This course introduces students to fundamental skills, techniques and creative approaches to contemporary photographic practice. Students will acquire technical skills and produce artworks in response to set briefs across the semester, with a focus on analogue and/or digital methods for image capture, development and display. Depending on the class topic, students have the ability to explore Digital SLR and 35mm camera operation; analogue film development and darkroom photography; cameraless photography and alternative photographic processes; digital postproduction with the Adobe Suite; experimental digital processes (including AI). Seminars will introduce students to historical and contemporary work by artists, and key debates in the field.

Students may complete this course twice for a maximum credit value of 12 units, provided they enrol in a different topic in each instance/semester. Please note that the course content, assessment structure, and reading list will change depending on the topic and the expertise of the lecturer convening the course. Please refer to the class summary for the specific term in which you wish to enrol for a detailed description.

Topics may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Introduction to Darkroom Photography

This course introduces students to the concepts and processes underpinning darkroom photography and analogue (chemical) photographic practice. Students are encouraged to develop a critical relationship to the camera and consider how it shapes visual perception, both historically and in the present. While there is a strong focus on acquiring technical skills and practical knowledge, students will use these skills to create artworks which engage with ideas and concerns that are shaping contemporary image making. The course is supported by lectures, group discussions and studio projects encouraging curiosity and experimentation.

• Introduction to Digital Photo-Imaging

What on earth has happened to photography in digital culture? How are we to contend with the strange and succulent weirdness of digital image culture today? How can artists make meaningful work and not reproduce AI slop? How can we have fun with software? This course introduces students to the concepts and processes underpinning digital photography – from scanning, pixel stretching, DSLRS, Photoshop to AI. Through a range of technical exercises and experiments, you will be encouraged to develop a critical relationship to digital image making. While there is a strong focus on acquiring technical skills and practical knowledge, students will use these skills to create artworks that draw on concepts introduced in the class. The course is supported by lectures, group discussions and studio projects encouraging curiosity and experimentation.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

1. identify and use basic techniques and principles appropriate to contemporary photographic practice;
2. employ safe and professional studio work processes using the specialised equipment;
3. explore and evaluate the creative possibilities of materials and techniques in response to set projects; and
4. develop works that respond to contemporary photography theories and art practices.

Research-Led Teaching

The course is grounded in practice based research in contemporary and historical analogue photographic practices.

Field Trips

Field trips outside class time may be organised, and participation will be on a voluntary basis.

Additional Course Costs

The student is required to use 35mm photographic film and analogue photographic paper in order to complete the class assignments.

Examination Material or equipment

Students will present their assignments and work journals outlining their practical and contextual research during assessments. Assessment requirements will be discussed during class and students are welcome to contact the teaching staff with questions regarding the assessment process. Assessments will be both verbal, during in person assessments, and submitted through Wattle.

Required Resources

The student is required to use 35-mm photographic film and analogue photographic paper in order to complete the class assignments.

If you have access to your own 35-mm camera you are welcome to use it for this course, otherwise you will be able to borrow a camera from the school.

Student contribution amounts under the Higher Education Support Act 2003 (HESA) and tuition fees support the course described in the Class Summary and include tuition, teaching materials, and student access to the workshops for the stated course hours.

The material fee is payable to the School of Art & Design to supply consumables and materials that become your physical property. The fee for this course is $130.

Students have the option to obtain After hours Access to workshop and studio spaces outside of class delivery. After hours Access is defined as access to workshop and studio spaces outside of business hours between 6.00pm and 10:00pm Monday to Friday and 9am – 4pm Saturday - Sunday. It is afforded to students by paying an After hours Access Fee each semester.

 For further information and to Pay Materials and Access Fees go to: https://soad.cass.anu.edu.au/required-resources-and-incidental-fees  

Recommended Resources

Whether you are on campus or studying online, there are a variety of online platforms you will use to participate in your study program. These could include videos for lectures and other instruction, two-way video conferencing for interactive learning, email and other messaging tools for communication, interactive web apps for formative and collaborative activities, print and/or photo/scan for handwritten work and drawings, and home-based assessment.

ANU outlines recommended student system requirements to ensure you are able to participate fully in your learning. Other information is also available about the various Learning Platforms you may use.

Staff Feedback

Students will be given feedback in the following forms in this course:

• written comments
• verbal comments
• feedback to whole class, groups, individuals, focus group etc

Student Feedback

ANU is committed to the demonstration of educational excellence and regularly seeks feedback from students. Students are encouraged to offer feedback directly to their Course Convener or through their College and Course representatives (if applicable). Feedback can also be provided to Course Conveners and teachers via the Student Experience of Learning & Teaching (SELT) feedback program. SELT surveys are confidential and also provide the Colleges and ANU Executive with opportunities to recognise excellent teaching, and opportunities for improvement.

Class Schedule

Week/Session	Summary of Activities	Assessment
1	14:00 - 15:00 Seminar: Introduction to the course and Analogue Photographic practices. 15.00- 18:00 Workshop: Darkroom visions	Task 1. Collaborative experimentations
2	35mm film photography	Task 1. Shooting exercise #1.
3	14:00 - 15:00 Seminar: Analogue Photographic practices II. 15.00- 18:00 Workshop: Film development, contact sheets, printing	Task 1. Shooting exercise #2.
4	14:00 - 15:00 Seminar: Analogue Photographic practices III. 15.00- 18:00 Workshop: Supervised printing, studio work, tutorials	Task 1. Printing excercise #1
5	14:00 - 18:00 Setting up for review of task 1: Portfolio of Analogue experiments	Task 1 due
6	14:00 - 18:00 Introduction to Major Project. Workshop: Project ideation and planning	Introduction to task 2
7	14:00 - 15:00 Seminar: Analogue Photographic practices IV. 15.00- 18:00 Workshop: supervised printing, studio work, tutorials
8	14:00 - 15:00 Seminar: Analogue Photographic practices V. 15.00- 18:00 Workshop: supervised printing, studio work, tutorials
9	14:00 - 18:00 Workshop: Supervised shooting, film dev, printing, review, tutorials
10	14-16 Seminar: Peer discussion about edits and sequencing. 16-18 Workshop: supervised shooting, film dev, printing, tutorials
11	14:00 - 18:00 Supervised Printing, shooting, film dev, printing, tutorials
12	14:00 - 18:00 Assessment review of task 2	Task 3 due (Major Project) Final assessment.

Tutorial Registration

There are no tutorial groups set for this course.

Assessment Summary

Assessment task	Value	Due Date	Learning Outcomes
Assessment Task 1: Annotated porfolio of analogue photography excercises	30 %	18/03/2025	1,2,3
Assessment Task 2. Major project	70 %	06/05/2025	1,2,3,4

* If the Due Date and Return of Assessment date are blank, see the Assessment Tab for specific Assessment Task details

Policies

ANU has educational policies, procedures and guidelines , which are designed to ensure that staff and students are aware of the University’s academic standards, and implement them. Students are expected to have read the Academic Integrity Rule before the commencement of their course. Other key policies and guidelines include:

• Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
• Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure
• Extenuating Circumstances Application
• Student Surveys and Evaluations
• Deferred Examinations
• Student Complaint Resolution Policy and Procedure
• Code of practice for teaching and learning

Assessment Requirements

The ANU is using Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the Academic Skills website. In rare cases where online submission using Turnitin software is not technically possible; or where not using Turnitin software has been justified by the Course Convener and approved by the Associate Dean (Education) on the basis of the teaching model being employed; students shall submit assessment online via ‘Wattle’ outside of Turnitin, or failing that in hard copy, or through a combination of submission methods as approved by the Associate Dean (Education). The submission method is detailed below.

Moderation of Assessment

Marks that are allocated during Semester are to be considered provisional until formalised by the College examiners meeting at the end of each Semester. If appropriate, some moderation of marks might be applied prior to final results being released.

Participation

Participation is assessed as part of this course. The standard of participation to aspire to is generous and insightful, sharing with the class or your group highly relevant examples of artist, ideas, parallel investigations, readings and cultural contexts. Please commit to building the skills to provide your peers with well considered feedback. Be a good listener. Whilst conversations need to be rigorous and opinions are very welcome, each contribution needs to be respectful and thoughtfully delivered. Be each others best resource and make class and group engagement exciting and dynamic! Students are required to participate in cleaning the darkroom after each session.

Assessment Task 1

Assessment Task 1: Annotated porfolio of analogue photography excercises

During the first weeks of class you will be introduced to fundamental camera and darkroom skills. Please compile a digital portfolio made in Powerpoint/Keynote that presents the contact sheets and photograms created in response to the exercises given in class. Please include your failures as well as your successes, and label them according to the task they correspond to.

Please note that this assessment task has both in-person and online submission requirements, and some of the feedback will be verbal.

You are required to upload the documentation to Wattle.

The second part of this task requires you to bring your responses to task to class and present them for assessment. (Curved wall/Photospace)

Rubric

Critera	HD 80-100	D 70-79	CR 60-69	P 50-59	F 0-49
Demonstrates technical skills in introductory analogue darkroom practices LO 1-2	The negatives, contact sheets and photographic prints are correctly exposed, developed and printed, in a way that shows an exceptional level of introductory analogue skills.	The negatives, contact sheets and photographic prints are correctly exposed, developed and printed, in a way that shows a very high level of introductory analogue skills.	The negatives, contact sheets and photographic prints are correctly exposed, developed and printed, in a way that shows a good level of introductory analogue skills.	The negatives, contact sheets and photographic prints are mostly exposed, developed and printed, in a way that shows satisfactory introductory analogue skills.	The negatives, contact sheets and photographic prints are mostly incorrectly exposed, developed and printed. Skills are not sufficiently developed.
Material development and critical reflection LO 3	The work evidences a thorough willingness to creatively explore and experiment, and a sophisticated reflective approach to aesthetic choices in analogue photography	The work evidences a very high willingness to creatively explore and experiment and a very well-developed reflective approach to aesthetic choices in analogue photography	The work evidences a willingness to creatively explore and experiment and a well-developed reflective approach to aesthetic choices in analogue photography	The work evidences some willingness to creatively explore and experiment and a satisfactory reflection around aesthetic choices in analogue photography	Inadequate evidence of creative explorations and experimentations. Insufficient or no reflections around aesthetic choices.
Participation and engagement LO 2 -3	Excellent engagement in seminars and workshops, asking highly relevant questions and shares own knowledge generously. Using supervised working in class very efficiently, and provides highly relevant peer feedback.	Very good engagement in seminars and workshops. Asks relevant questions and shares own expertise. Uses class time efficiently, and provides relevant peer feedback.	Good engagement in seminars and workshops. Asks questions and shares some own expertise. Attempts to use class time efficiently and to provide peer feedback.	Some engagement in seminars and workshops. Needs to engage more deeply with both topic and peers. Needs to use class time more efficiently.	Limited to no participation in class seminars and workshops.

Assessment Task 2

Assessment Task 2. Major project

In the second half of the course, you will work towards creating a cohesive series of fully finished analogue prints on a theme or concept of your choice, applying practical and theoretical/conceptual skills and knowledge from the course seminars and workshops.

Please note that this assessment task has both in-person and online submission requirements, and some of the feedback will be verbal.

The major project should consist of three parts.

1. 5 analogue prints installed in the Curved Wall space. The prints should be finished, i e cropped to size.
2. Process documentation in the form of a work journal. Do include failures, experiments and dead ends. Include artists work that may have inspired you or provoked you to make the work. Are there other ideas or concepts that have inspired your work? Map the choices you make in the darkroom around selection of negative to print, contrast, exposure. If your work journal is digital, please submit on Wattle. Otherwise present next to your work in the Curved Wall/Photospace.
3. Drawing on your work journal, give a short 3-minute artist talk introducing your project discussing what you would like to express with your work, (themes and concepts ) how you have chosen to do it (shooting techniques and aesthetic choices in the darkroom) and why you decided to focus on this topic (inspiration from other artists work, political/personal reasons etc).

Please submit digital images of your work, your work journal if digital, and a written version of your artist talk (max 500 words) to Wattle

Rubric

Critera	HD 80-100	D 70-79	CR 60-69	P 50-59	F 0-49
Project conception LO 1-4	The project is exceptionally ambitious in nature, articulated with sophistication and situated within a highly relevant context.	The project is highly ambitious in nature, clearly articulated and situated within a very relevant context.	The project is ambitious in nature, articulated and situated within a relevant context with some clarity.	The concept of the project show basic ambition, and is somewhat lacking in relevant contextualisation.	The aims of project are not clearly expressed, and lack evidence of any contextualisation.
Project execution and final presentation LO 1-4	The final work demonstrates a highly developed level of material and conceptual understanding of analogue processes. It is presented with an exceptional attention to detail both in the execution and the installation.	The final work demonstrates a high level of material and conceptual understanding of analogue processes. It is presented with a very high attention to detail both in the execution and the installation.	The final work demonstrates a good level of material and conceptual understanding of analogue processes. It is presented with attention to detail both in the execution and the installation.	The final work demonstrates some material and conceptual understanding of analogue processes, but is not entirely resolved. The presentation, while sufficient, lacks attention to detail.	The final work shows insufficient evidence of material and conceptual understanding of analogue processes. The presentation is not though through.
Critical and material reflections LO 3	The work evidences a deep commitment to creatively explore and experiment and a very well-developed reflective approach to aesthetic choices in analogue photography.	The work evidences a very high willingness to creatively explore and experiment and a very well-developed reflective approach to aesthetic choices in analogue photography	The work evidences a willingness to creatively explore and experiment and a well-developed reflective approach to aesthetic choices in analogue photography	The work evidences some willingness to creatively explore and experiment and a satisfactory reflection around aesthetic choices in analogue photography	Inadequate evidence of creative explorations and experimentations. Insufficient or no reflections around aesthetic choices.
Participation and engagement LO 2 -3	Excellent engagement in seminars and workshops, asking highly relevant questions and shares own knowledge generously. Using supervised working in class very efficiently, and provides highly relevant peer feedback.	Very good engagement in seminars and workshops. Asks relevant questions and shares own expertise. Uses class time efficiently, and provides relevant peer feedback	Good engagement in seminars and workshops. Asks questions and shares some own expertise. Attempts to use class time efficiently and to provide peer feedback.	Some engagement in seminars and workshops. Needs to engage more deeply with both topic and peers. Needs to use class time more efficiently.	Limited to no participation in class seminars and workshops.

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a core part of the ANU culture as a community of scholars. The University’s students are an integral part of that community. The academic integrity principle commits all students to engage in academic work in ways that are consistent with, and actively support, academic integrity, and to uphold this commitment by behaving honestly, responsibly and ethically, and with respect and fairness, in scholarly practice.

The University expects all staff and students to be familiar with the academic integrity principle, the Academic Integrity Rule 2021, the Policy: Student Academic Integrity and Procedure: Student Academic Integrity, and to uphold high standards of academic integrity to ensure the quality and value of our qualifications.

The Academic Integrity Rule 2021 is a legal document that the University uses to promote academic integrity, and manage breaches of the academic integrity principle. The Policy and Procedure support the Rule by outlining overarching principles, responsibilities and processes. The Academic Integrity Rule 2021 commences on 1 December 2021 and applies to courses commencing on or after that date, as well as to research conduct occurring on or after that date. Prior to this, the Academic Misconduct Rule 2015 applies.

 

The University commits to assisting all students to understand how to engage in academic work in ways that are consistent with, and actively support academic integrity. All coursework students must complete the online Academic Integrity Module (Epigeum), and Higher Degree Research (HDR) students are required to complete research integrity training. The Academic Integrity website provides information about services available to assist students with their assignments, examinations and other learning activities, as well as understanding and upholding academic integrity.

Online Submission

You will be required to electronically sign a declaration as part of the submission of your assignment. Please keep a copy of the assignment for your records. Unless an exemption has been approved by the Associate Dean (Education) submission must be through Turnitin.

Hardcopy Submission

For some forms of assessment (hand written assignments, art works, laboratory notes, etc.) hard copy submission is appropriate when approved by the Associate Dean (Education). Hard copy submissions must utilise the Assignment Cover Sheet. Please keep a copy of tasks completed for your records.

Late Submission

Individual assessment tasks may or may not allow for late submission. Policy regarding late submission is detailed below:

• Late submission permitted. Late submission of assessment tasks without an extension are penalised at the rate of 5% of the possible marks available per working day or part thereof. Late submission of assessment tasks is not accepted after 10 working days after the due date, or on or after the date specified in the course outline for the return of the assessment item. Late submission is not accepted for take-home examinations.

Referencing Requirements

The Academic Skills website has information to assist you with your writing and assessments. The website includes information about Academic Integrity including referencing requirements for different disciplines. There is also information on Plagiarism and different ways to use source material. Any use of artificial intelligence must be properly referenced. Failure to properly cite use of Generative AI will be considered a breach of academic integrity.

Returning Assignments

Studio work will not be held by staff after assessment. Physical journals can be returned one week after the due date.

Extensions and Penalties

Extensions and late submission of assessment pieces are covered by the Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure. Extensions may be granted for assessment pieces that are not examinations or take-home examinations. If you need an extension, you must request an extension in writing on or before the due date. If you have documented and appropriate medical evidence that demonstrates you were not able to request an extension on or before the due date, you may be able to request it after the due date.

Privacy Notice

The ANU has made a number of third party, online, databases available for students to use. Use of each online database is conditional on student end users first agreeing to the database licensor’s terms of service and/or privacy policy. Students should read these carefully. In some cases student end users will be required to register an account with the database licensor and submit personal information, including their: first name; last name; ANU email address; and other information.
In cases where student end users are asked to submit ‘content’ to a database, such as an assignment or short answers, the database licensor may only use the student’s ‘content’ in accordance with the terms of service – including any (copyright) licence the student grants to the database licensor. Any personal information or content a student submits may be stored by the licensor, potentially offshore, and will be used to process the database service in accordance with the licensors terms of service and/or privacy policy.
If any student chooses not to agree to the database licensor’s terms of service or privacy policy, the student will not be able to access and use the database. In these circumstances students should contact their lecturer to enquire about alternative arrangements that are available.

Distribution of grades policy

Academic Quality Assurance Committee monitors the performance of students, including attrition, further study and employment rates and grade distribution, and College reports on quality assurance processes for assessment activities, including alignment with national and international disciplinary and interdisciplinary standards, as well as qualification type learning outcomes.

Since first semester 1994, ANU uses a grading scale for all courses. This grading scale is used by all academic areas of the University.

Support for students

The University offers students support through several different services. You may contact the services listed below directly or seek advice from your Course Convener, Student Administrators, or your College and Course representatives (if applicable).

• ANU Health, safety & wellbeing for medical services, counselling, mental health and spiritual support
• ANU Accessibility for students with a disability or ongoing or chronic illness
• ANU Dean of Students for confidential, impartial advice and help to resolve problems between students and the academic or administrative areas of the University
• ANU Academic Skills supports you make your own decisions about how you learn and manage your workload.
• ANU Counselling promotes, supports and enhances mental health and wellbeing within the University student community.
• ANUSA supports and represents all ANU students