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Past SPE Annual Conferences

Rennan Kooistra

SPE member since 2023
Self Soothing
Archival Inkjet Print

Nicole White

SPE member since 2010
Shadow (graduated cylinders)
Photogram on 20-year old gelatin silver paper

Mary Zompetti

SPE member since 2020
Frozen Frogs
Silver Gelatin Contact Print from Cameraless Negative

Becoming a member of SPE provides many resources and benefits to enhance your contact with a thriving international network of more than 998 photographers, artists, scholars, educators, students, museum professionals, writers, and critics.

48:1 Spring 2015

Exposure
Journal

48:1 Spring 2015

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THIS WEEKEND! 

Can You Teach A Digital Art Class?
Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Learned to Love Vectors
SPE Summer School: Professional Development Workshop

If I am asked to teach a class, I always say yes. I know I will always grow from the experience. This attitude brought me face to face with the prospect of introduction to digital arts classes. Traditionally, these classes teach the trinity of Adobe: Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign.
Photoshop is not a problem for a photographer. Having worked in journalism, I was familiar with InDesign and understood the fundamental basics of graphic design, but Illustrator was
what I didn’t know, and I had to teach myself. A lot of times, the students know more than I do. Proficiency with the basics came over time. It was a slow process full of trial and error. I knew
enough to get students going, but I was not always able to help them solve problems.

During the COVID-19 lockdown, I discovered Figma, a collaborative design tool that works in a browser. It is a modern interpretation of a vector-based application that works on a Chromebook or iPad. It is stripped down with a simpler interface and approachable. Using it has made working with vectors manageable and fun. I have gained a greater understanding of the fundamental basics of vectors using it.

The goal of this workshop, over two half-days, is to explain how I have learned to embrace the vector creation process from the point of view of a photographer who is not a designer or digital artist. I will address techniques and examples used in developing assignments for an
introductory class. There will be a hands-on feature of the workshop where we will create vectors as a group. I will share the framework I use for teaching classes like this, no matter the application used. I have shifted my current class from the limiting idea of “teaching software”
to teaching an understanding of how vectors work and how they can be used to express abstract ideas in visual forms. My goal is to help those who could teach these kinds of classes not to make all of the mistakes I have.

a day ago via Instagram

THIS WEEKEND! Can You Teach A Digital Art Class? Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Learned to Love Vectors SPE Summer School: Professional Development Workshop If I am asked to teach a class, I always say yes. I know I will always grow from the experience. This attitude brought me face...

We are so excited to spotlight a few of our upcoming sessions that are seeking participants for our 63rd annual conference, Catalyst for Exchange! Visit our Slideroom Portal to learn about our upcoming sessions and apply. Link in BIO. 

1. Camera-Making as Photographic Practice - Chris Fraser;

about 9 hours ago via Instagram

We are so excited to spotlight a few of our upcoming sessions that are seeking participants for our 63rd annual conference, Catalyst for Exchange! Visit our Slideroom Portal to learn about our upcoming sessions and apply. Link in BIO. 1. Camera-Making as Photographic Practice - Chris Fraser; "...this panel gathers...

Digital Pin-Up Exhibition - 2025

Runtime: 00:29:43

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