62-233 Portraiture: The Space Between

10 units, Carnegie Mellon University

There is a distance there. To me it's often a picture of the space between us. - Alec Soth Portraiture holds a unique place within photography for its direct, consensual and often collaborative relationship between the subject and the photographer. This course will explore theoretical and practical aspects of portrait photography in both studio and environmental settings, providing students with an understanding of the genre and the technical ability to create portraits in a variety of locations and conditions. Students will gain knowledge in the development of portraiture through the work of notable figures in the medium's history, including August Sander, Dorothea Lange, Richard Avedon, Milton Rogovin, Platon, Rineke Dijkstra and Alec Soth, while utilizing film and and digital equipment to learn studio techniques, approaches to artificial and natural lighting, image processing and presentation. Class discussions, readings and critiques will provide an outline for completing both single and serial image assignments.

Prerequisites: 60-141 or 62-142 or 62-141 or 60-142

Courseweave needs JavaScript to show sections, workloads and planning tools.