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PHOTOGRAPHY PROGRAM EQUIPMENT REQUIREMENTS - FIRST YEAR
Miscellaneous equipment and supplies
A personal computer Not Required but strongly recommended Items with an * are required on the 1st day of class. 2nd Year Equipment Requirements
Below is more detailed information about the equipment specified above. We REQUIRE either the Nikon and Canon digital SLR cameras and a camera with at least 6 mega pixels. Nikon and Canon have been producing professional quality film and digital cameras and are the most established in the profession. Another advantage of concentrating on these two brands is that other students are likely to have lenses and accessories they may share with their friends. Six mega pixel cameras break a barrier in digital imaging where digital capture compares with film capture. If you have a DSLR camera other than these specified you must get approval before starting the program.
Digital Photography Review is a good site to compare different brands and models What the Faculty Have... Currently Recommendations may change in the future and even currently on the lower end the two manufactures are similar with Canon possibly being preferable. LensesThis recommendation has become more difficult in digital SLR's because of the different sensor sizes. What defines the desirable focal length is the angle of view. I would highly recommend you get the best quality lens you can afford. The quality of the lens/glass has become exceedingly important with the high resolving power of the newer DSLR cameras. BetterA high quality fast zoom lens
with an angle of view range that includes the normal 47 degrees
but is also wider and narrower than the normal. BestA high quality, fast wide angle zoom
lens with an angle of view range of approximately 85-72 degrees
Sites that have lens quality ratings for many of the better lenses. Digital Photography Review has also begun a lens testing section but it is currently somewhat limited.
We are recommending students have (3) smaller storage cards to begin the program. These cards should probably be 1 gig cards minimum. In the beginning the actual cards may be submitted with assignments and returned when graded. One card should be capable of storing the images exposed for that assignment. Images will be transferred to CD, DVD and portable hard drives clearing the cards for reuse. Portable FireWire Powered Hard Drive A FireWire Powered Hard Drive is required for students to store their images while working on them for current assignments. This drive will be required after the third or forth week. When these drives are plugged into the FireWire ports on the computers, the need for AC power is eliminated. We require this specfic type of drive to avoid the excessive wiring needed for non-friewire powered drives. It is simply impossible to provide the number of AC outlets for all the computers, monitors, printers and scanners and still have AC for each students hard drive. It would simply be a wiring nightmare. FireWire is also the fastest method of saving files. If a student owns their on computer with a FireWire port (preferably FireWire 800), it is also the easiest method of transferring files from computer to computer. The Smartdisk Firelite Firewire, Lacie Mobile Firewire and OWC Mercury On-The-Go Pro are some acceptable drives for this requirement. After assignments are finished, students can back them up on CD or DVD and recover space on their Portable Hard Drives for future assignment work. -Not Acceptable- The following items are required in the 1st year but are covered in more detail during classes and it would be recommended that students wait until tthey are better informed before purchasing.For 1st year a 'Ball' head would be fine and may be desirable, for 2nd year a Pan/Tilt head is 'Required', the Pan/Tilt head would be acceptable for both 1st and 2nd years Suggested brands: Heavy duty (First and second year) Gitzo Bogen INDURO
There are substantial student discounts available once student's are enrolled in a photography program through Bogan and The MAC (Mamiya America Corporation) Group. Proof of registration in a program is required.
EQUIPMENT REQUIRED SECOND YEAR: In the second year of the program extensive work is done with a large format (4x5 inch) view camera. We recommend that student lease the equipment from us rather than purchasing their own.CMC has (20) 4x5 view camera available for lease to students. These cameras are equipped with 210mm lenses. This equipment may need to be shared with others as student numbers dictate. Students who choose the lease option still need to purchase Polaroid film and a good quality focusing Loupe We have additional lenses and accessories for those people leasing the cameras from us. Second year students enrolled in the Photography curriculum will be required to have the following camera beginning with the first day of classes of any semester. This information will be covered in more detail in the Spring Semester before second year. In addition to the same equipment & supplies as required for the first year students. A
tripod suitable for Large Format (4x5) Camera (See Recommendations) A reliable multipurpose flash/ambient light meter. Invest in a quality one. A good ambient flash meter will serve the student for both first year, second year, and after graduation Sekonic L-358 or Sekonic L-758DR Digital Master The MAC (Mamiya America Corporation) Group provides substantial discounts on these meters to students. Proof of registration in a program is required.
Computers (Not a requirement but certainly helpful) Many times we are asked to recommend a computer for use in the program. The Macintosh is the platform used by all photography and graphic design courses in the Professional Photography Program. My personal recommendation would be a Mac because it is most compatible with the work done in the most advance classes, but it is possible to use either platform provided you own the appropriate software. The Monitor is another important consideration. Laptop screens are not acceptable for most digital imaging work. I work on a laptop 90% of the time but when working on photo images I usually connect the laptop to an external monitor. So if purchasing a laptop be certain you can connect an external monitor. As much RAM as you can get, 2 gigs of ram minimum. Whatever computer you choose, the computer doesn't help if you don't have the software. Microsoft Office (primarily Word) and Adobe Photoshop CS3 are crucial (It is important to have the same version as we are using in the program) an additional program Microsoft Expressions Media is used beginning in the 2nd semester. Apple iLife 08 which includes iPhoto, iMovie HD and iDVD is used in the 1st semester. The portable firewire drive listed earlier allows easy transfer of files from your personal computer to our lab. A good Mac combination would the Macbook Pro 15" with a 20" Mac Cinema Display, 4 gig of RAM Special NoteWhile all the needed items of equipment seem to make the cost
of the program expensive, this cost should be considered in
its proper perspective. The student who graduates from this
program and elects to operate a private business will have a
good deal of the equipment to start such a business upon graduating.
The student who does not elect to be self-employed after graduating
may no longer need some of the equipment because the employer
will furnish what is needed on the job. This student can sell
the equipment and regain a sizable portion of the total investment,
thereby reducing the program cost considerably. It is common
practice for a number of our graduating students to sell equipment
to freshmen at the year's end. Students having difficulties securing items of making decisions on various products can obtain advice by writing or calling a member of the photographic faculty or lab technician. Note: Information contained herein is subject to change without notice. Prices for equipment and supplies are not given in this list because they vary considerably from location to location, dealer to dealer, and whether they are new or used. In general, students spend in excess of $3000 for new camera hardware over the two-year period. Consumable supplies (film, paper, etc.) expenses also vary with each individual and are dependent upon how conservative each student is and how much photographic work is produced. Several Manufacturers provide special pricing
for students enrolled in a photography program. These include
Gitzo, Bogen, Sekonic, Gossen, Mamiya, Tenba and Toyo-view.
Bensenville, Illinois 60106 Global Imaging B & H Photo USED Equipment: |
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