VIS102 History of Photography (8)
CSU Discipline Area: History/Art History (HISTO)
Duration: One session
Abstract:
This subject traces the development of photography from the optical processes of the camera obscura and early chemical forms of fixed direct image, through the development of the paper negative and box camera up to the SLR camera of the recent past.
Photography is treated as the outcome of technological, cultural, and commercial circumstances, and its effects on social life. We look at the technological, cultural and commercial influences and consider the importance of the production and use of photographic images in daily life.
+ Subject Availability Modes and Locations
| Session 1 | |
|---|---|
| Internal | Wagga Wagga |
| Distance | Wagga Wagga |
Continuing students should consult the SAL for current offering details: VIS102
Where differences exist between the Handbook and the SAL, the SAL should be taken as containing the correct subject offering details.
Enrolment restrictions:
Not available to students who have completed PHT107
Objectives:
Upon successful completion of this subject, students should:
- be able to trace technological developments in photography and demonstrate their understanding of the links between cultural forms and technology
- be able to explain the reasons for the mass uptake of photography at given historic times
- be able to analyse examples of photographic works in terms of their historical provenance and medium
Syllabus:
The subject will cover the following topics:
- Early optical processes of the camera obscura and camera lucida - Initial chemical processes leading to direct fixed images - Invention and refinement of the negative - Types and social significance of nineteenth-century photography - Development and mass uptake of portable and box cameras - Documentary and realistic photography of the early 20th Century and its social intent - Popular colour snapshot technology - Refinement of the SLR camera - Physical manipulation of the negative and positive image; causes and responses
The information contained in the 2013 CSU Handbook was accurate at the date of publication: 24 April 2013. The University reserves the right to vary the information at any time without notice.