails from leads, brides, industry news and vendors.
11 am: Call up any leads and follow them up for any projects and help them out with e-session or the wedding.
12:30 pm: Go through Photoshop to view and process images from previous shoots or the last shoot. The time taken for post process for e-sessions is usually 10-15 hrs while for weddings, it is 5-30 hrs.
3:30 pm: Lunch hour
4:30 pm: Create blogs for the next week and also compose mails to the brides, grooms or family.
5.30 pm: Answer the end of the day calls and emails.
6 pm: Complete other stuffs such as accounting, marketing and edits.
6.30 pm: Do some research that would act as inspiration and thus the end of the day.

In case Photography as a career option does not seem to be a good career fit then you can always explore other creative careers that are listed on MapMyTalent





Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)

Radio Mirchi Success Story

Radio Mirchi bags six more frequencies DELHI: The government is likely to earn Rs 1,134 crore as license fee by selling 338 FM radio st...