Statement of Teaching Philosophy

Photography is the primary tools of communication in our highly globalized and networked world, and teaching photography for me means teaching art, but also teaching communication, teaching a way to respond to life and, not last, offering a life changing experience that can open students to many job opportunities. During the course, I embrace some aspects of the flipped classroom by sharing resources that students can explore outside of class. I find that the Canvas online component is extremely important in my course, because tutorials, links to photographers, and demo videos improve students’ learning experience.

Because Photography is often related to the commercial realm, I feel the need to stress, from the first day of class, that owning the most expensive equipment does not guarantee the strongest work. I tell my students that they don’t need to travel far away with a professional camera to make good art. They can learn the core steps that can make them a stronger artist both technically and conceptually, in their own back yard. I aim for my students to not only grasp how they can become stronger artists, if that is their career choice, but how the visual literacy skills they learn in my class can enrich any pursuit they embark upon.

Learning the camera adjustments, understanding digital photography fundamentals, comprehending all the technical aspects of exposure, learning to see the light, is at the forefront of my Into to Digital Photography course. I want my students to master the camera, before they move on editing and printing. Once that I see them confident in their technical abilities, I teach them to use the medium creatively, and work on a series photographs which support a singular concept. I provide open-ended assignments to which students apply their own interpretations, all within a series format. Expressing their own vision becomes the primary goal.

At the end of the course, when students work on their portfolio, I encourage them to get exposure into the contemporary art world through magazines, websites, studio and museum visits, and books. I also teach them how they can start a career and work as professional photographers if this is what they wish to do. As an artist who works across multiple media, I know how much work there is in the industry for them. The art world has not rigid categories and photography can help students to get exposed to multiple discipline.

At the end of the course, my students’ journey starts, and they will move on without me. Being a photography instructor makes me very proud because I know that photography is very powerful medium, and the camera will always be there for my students, in all the most important moment of their life.

Emanuela Quaglia