Remote Learning, Part 1: Photojournalism and Fine Art Photography

Photo education has undergone significant changes since the story Photography Student? Here Is Some Advice from Teachers was published last year at this time—changes that are no less dramatic than the process of teaching and learning as a whole. With the sudden shift from face-to-face classes to remote learning, in March 2020, teachers and students scrambled to face unique challenges and solve unforeseen problems. Since a new school year is now upon us, we asked a diverse group of educators for updated tips, as well as insights about the online teaching/learning process.

Part 1 of this story, featured below, includes advice from educators in the disciplines of photojournalism and fine art photography. For tips about teaching and learning related to commercial photography and studio lighting demonstrations, check out Remote Learning, Part 2: Commercial Photography and Studio Lighting.

As several of our respondents mentioned, photography as a discipline is all about problem solving, which—at least in theory—should offer students valuable experience for surviving in the world outside the classroom. But perhaps the most resonant insight we received is from Montana State University’s Christina Z. Anderson. “It is not best practice to wish away 2020,” she says. “In a few years time, there will be things we learned this year that will be embedded into our permanent culture in a good way.”

Above photograph © Kai Nguyen

Kai Nguyen, Syracuse University

After returning to her native Vietnam from the United States in March, Nguyen spent two weeks in a coronavirus quarantine center. Read her account of this experience on NPR’s The Picture Show.

1. The only thing that online learning lacks is the face-to-face. In many ways online learning is better, if done well. It requires the teacher to be more prepared; everyone is in an equal space, there is no back of the classroom or bad angle to the image projection.

For students, the greater concern is how safe they feel engaging with the world and having the flexibility in their course assignments to still produce work that moves them forward, while feeling safe.

In case it’s not obvious, students’ ideas for what they want to photograph have to match their level of security in engaging with people in public spaces. If they are not comfortable getting close to people in confined spaces, then their ideas should not require making pictures in closed spaces in proximity to people. This is most important for professors to consider, and for them to be flexible with the parameters of the assignments they give.

Whether students only photograph people who are wearing masks is another decision they’ll have to make. Students should also get used to wearing masks everywhere they go, and cleaning their gear after each outing.

A final suggestion is to always have A, B, and C ideas for class assignments. A is the idea they most want to do, and know they can pull off; B and C are other ideas that are less fully researched but have potential. One of the ideas should not require photographing people outside of the student’s immediate world—that’s in case conditions change where they can’t continue working on A or B ideas.

— Mike Davis, Chaired Visual Communications Professor, S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, Syracuse University; Director, The Alexia Grants; Syracuse, NY

Maranie R. Staab, Syracuse University

Staab, a multimedia, photography, and design program graduate, recently traveled the country to document essential workers for the series (In)dispensable: Who is Essential in America?, including this portrait of a hotel worker in Raleigh, North Carolina.

2. For many of us, teaching and learning asynchronously is new. Teachers are used to building and delivering their pedagogy based on visual cues they get from the students in the classroom, which isn’t possible in an asynchronous class. So, communication and planning are key! To get the most out of the class, e-mail, post questions in the discussion groups, attend virtual office hours to clarify your questions. Don’t be shy about clarifying and asking for help. Remember that your teacher welcomes your questions. Those questions are, in the eyes of a teacher, a reflection of how engaged you are as a student.

In terms of planning, the deadlines of your other classes may be on the same day as your photography class. As weather can often upset photography schedules, plan to set aside a couple of days early in the week to complete the assignments. Don’t wait until the last moment, as you will end up missing the deadline or submitting subpar work. When one feels overwhelmed or discouraged, it’s difficult to do your best.

— Annu Palakunnathu Matthew, Professor of Art (Photography), University of Rhode Island (URI); South Kingston, RI

Dani Pyne, University of Rhode Island

When classes went online this spring, Pyne started an Instagram photo diary for her black-and-white photography class. "When the pandemic first hit, it felt like time stopped and the world was forced to accept a new reality so soon,” she says. “I attempted to create tangible pieces to convey the adaptations we’ve had to go through to survive COVID-19."

3. My advice is to be brave, and don’t be afraid to take the hard route. The best path to follow is the one to find your vision and your voice. It takes practice, time, and careful looking, but the rewards will be worth the investment. Find a mentor to help guide you, and above all else, make your pictures, not what someone else tells you to make. Now more than ever, it is critical to be innovative, and to forge a new direction for your career.

— Elizabeth Greenberg, Provost, Maine Media Workshops + College; Rockport, ME

Rob Schulz, Maine Media Workshops + College

“Each day was an emotional struggle while making this work. As a documentary photographer, I was naturally drawn to cover the impact of Covid-19 on my community. As a responsible citizen and husband of an essential worker, each morning I asked myself, ‘Is this the right thing to do? Does the value of this work outweigh the risk I am taking?’ In the end, I saw its value and was encouraged by my mentors to continue until I felt I had the story I wanted to tell.”

4. I was teaching two alternative processes classes (gum bichromate, cyanotype, palladium, salted paper) when COVID-19 hit in spring 2020, and necessitated a shelter in place. The sudden transition to online teaching was difficult. I missed my students! I missed the creative energy of working alongside them, UVBL units humming, water running, prints developing, clotheslines filled with final results. We were forced to transition to “digital alt.” The challenge I gave them was to make digital alt prints look close enough to the real thing, and to create a how-to tutorial for other class members.

What I learned is the creative eye is not dulled by COVID-19. The student work was still excellent. Some students struggled and disappeared from interacting with the class, and I feel sad because they lost out on a rich, albeit unusual, interactive experience. Zoom and Webex can be a stilted delivery, we all realize that. But it may be all that we have to stay personally in touch.

My advice to any student entering college this fall: challenge yourself to learn one new online thing per day, on anything. My most valuable classes in my first degree were not in my French major (typing class, nutrition class). There is something psychological that happens with baby steps. They get you unstuck. Take this time to beef up your social media presence with your work: website, Instagram, Facebook, online photography shows, and the like. Learn how to share your work in these platforms and give and ask for feedback. Keep a photo “to-do” list. I am an inveterate list maker and I have kept a running Photo To Do list for twenty years. It is awe-inspiring to look back at old lists and see what I have accomplished. This is especially necessary at times like this where we all feel we are standing still. There is something about the act of committing a task to paper that embeds it mentally, visually, haptically; if it is important, it gets done. If it isn’t, and is still on a list five years later not done, most likely it was not important, so delete it. Working creatively is the single most beneficial activity to relieve anxiety, depression, lack of exercise, and negative thinking. The old Nike slogan “Just Do It” is even more critical at this juncture. Do something crazy. I purchased an older model Sony A7R II body and converted it to infrared only. It’s really fun to see in a different way!

It is not best practice to wish away 2020. In a few years time there will be things we learned this year that will be embedded into our permanent culture in a good way. I wish I had a crystal ball to see the good that will come out of our “now." One thing I can predict is that there will be more, and better, online teaching platforms as key learning components of all classes moving forward, so be open to these formats even if delivered by not-so-savvy professors who are learning to use them right along with you.

— Christina Z. Anderson, Professor of Photography, School of Film and Photography, Montana State University (MSU); Bozeman, MT

Morgan Croke, Montana State University

“I really struggled to find inspiration during lockdown, which proved to be increasingly challenging while making this project. However, once I was able to find a way to tap into the ambiguity of my emotions, I started to get an idea about what images might communicate those feelings.”

5. This fall semester, during challenging transitions to an online environment, my advice for photography students still remains the same: pay attention, and be present. When I was studying online, I found it best to keep a schedule each week to connect with the material provided. Many times, the content is curated very carefully by the instructor, so follow their path through the materials. If a course has a live session, make sure that you attend! The key to great results will come from you absorbing the content provided, as well as the connection that instructor will draw between your results and their feedback. Their knowledge and experience are what you’re benefiting from, whether it’s through the online environment or face-to-face. Take full advantage!

When it comes to photographic assignments, be realistic about what you can and cannot do… but do not use it as an excuse to not be creative. I’m finding that sometimes the challenge in how we adapt is half of the mental roadblock; keep pressing for ideas and they will come.”

— Andrea Millette, Full Time Faculty, Digital Communications Department, Houston Community College; Houston, TX

Lorelai Robideaux, Parsons, The New School of Design

Robideaux was working on her senior thesis when her rheumatologist advised her to quarantine due to her compromised immune system. “In those first months, I remember trying to focus on the art,” she explains. “Looking back, I see that my focus slowly drifted towards my body, as the pain started growing without my medication for Lupus. This photo means a lot because I don't totally recognize myself.”

6. My biggest challenge is teaching students that are now all over the world. So, some classes are synchronous and some asynchronous—all very difficult to keep students engaged online. Some don’t have anywhere to work except for in their bedrooms, so they will be sitting up in bed. Some have a spotty Internet connection so interruptions occur. Believe it or not, this is worse for students in the U.S. than anywhere else in the world, including South America and Asia!

For students, they need to make sure they stay engaged and do more research outside of class than before (although I’m always surprised that they don’t do more!)

Something that is most difficult is what to do with studio classes. Students don’t have access to facilities in a lot of cases. In NYC, all studio classes have been moved to winter/spring 2021, and who knows if they will be able to be run then.

I suggested that once the buildings opened a bit we could have students outside the darkrooms. I would be inside with one person filming me while the rest of the students social distance while watching my demos online. They could then go into the darkroom and set up for social distancing on their own time, or we could work half in/half out while I am there to help.

But really, until there is a vaccine, I am not comfortable going in to be with a bunch of 20-somethings who are not being careful, and I know a lot of other educators feel the same way.

— Jill Enfield, Adjunct Associate Professor, Parsons, The New School of Design; New York, NY; Independent Workshop Instructor

Bruke Marew, Parsons, The New School of Design

“With a challenging shift in my course work from analog to digital, I learned to adapt and retain the core principle of photography, which to me was about documenting as often as possible. I found myself in a unique circumstance living in New York at the epicenter of the pandemic. So I continued to capture and document the environmental and social effects of COVID while practicing social distancing and staying safe.”

7. Even though these are strange times and the idea of creating a learning community online rather than being together in the physical classroom is not exactly what most of us had in mind, it is important to focus on what is beneficial, unique, and positive about this environment. First of all, everything we are experiencing and going through around the globe is historic and important to document. As photographers, the images you make now will be important artifacts and stories to glance back at once this pandemic is behind us. We are lucky that we can join together from all of our different stay-at-home locations and share our collective efforts while contemplating the uniqueness of each photographer’s individual situation. The medium of photography translates well to the screen, and we can share our images easily. We are fortunate to not have to be alone, to continue learning and receive feedback and expand our way of seeing. When this isolated time is behind us, we will have created new work and gained insight and a deeper understanding of both photography and our personal experiences during this unusual time.

— Karen Marshall, Chair, Documentary Practice and Visual Journalism Program, International Center of Photography; New York, NY

Billy Hickey, International Center of Photography

“When our school closed and we were relegated to online classes, our teachers suggested we adopt diaristic approaches and photograph whatever was around us. For me, after leaving New York, that was my family. By photographing those closest to me, and with my teacher's guidance, I was able to discover a lot about photography and myself as an artist.”

For Part 2 of this article, we spoke with photo educators using remote learning to teach commercial photography and studio lighting. To read their advice, turn to Remote Learning, Part 2: Commercial Photography and Studio Lighting.

Do you have stories or tips to share about online teaching or learning? If so, please let us know in the Comments section, below.

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