Excited about photography
from 
JoeUser Forums
JoeUser Forums
Well to start off with, I am a Photography major at MSUM. This is my 3rd year of college (this time around) but only my 1st year taking any ‘real’ photo classes. There were tons of pre requisites to get through first.
Since the students are not allowed to use the campus darkroom unless they are actually enrolled in a photo class (I guess that makes sense) I was not able to develop my own b&w photos. This really bummed me out since I know how to do the ‘basics’ of darkroom developing and was hoping to get to do some fun stuff for my own personal reasons until I could actually enroll in the photo classes. So I did some research and found a darkroom in one of the public elementary schools/studios that said I could use their facility. YEAH!! So I went to meet with the man in charge and he gave me a tour. The facility is not bad. In fact it is better then the one from my old high school. And this is only an elementary school/studio. When I asked how much they wanted me to pay to use the darkroom (I did not assume that I would get it for free), he said that as long as I supplied all my own chemicals and disposable supplies I did not have to pay them anything. He said they work on a barter system. One day they will ask something of me and hopefully I will be able to do it, but I am under no obligation to do so. I couldn’t believe it! It was so easy! He did ask me within that first week if I could take over keeping the darkroom clean and organized. No problem. In fact, I would have done that anyway cuz I like a clean and organized working space. However, there really was not much for me to do cuz there was another teacher who taught down there and he kept it pretty clean. So I just made sure to always put things back where I found them and to clean up after myself.
This went on for 2 years. Granted, I endded up not using the darkroom as much as I thought I would. I was so busy with my other art classes. Also the hours that the darkroom was available were only from 7:30am – 5:30pm Sept - May. So I was limited in that aspect. After my first year there, the guy who had been in charge retired and a new art coordinator was appointed. I did not know how this would affect my use of the darkroom. It did not change things. I was pleased about that.
Then this year I was finally able to enroll in my photo classes at the college. I assumed I would no longer have any need for the elementary studio’s darkroom so I cleared all my equipment (chemicals, paper, etc.). Then on the first day of class I find out that students only have access to the darkroom during their class time and then anytime after 4pm. This is cuz there are other classes going on during the day, and you are not allowed to use the darkroom while there is a class going on (why I did not think of this in the first place, I don’t know, cuz it makes perfect sense). So, my class is from 9am – 12pm and that is the only class I have on Tues and Thurs. I did not want to wait around the school until 4pm and I did not want to have to drive home and then back unless I really had to. So, I went to the elementary school/studio to ask if it was ok to still use their darkroom. The coordinator did not remember me from last year (I told you, I did not get to actually use the darkroom as much as I wanted) and the old secretary was gone so of course the new one did not know me. The new coordinator asked if I knew how to use the darkroom. Umm… yeah, I’ve been using it for the last 2 years. I went into the darkroom and saw that my name was still on some of the drawers so I showed that to her. She got this really pleased look on her face and then asked me if I would like to teach some classes to the elementary students on photography in exchange for use of the darkroom. I was a bit surprised and very pleased. I mean, she has never seen any of my work. How does she know if I’m any good? When I asked about the other guy who also taught classes down there, she said that he actually did not do any last year and has not indicated that he wanted to do any this year. These classes are part of the after-school art programs that the public school district offer’s to its students.
So, I had to write up a proposal for any Oct classes I wanted to offer. I was told that I would be instructing students from 4th to 8th grade. I was not exactly sure what was needed from me, so the coordinator gave me a proposal from last year to use as an example. When I saw that the artist doing the instructing was being paid $35, I asked if I should just mark that as ‘exchange for darkroom use’? She gives me this weird look and says no. They will pay me form my time. Huh? I thought this was a barter deal? Then she explained that it is a barter deal… if I did not want to use their darkroom then the school/studio would not be able to offer the students any photography classes. So this is a win/win situation for me and the students. Also, she pointed out that the darkroom is there and she would like it to actually be used once in awhile.
So, I turned in my proposal for a 2 day workshop on darkroom techniques. There are only 6 enlargers in the darkroom so I can not have anymore then 6 students at a time. I knew from looking through the other years enrollment forms that the photo classes were usually canceled due to low enrollment. They have to actually have 6 students enrolled to justify the cost of the class – the students have to pay $15 for the 2 day workshop and since each day is a 2 hour class that is 4 hours that they have to pay me for at $20/hr. I asked if I could lower my ‘artist’ fee and they said no. Since I do not get paid for any of my prep time the studio feels that the $20/hr is the lowest they can offer any instructor. Let’s just say that, this fact depressed me a little cuz I have a feeling that the classes will always be canceled due to low enrollment. I think that $15 dollars is a lot to pay for a 2 day workshop that is only 2 hours each day. I have a feeling that parents are not going to want to pay that much. So, I have been doing a lot of brainstorming to try and come up with ways to get the cost of the class lower or the time spent in the class to be less. I have lot of ideas but could use any help or suggestions anyone else might have.
I had to turn in my Nov class proposals today and I am offering to teach 2 more sessions of the intro to darkroom workshop and I am adding 2 sessions of photograms. The photogram classes would only be one day each for 2 hours. So the cost to the student is $9. I don’t know if the photogram classes will approved yet but I did talk with the coordinator and she sounded like she liked the idea. I hope to be able to offer some other alternative darkroom workshops during the next few months. I am also thinking of having a workshop on scrap booking and hand coloring of b&w photos. Also, the coordinator told me that if I wanted to offer any adult education classes in darkroom techniques that the studio would offer the space for it (they already offer their pottery room to adult education). So I contacted the people in charge of FM Adult Education. They currently offer about 4 – 6 photography classes but they all deal with the camera (film and digital) and not the development of the film. They said that there would be a definite interest in a class that taught darkroom techniques. They are not sure if their current photo teacher will want to instruct those classes (in fact they are pretty sure he/she will not) so they are mailing me an application to fill out and then maybe meet with me to discuss some spring classes (they already have all their winter classes set up).
I am really excited about all of this. I never thought of myself as a teacher before and I DO NOT want to get a teaching degree (I looked into adding an art education major to my current photo major – it would take another 33 credits – NO WAY!) so this workshop idea is really appealing to me. Also, since I am not currently working now (sorry Joy – but working a couple hours for you a month does not count to me) this would be a nice way to supplement my finances. Right now I am living off financial aid and the assistance of my parents (THANK YOU MOM & DAD!!!). So as I said before, if anyone has any suggestions or ideas of photo related activities I could offer to the students that would be a great help. It would also help to introduce the elementary students to the world of photography other then snapping a camera. I think many kids would enjoy doing these kinds of classes.
Since the students are not allowed to use the campus darkroom unless they are actually enrolled in a photo class (I guess that makes sense) I was not able to develop my own b&w photos. This really bummed me out since I know how to do the ‘basics’ of darkroom developing and was hoping to get to do some fun stuff for my own personal reasons until I could actually enroll in the photo classes. So I did some research and found a darkroom in one of the public elementary schools/studios that said I could use their facility. YEAH!! So I went to meet with the man in charge and he gave me a tour. The facility is not bad. In fact it is better then the one from my old high school. And this is only an elementary school/studio. When I asked how much they wanted me to pay to use the darkroom (I did not assume that I would get it for free), he said that as long as I supplied all my own chemicals and disposable supplies I did not have to pay them anything. He said they work on a barter system. One day they will ask something of me and hopefully I will be able to do it, but I am under no obligation to do so. I couldn’t believe it! It was so easy! He did ask me within that first week if I could take over keeping the darkroom clean and organized. No problem. In fact, I would have done that anyway cuz I like a clean and organized working space. However, there really was not much for me to do cuz there was another teacher who taught down there and he kept it pretty clean. So I just made sure to always put things back where I found them and to clean up after myself.
This went on for 2 years. Granted, I endded up not using the darkroom as much as I thought I would. I was so busy with my other art classes. Also the hours that the darkroom was available were only from 7:30am – 5:30pm Sept - May. So I was limited in that aspect. After my first year there, the guy who had been in charge retired and a new art coordinator was appointed. I did not know how this would affect my use of the darkroom. It did not change things. I was pleased about that.
Then this year I was finally able to enroll in my photo classes at the college. I assumed I would no longer have any need for the elementary studio’s darkroom so I cleared all my equipment (chemicals, paper, etc.). Then on the first day of class I find out that students only have access to the darkroom during their class time and then anytime after 4pm. This is cuz there are other classes going on during the day, and you are not allowed to use the darkroom while there is a class going on (why I did not think of this in the first place, I don’t know, cuz it makes perfect sense). So, my class is from 9am – 12pm and that is the only class I have on Tues and Thurs. I did not want to wait around the school until 4pm and I did not want to have to drive home and then back unless I really had to. So, I went to the elementary school/studio to ask if it was ok to still use their darkroom. The coordinator did not remember me from last year (I told you, I did not get to actually use the darkroom as much as I wanted) and the old secretary was gone so of course the new one did not know me. The new coordinator asked if I knew how to use the darkroom. Umm… yeah, I’ve been using it for the last 2 years. I went into the darkroom and saw that my name was still on some of the drawers so I showed that to her. She got this really pleased look on her face and then asked me if I would like to teach some classes to the elementary students on photography in exchange for use of the darkroom. I was a bit surprised and very pleased. I mean, she has never seen any of my work. How does she know if I’m any good? When I asked about the other guy who also taught classes down there, she said that he actually did not do any last year and has not indicated that he wanted to do any this year. These classes are part of the after-school art programs that the public school district offer’s to its students.
So, I had to write up a proposal for any Oct classes I wanted to offer. I was told that I would be instructing students from 4th to 8th grade. I was not exactly sure what was needed from me, so the coordinator gave me a proposal from last year to use as an example. When I saw that the artist doing the instructing was being paid $35, I asked if I should just mark that as ‘exchange for darkroom use’? She gives me this weird look and says no. They will pay me form my time. Huh? I thought this was a barter deal? Then she explained that it is a barter deal… if I did not want to use their darkroom then the school/studio would not be able to offer the students any photography classes. So this is a win/win situation for me and the students. Also, she pointed out that the darkroom is there and she would like it to actually be used once in awhile.
So, I turned in my proposal for a 2 day workshop on darkroom techniques. There are only 6 enlargers in the darkroom so I can not have anymore then 6 students at a time. I knew from looking through the other years enrollment forms that the photo classes were usually canceled due to low enrollment. They have to actually have 6 students enrolled to justify the cost of the class – the students have to pay $15 for the 2 day workshop and since each day is a 2 hour class that is 4 hours that they have to pay me for at $20/hr. I asked if I could lower my ‘artist’ fee and they said no. Since I do not get paid for any of my prep time the studio feels that the $20/hr is the lowest they can offer any instructor. Let’s just say that, this fact depressed me a little cuz I have a feeling that the classes will always be canceled due to low enrollment. I think that $15 dollars is a lot to pay for a 2 day workshop that is only 2 hours each day. I have a feeling that parents are not going to want to pay that much. So, I have been doing a lot of brainstorming to try and come up with ways to get the cost of the class lower or the time spent in the class to be less. I have lot of ideas but could use any help or suggestions anyone else might have.
I had to turn in my Nov class proposals today and I am offering to teach 2 more sessions of the intro to darkroom workshop and I am adding 2 sessions of photograms. The photogram classes would only be one day each for 2 hours. So the cost to the student is $9. I don’t know if the photogram classes will approved yet but I did talk with the coordinator and she sounded like she liked the idea. I hope to be able to offer some other alternative darkroom workshops during the next few months. I am also thinking of having a workshop on scrap booking and hand coloring of b&w photos. Also, the coordinator told me that if I wanted to offer any adult education classes in darkroom techniques that the studio would offer the space for it (they already offer their pottery room to adult education). So I contacted the people in charge of FM Adult Education. They currently offer about 4 – 6 photography classes but they all deal with the camera (film and digital) and not the development of the film. They said that there would be a definite interest in a class that taught darkroom techniques. They are not sure if their current photo teacher will want to instruct those classes (in fact they are pretty sure he/she will not) so they are mailing me an application to fill out and then maybe meet with me to discuss some spring classes (they already have all their winter classes set up).
I am really excited about all of this. I never thought of myself as a teacher before and I DO NOT want to get a teaching degree (I looked into adding an art education major to my current photo major – it would take another 33 credits – NO WAY!) so this workshop idea is really appealing to me. Also, since I am not currently working now (sorry Joy – but working a couple hours for you a month does not count to me) this would be a nice way to supplement my finances. Right now I am living off financial aid and the assistance of my parents (THANK YOU MOM & DAD!!!). So as I said before, if anyone has any suggestions or ideas of photo related activities I could offer to the students that would be a great help. It would also help to introduce the elementary students to the world of photography other then snapping a camera. I think many kids would enjoy doing these kinds of classes.
