How to make a good portfolio that will aid your application onto ‘A’ level Photography at City College Norwich.

The entry requirements for the ‘A’ level photography course state that you should have 5 Cs or higher at GCSE- one of which should be in an arts based subject (Art/ Photography/ Textiles Art etc.) Where this is not the case-providing you still have 5 Cs or above- you can still come onto the ‘A’ level photography course if you present a good portfolio at interview.

A portfolio of your work is essentially a collection of images that shows you as a photographer and image maker off to your best ability. This could be presented in a sketch book, mounted onto card or in a folder. There are good ways of doing this and not-so-good ways of doing this.

First let’s look at the not-so-good:You have always enjoyed taking pictures and think Photography would be great fun. You flick through your photo albums and chose what you consider to be the best photo’s you have.

A picture of a sunset: Those cute children you met on holiday: A Motorbike race you went to:

Your Photoshop skills: Your friends doing ‘love hands’: Your friend in their prom dress against a tree:

Although there is some skill in these photographs, there is little direction- nothing ties them together. They also rely heavily on clichés and over familiar references.

Now let’s look at what a good portfolio could look like:Begin by going to a library and looking in the photography section. Books are where you will find quality photographers who are recognised and credible with good solid ideas that have been translated through visual matter. Avoid using Google image search and typing in something like ‘nature photographers’- you will not have anything of value by doing this. Find a photographer who has a visual style you are interested in or deals with a subject matter that you can relate to. Write a small amount about their work and what you like about it- focus on how this work has influenced you and what you would like to do having looked at it. Think about a theme title that could be used to describe the work you are looking at- this could be along the lines of ‘shadows’, ‘beauty’, ‘light’, time’, ‘movement’, ‘colour’ etc. Once you have a theme take a series (16-25) of photographs that explore this theme- the photographs should be influenced by your earlier research. Present your images with a brief description of your aims- why did you take these photographs and what were you hoping to achieve?For example you may have looked at Brassai and his series of images of Paris at Night:

And chosen the theme ‘shadows’. You then explore your own town at night time focussing on the shadows of the town.

Your response is mature and shows a definite understanding of the ‘feel’ of a Brassai Photograph.

You could also include (if you wish) sketches, drawings and any other visual matter that may support your ideas and highlight your visual understanding.