Documentary Photography Workshop

What you'll learn

Learn how to shoot documentary photography with our photography short courses in Sydney!

Join this class to develop the visual story-telling skills and the trade-craft imaging of working photographers on assignment.  Learn how to create a series of high-impact images that tell a unique and compelling story worthy of a photographic portfolio.

This Documentary Photography course is for photographers to explore the core genres of documentary photography through personal projects, in one or more, of the major genres of documentary photography: Street photography, Photojournalism, and Social Documentary photography.

These critical information images capture the streets where we live, the coal face of work life, and the abundant joys of leisure activities.  Documentary provides factual insights into the news, the interest points, the culture, styles and action of what is happening everywhere, and this allows the mirror on ourselves, our families, our communities to see what is impacting, what works and what is failing us.

Participants are expected to be reasonably proficient in camera operations as this course is not designed for the beginner level and does not contain entry-level tuition on camera functionality.  

Learning outcomes

By the end of this Documentary Photography course, you should be able to:

• produce unique and compelling photographic images
• execute custom shoot assignments through personal projects 
• create a photo documentary narrative
• accomplish image review and positive critiquing processes 
• design and produce a portfolio series of documentary images

Course content

What will be covered in this Documentary Photography course?

Documentary covers these three compelling photographic genres.

Class participants can specialise in their area of shoot expertise or explore the other genres.

The Visual Narrative, Street Photography, photographer briefs, image review & feedback.

Street photography is about recognising and creating single-image narrative photography.  The power of forensic awareness underpins the art of street photography. This course contains the observational and situational skills required to conduct street photography.  Learn how to read the street and pick up on the visual cues to create compelling street images.

• re-telling a visual story in a single image
• candid photography, permissions, legality, consent, behaviours & ethics
• allocated briefs vs personal projects
• forming, sequencing and editing of narrative storyline

Social Documentary, image review & feedback.

Social documentary photography provides a compassionate view of the injustice in the world—disaster, cruelty, horror and tragedy are common themes—however, a social documentary photographic series can be about solutions, recovery, peace and reconciliation, and rebuilding.  Social documentary photography deals with reality, describes the human condition, can capture and sustain public attention, mobilise people around pressing social and human rights issues, and promote social change.

• re-telling an in-depth visual story in a series of images
• core elements of strong images
• an accurate and factual recount of the story 
• that is engaged, intimate, passionate, analytical, and /or critical 
• appreciating the beauty, relevance and raw impact of social documentary photography
• practical activities, class discussions and hands-on reviews

Photojournalism, image review & feedback

Photojournalism is a unique and powerful form of visual storytelling that works on multiple levels, from covering breaking news and conflict, to forming visual narratives and feature stories that illuminate and clarify the issues of our time with a depth and perspective that no other medium can achieve, and reach audiences never before imagined with immediate impact, while continuing to write our visual history and form our collective memories.

• re-telling an in-depth visual story in a single/series of images
• an accurate and factual recount of the story 
• that is detached, unemotional, clinical and unbiased 
• with an immediacy of a newsworthy moment
• qualities of timeliness, objectivity and narrative 
• practical activities, class discussions and hands-on reviews

Intended audience

Who is this Documentary Photography course for?

Photographers who want to:

• Improve and extend the capacity of their photography
• Have their existing skills and capabilities recognised
• Explore other avenues and genres of photography
• Be challenged by assignment projects
• Receive high-level feedback on the photographic body of work they produce, aimed at the achievement of a set of quality portfolio images.

Course materials

What to bring to class:

• First week: printed A4 copies of personal project images that fit one or more of the listed genres
• Second week: refined images of your chosen genres, as a set of individual images, or as a series of connected and coherent images
• (cheap Officeworks photocopier paper is perfect / photo paper is not necessary or required at this stage, as images are touched and moved around )
• Notepad and pen to take notes / or phone / or tablet / or laptop