Photography

This is a connected degree Portsmouth is the only University in the UK with the flexibility to choose when to do an optional paid placement or self-employed year. Either take a placement in your third year, or finish your studies first and complete a placement in your fourth year. You can decide if and when to take a placement after you've started your course.

Overview Discover and develop your photographic vision on this BA (Hons) Photography degree.

Through research, industry, and professional practices, you'll master advanced analogue and digital photography techniques and engage with multidimensional technologies – such as computer-generated imagery (CGI), photogrammetry, virtual reality (VR), and 3D printing. Our distinctive mix of traditional and modern approaches will empower you to be innovative and shine among others in the competitive creative industries.

After you graduate, you’ll have many career options at your fingertips. Want to work for a business or by yourself on client projects? Planning to pursue a postgraduate degree? Join the 90% of our graduates who have taken these paths (HESA Graduate Outcomes Survey, 2019).

Course highlights

Advance your skills in industry-level equipment and image-processing software that professionals use – including digital media format cameras and DSLRs, Adobe Suite, Capture One, and Cinema4d

Produce stand-out work by using our excellent facilities – from traditional dark rooms to photographic studios

Gain valuable professional experience and boost your CV by doing an optional one-year placement – either with a company or by setting up your own

Broaden your craft and collaborative skills by working with fellow students on other courses in the Faculty of Creative and Cultural Industries

Promote yourself to potential employers by showcasing your work at self-produced exhibitions, industry portfolio reviews, and our annual Graduate Show

Be in the know of historic and modern photography forms by visiting galleries and festivals in major cities like Berlin, Paris and London

Build your professional contacts by attending guest lectures and meeting eminent speakers – past ones include Faisal Abdu'allah, Sunil Gupta and Brian Griffin

90% Graduates in work or further study (HESA Graduate Outcomes Survey conducted in 2019)

91% Overall student satisfaction (NSS, 2021)

Careers and opportunities When you finish the course, you'll have a range of options within the creative industries to start your career. You can also continue your studies to postgraduate level.

Graduate roles

Previous students have gone on to work as:

studio photographers

video directors

picture editors

retouchers

photojournalists

curators

artists

fashion photographers

teachers/lecturers

Ongoing careers support

Get experience while you study, with support to find part-time jobs, volunteering opportunities, and work experience. You can also venture into freelancing, or set up and run your own business with help from the University Startup Team.

Towards the end of your degree and for up to five years after graduation, you’ll receive one-to-one support from our Graduate Recruitment Consultancy to help you find your perfect role.