An alternative to a PGCE - The Graduate Teacher Programme

 After apeaking to Sarah I discovered that I could do a GTP. A graduate teacher programme on which I can obtain qualified teacher status while training and working in a paid teaching role. The GTP usually takes one school year working full time to complete it. The GTP may be a better option for me as I would be able to earn some money whilst completing it, however I am not going to rule out the PGCE just yet as I would rather wait and see where my life goes Im sure I will make the right decision for myself when I am ready to do so.

Tracey Wood ... just a few questions

Tracey Wood has managed to email me back with her responce to my questions I hope others enjoy reading her responce as much as I did :)

Why did you choose to go into photography?

Photography has been a lifelong interest. I had the opportunity do a degree when I was young, but opted instead for a more secure profession (Optometry). I finally decided life's too short not to try, and following a mentoring course and my Licentiate qualification with the Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers (SWPP) decided to just go for it.

How did you get to where you are today?

I'm still relatively new to the industry, but I invested in training and spent every spare minute reading and practicing Photoshop and Photography. Since then I've learned that you won't get anywhere without business skills (which are totally alien to me), so now spend a huge number of man hours marketing and promoting my business.

Is you work commission led or do you still do some personal projects?

I always find time to mix some personal work into each piece, so that my work is always evolving (I hope). It doesn't matter if it doesn't work out the way you imagined as long as you have their requested shots first.

What equipment do you prefer to use?

I prefer to use natural light if possible, but use a speedlight when needed or an Arri continuous light for more set shots. I use a Canon 5D Mk2 usually on a monopod and my fave lens is my 70-200 (2.8), although my 24-70 is rarely off my camera.

What advice would you give a photography student?

Get as much practical real-life experience as you possibly can, as soon as you can. Don't be afraid to have a go even if it takes you way out of your comfort zone. And learn some business skills too!

Interview with Mrs.Sarah Blackmoore....

Hello Sarah,

Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions.

I have previously asked you a few questions about the PGCE and you told me that you completed your PCGE at the University of Plymouth. I was wondering what you enjoyed the most about the course and also what it was like studying at the University?

S: The course at University was well run though we were always late in finding out where our next placements would be! Besides that the lectures and seminars were really useful and ideas could be taken from these to help us develop as teachers during our teaching practices. The course was really hard work and was a test personally and professionally but at the end of the course you can appreciate how beneificial the course was as I had really developed as a teacher and felt more confident in my teaching ability. I really enjoyed having the opportunity to visit different schools and observe great teaching as you could pick up ideas and resources along the way which I could incorporate into my teaching in my classroom.

Obviously a PGCE is a lot of work however I am sure it is very rewarding in the long run. Did you enjoy working on placements?

S: I enjoyed having the oppoirtunity to visit a variety of schools during my teaching placements and expereince their school ethos. I found this to  be incredibly beneficial to my teaching as I was able to witness a variety of teaching styles which I could adapt into my practice.

What challenges did you come across whilst studying the course?

S: I found the course to be really rewarding both professionally and personally, though it was also extremely challenging. The workload was very demanding both at University and during teaching placements so time management was essential to complete the course. I definitely learnt to prioritise during the course, this was crucial to complete all of the work that was required at University and on placement!

What where your lectures like?

S: They were a mixture of lectures and seminars in groups as well as the whole cohert. Some lectures were given by tutors at the University and others were external visitors from local primary schools and children’s services. In each lecture we always had the opportunity to discuss their focus with other students and share ideas. The seminars were for each of the subjects within the Nataional Curriculum to give us teaching ideas to take into school, but some were better than others!

When you started the PGCE did you have to decided straight away what age group you wanted to work with or did you get to work with all ages during your placements?

S: Before getting on to the course I decided that it was a PGCE in primary that I wanted to take, but when on the course we had to specify our prefered Key Stage which for me was Key Stage One (4 to 7 year olds). We had three school placements during the course, two were in Key Stage One and the other was in Key stage Two so we had experience of both throughout the year.

What opportunities have you had since completing your PGCE?

S: Since completing the PGCE course I have been able to work as a supply teacher at a variety of primary schools across the city. I have also looked at the opportunity of completing my Masters at some point in the near future as I gained some credits during the PGCE course.

Thankyou for taking the time to answer my questions, do you have any additional information that you think I should know about the course?

S: If you decided that the PGCE wasn’t an option for you due to the increasing cost of fees, the Graduate Teacher Programme is a good alternative where you would be able to receive a wage. This is similar to the PGCE but you need to find a school willing to invest the programme as that school would be the centre of your learning as opposed to being based at University and then going on teaching practice. You would still be assessed through assignments and the QTS standards but you would be based in one school throughout the year.

Rankin...

I literally adore the work of Rankin. Honestly I cant tell you why, when I first came across his work at the beginning of my national diploma I fell in love with it. 

Last year I visited his annroy gallery which is also where he has his studio, I would like to visit again sometime. In fact I would LOVE to work with him I regularly look at his website but today I decided to look at his FAQ section (http://rankin.co.uk/faq/#). I found this extremely interesting and discovered that he runs internship programmes, they last 3 months and he has separated it into 4 different internships: Studio, Post Production, Archive and Film. 

This is defiantly something I am going to look at doing after my Degree. I will start seriously looking into it next year. I think that it would be a good idea to get some experience in working as an assistant for someone else.

Portraiture?

When I first started photography I thought that I would like to be a forensic photographer my thoughts on this quickly changed as I decided that I would find this too difficult to deal with. As I progressed through my national diploma I began to favour portraiture. The only problem with this is that I find it hard to talk to people and direct them, however I feel that the past two projects have helped me a lot with this issue as both of projects have made me go out and talk to people. 

Firstly on 103 - Cover Story, we where asked to create an author portrait of someone that was not on the course. We had to go out and find a good character that would be wiling to have there picture taken. Seeing as I didn't know that many people in the Plymouth area that would be willing to have there photograph taken at first I found this challenging. But then I asked a friends older brother who was willing to have his photograph taken, and was also very generous with his time and let me visit 3 times to photograph him. 

The second project that has helped me is our current project 104 - Audience in the Community, this project has meant that we have had to go out and talk to people to give ourselves a project to work on that will create interesting images. As I have previously said I went out with the RNLI and took there portraits this was more free and I liked just going and taking there photograph without telling them what to do and worrying about lighting equipment etc. I felt better doing these portraits rather then the ones I did in 103 because I felt like I wasn't under as much pressure this time.

I intend to continue working on my portraiture skills. I hope to create my own style and would love one day to be as good as someone like RANKIN.

RNLI continued...

So yesterday I went to visit the coxwain Dave at the RNLI to give him the images on disc. I also showed him my final prints and he was really happy with them. He said that he thought that they where the best images he'd seen that a student has done of boat before...and that he wasn't just saying that because I was there but because he actually meant it. I am really pleased that they liked my images, Dave said that if I ever wanted to come back or needed anything then to give them a call or just turn up at the lifeboat station. I guess I made a good impression which is really good as I was so worried that I was too timid on the day.

Just a few thoughts....

Although I found the lecture on Tuesday pretty heavy going I am glad that I attended as I found the information useful as I did not know most of what I learnt, and i will now be able to put what I have learnt into practise to protect my work

My head at the moment...

With just over a week to go until my deadlines I'm a little concerned that my head is in such a jumble. I am dong my best with my projects but I know I still have a lot to do. However in saying that I also know that this term has been the best for me this year I am more on target and am really pushing myself to do my best. Having felt as if I'd lost my love of photography I am pleased to say that I am slowly getting it back. I am doing this by focusing on my projects more...lets hope my hard work pays off :)