Photography schools

I have been thinking about taking courses at a local community college but working that around my job is difficult. Are any of the online courses worth the money? Which have you used? Which would you recommend?

Thanks in advance.

I would be very careful as many online courses unless they are offered by an accredited College/University, most likely will be a waste of money.

Thanks. That was one of my concerns.

This is a pretty nice school, Photography Review that is. It is free. The knowledge base here is deep too.

Agreed, but I am looking for something I can immerse myself in with a little more structure then posting questions. I have learned a lot here in the past but am looking for a bit more "by the numbers" instruction.

Consider a seminar like one of the Nikon Schools that is offered over a weekend.

Watch for other opportunities as close to your area there are so many National Parks and wildlife areas that regularly have weekend outings and one or more day events for photographer's of all skill levels.

It might help you decide what else you want to learn and then you can pick and choose among offerings either commercial or academic.

Academic photography is going to start with a lot of basics you may already know (but a review always helps), theory/history, and fundamental techniques and practicum. That's often all you will get in the first class semester with sometimes the addition of introduction to the darkroom or now introduction to digital printing.

Many Community, Junior, or other undergrad Colleges are offering compressed course where you attend 8 hours a day for one day a week (frequently a weekend day) and then a couple of hours online per week for a month! Then you're done! Can work quite well in this arena as you get to shoot in the morning and by the end of the day you've found out a lot about that set of lessons and skills. Plus, you've got a week to practice before something new!

Good luck and let us know what you discover.

There are tons of options out there so you should be able to find something that meets your needs. A place like the New York Institute of Photography would have a some specific programs that would meet your needs. www.betterphoto.com has sever options for online courses as well.

Keep an eye out for things happening in your area. Something as simple as a weekend workshop may be all you need to get you moving in the right direction. Local universities and tech schools generally have offerings. My local university usually has a few classes a year offered through the continuing education department. These are not credited classes, and usually meet one night a week for a couple weeks, or a couple weekends. Not a big time commitment but you will get some great info, and meet some other people with the same interests. A local camera club would be a good place to start as well if you have one in your area.

I had been going to suggest betterphoto as well. And check out morguefile.com (I think that's right). It's not really a school, but it offers "lessons" giving you stuff to work on to figure out technique and such. Morguefile is where I learned about the golden ratio. It's not led, so if you need someone giving you deadlines, then maybe it's not so great. But if you're just talking learning, I think it's a pretty good place to start.

Thanks for all of the input. I had once, long ago, started to take the courses from NYIP but "life" got in the way a little. I will check them out again. There are also several courses at a local community college I am considering.

Another option would be to see if any local pros offer workshops or courses.