Art & Design (Photography)

Title of qualification achieved at the end of the course

GCSE Art & Design (Photography) (AQA)

What will you learn/How will you be taught?

You will learn to take photographs and edit them, how to write about and discuss images and how to plan and manage your creative work. Work will roughly divide into 50% practical and 50% book-based activity.

This is a coursework-based subject so the work that you do in class will count towards your final grade. Teachers will show you how to use techniques and you will practise these. You will get experience in using cameras, Photoshop and some paper-based techniques. Finally, as well as coursework, you will also complete a project set by the examination board and completed in exam conditions.

By the end of the course, you will be doing projects that you have designed yourself. You will not only be able to create images, but also be able to evaluate images, plan projects and understand the work of others.

Why study this subject?

You enjoy thinking about and discussing images. The world bombards us with thousands of images every day - Photography allows you to understand how these images work and how they are made. It allows you to join in, making your own images that communicate the things you want to say.

Photography makes you visually aware and able to manage a creative project. It gives you an ability to analyse and communicate opinions about images and ideas. These skills are useful in life and in the workplace.

Photography is an enjoyable activity that allows you to explore the world, ideas and opinions. If you do it right, it's like a language - a way of communicating with other people, entertaining, shocking, recording, explaining or simply showing your fascination with things that interest you.