Self taught or ?

i'm very new to photography. so my questions are:

did you teach yourself, have a mentor, take basic classes, or get a degree? if you got a degree, where did you get it?

what was the outcome?

i'm thinking about getting a degree but wondering if the investment is worth it. i would like to one day make money with photography but for now it's a fun release.

TIA
Stacy

oops.. i just noticed the other thread asking similar questions.. i guess i should read before posting. sorry.

I used to think I was self taught, but looking back, I think I was mentored. A guy I worked with was a staff 'tog before getting pi$$ed off after 10 years on the job. He tore apart everything I shot until I got it right to his standards.
Thank you Mr. Robertson

I took a couple of beginner photography courses just to learn the basics (aperture, shutter speed, ISO, basic composition) and the rest I have either learned here or through trial and error. I think photography is like anything else, the more you practice the better you get.

Self taught from when i was about 10. I still dont know basic photography/camera rules nor do i have time for them. I just do my own thing.

POTN for me all the way.

It's the hardest school of knocks out there, if you get the green light from here, your good to go

Steve

Had a mentor of sorts in real life.

And lots of help here from other members

Self taught way back from being a kid. Never taken any classes or anything. And now I actually teach classes in it occasionally for a local non-profit.

Degree (B/A photography) self taught and several mentors.

I had a film SLR with a kit lens that I used a little bit, and I learned how to set the aperture and shutter speed until the light meter said it was in the right place, but I did not have a full understanding of how it worked. I got a couple small P&S and then got a Sony H5 superzoom xmas of 2006. I read alot on dpreview forums and found this awsome site:AAK Whitepaper. With that camera, I learned the limitations of the gear, and after one year got my Rebel XTi. WIth the DSLR I've learned ALOT and am still learning more everyday! I'd like to take some basic classes on portrait photography or something like that, I already know the basic stuff so no point in taking "DSLRs 101" type of thing.

I was entirely self-taught; lots of books, reading, and practice

I think taking a class on the basics (i..e. basic principles of photography and camera operation) would be beneficial for anybody. I do not know what they teach you in classes, but I'd hope they'd be like my philosophy courses. In which they would teach you what the masters said and leave it up to you how to interpret it; nobody ever being entirely wrong or right.

I have a BBA in CIS, nothing photography related.

I am essentially self-taught with a little help from others now and then in the beginning.

While stationed at the US Army base at Menwith Hill Station (outside Harrogate in the UK) back in 1965, I took advantage of the free darkroom facility and materials on the base. Processing my own film and prints dovetailed very well with learning about using and controlling a camera. That's the beginning of my story.

Take the classes. You will get more out of a classroom environment with assignments and feedback from your photos than most anywhere else.

TPach wrote in post #6080812
i'm very new to photography. so my questions are:

did you teach yourself, have a mentor, take basic classes, or get a degree? if you got a degree, where did you get it?

what was the outcome?

i'm thinking about getting a degree but wondering if the investment is worth it. i would like to one day make money with photography but for now it's a fun release.

TIA
Stacy

oops.. i just noticed the other thread asking similar questions.. i guess i should read before posting. sorry.

Hi Stacy, I always like to see how everyone else learned also!! I have had about 8 hours of class time for beginning photography and I have taken a couple of classes for photoshop. I still just enjoy getting out and doing it!!

I'm self taught, I got my first camera about 5-6 years ago, now i'm a professional photographer, and i've been full time in summer photographing weddings for a few years. I've had assistants with degrees and they're pretty much clueless, the degrees around here are a waste of time. I'm going to hire an assistant for this coming year, i'm specifically avoiding people with photography degrees, and maybe even avoiding people with formal training. Someone with a reasonable eye is good, I can teach them the rest.

I was lucky enough to work my way through college doing commercial developing. It was only a job to me, I was not interested in photography when I got hired, I was earning an engineering degree. Most of the technical stuff I learned on the job, but the art of photography stuff was learned around the break table and on the weekends with the pro photogs I befriended. After a twenty year near absence, I finally got back into the hobby, not the business (still doing the engineer gig)and picked up a copy of the National Geographic Feild Guide To Photography, I couldn't recommend a better book for clear explanations of the basics. After that I took a class with a pro photog that I was absolutely repulsed by but was also totally challenged by. In short, get the basics on your own, get the art side from friends, co workers, POTN etc., get challenged and critiqued by someone that will not be impressed by ANYTHING you do, and you will paralell my experience. I am not a pro, just a hobbyist that has had his life changed by photography and the technical challenge of good image capture. Have fun, then seek compensation. It is much harder to do the other way around.