Program Overview

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Explore Creative Photography

Challenge your technical skills and develop your conceptual thinking.

Key details

• Location: Penryn Campus
• Course duration: 1 day

Course overview

Explore creative photography techniques on this one-day course for 14-17 year olds. Based in our professional-standard photography facilities, you’ll develop your technical skills and broaden your experience.

We’ll explore the art of stop-motion animation, learning how to conceptualise an idea and capture a sequence frame by frame. We’ll experiment with light painting in our darkroom; and work with exposure settings and lighting in one of our photographic studios. We’ll also take a look at an alternative photography method, using light-sensitive paper to produce unique, camera-free prints.

Guided by our expert photography staff in a supportive environment, this course is a fantastic opportunity to expand your technical skills, push creative boundaries and explore the artistic possibilities of photography.

Tuition fees per individual: £99

Eligibility: Applicants must be aged 14 – 17

Location: Institute of Photography, Penryn Campus

How to apply

To apply for this course, make your selection from the available dates below, this will take you to an event page where you will be able to book yourself onto the course via the Book now link.

Upcoming Short Courses

• Mon 28 Jul 2025: £99 | For 14 - 17 year olds
• Mon 11 Aug 2025: £99 | For 14 - 17 year olds
• Wed 27 Aug 2025: £99 | For 14 - 17 year olds

Course details

Join us for this creative and exciting one day course designed for 14–17-year-old photography enthusiasts. Based in our fantastic facilities at the Institute of Photography, you’ll explore some creative photography techniques using industry standard equipment.

On this course, guided by our experienced photography staff you will:

• Be introduced to the art of stop-motion animation and the photographic frames you need to take. We’ll teach you to conceptualise and bring your creative ideas to life, frame by frame, using a variety of materials and techniques.
• Experiment with the creative possibilities of light as a medium in photography, using torches to "paint" images in long exposure shots.
• Explore the concept of studio lighting and exposure settings to create a group shot and deconstruct the idea of ‘what is a group shot?’.
• Get hands-on with the process of creating photograms in our darkroom. Photograms are an experimental photographic technique using light and objects to produce images without a camera.

By the end of the course, you will:

• Have developed an understanding of the fundamentals of photography for stop-motion animation and will have created your own animated sequence using hands-on methods and digital tools.
• Have gained practical experience in light painting, learning how to manipulate light sources to create dynamic and expressive photographic images.
• Understand the principles of exposure and lighting, mastering how to use a photographic studio to achieve ideal lighting conditions for group shots.
• Have learned the fundamental skills required to create photograms, and will have produced your own unique photographic images by placing objects on light-sensitive paper and exposing them to light.

This course is based in our Institute of Photography on our Penryn campus. You’ll be learning in our professional-standard photography facilities using industry-standard equipment, and you’ll be taught by our experienced Falmouth University staff. All staff teaching this course are DBS cleared and have undergone our mandatory safeguarding training. Students will be supervised through the day including break times.

The course includes refreshments, lunch, and all materials you’ll need for the day.

Course outline

This is an outline of timings to expect for the course. The day includes 5 hours of taught workshops, and time to socialise with fellow students during supervised breaks.

• 9am - 9.30am: Arrival, welcome and sign-in
• 9.45am: Groups will be taken to workshop locations (up to a 10-min walk across campus)
• 10am – 12.30pm: Morning workshops
• 12.30pm: Lunch break
• 1.15 – 3.45pm: Afternoon workshops
• 3.45pm: Groups will be collected from workshop locations
• 4pm: Close, sign-out and collection

Workshops on this course will cover the following topics:

• Photography for stop motion animation
• Painting with light
• The White Box
• Photograms

Staff

This one-day course is run by experienced Falmouth University staff from our Institute of Photography team. All staff teaching this course have enhanced DBS clearance and have undergone our mandatory safeguarding training. Students will be supervised through the day including break times.

How you'll learn

This is a hands-on course where you’ll learn by doing, getting hands-on with each new technique and process throughout the day. Our course leaders will walk you through each new technique with clear examples. Expect to jump straight in and get creative as you bring your creative ideas to life in a fun and inspiring environment.

Who is this course for

This course is for creative 14 – 17 year olds and is suitable for all experience levels. It has been designed for teenagers who would love to learn more about photography, lighting, and stop-motion production from a photography viewpoint. You will be supported to broaden your technical skills and develop your creative ideas during the day.

What to expect

Expect to get hands-on with the creative possibilities of different photographic techniques, working individually and as a group. We’ll be using various different photography facilities during the day including our professional studios and darkrooms. The day will include discussions about concepts and ideas, and practical activities that broaden your technical skills.

The course is comprised of structured learning whilst having fun in a supportive and supervised environment. This one-day course is structured with five full hours of teaching, with breaks for lunch and refreshments.

What to bring

You may wish to bring a reusable water bottle with you, and anything else you need to feel comfortable through the day.

Please note: we advise that phones or other personal possessions are not brought to the course, any possessions brought with you are your responsibility and Falmouth University will not be liable for any loss or damage.

What we'll provide

All materials and camera equipment that you will need are included in the course fee, together with refreshments and lunch (all dietary requirements catered for), and PPE will be issued for workshop 4.

Food and drink

Refreshments and lunch are included in the course fee. All dietary requirements can be catered for. You may wish to bring a reusable water bottle with you.

Location

This course is taught in our professional Institute of Photography facilities on our Penryn campus.

There is plenty of parking available on our Penryn campus and you can also reach us via a range of public transport options. You can find out more, here.

For campus maps and information on visiting us, please visit our How to find us page.

We will provide further information in your course joining email after your place has been confirmed.

Certificates

You will leave with a certificate of completion, available when you finish the day and sign out.

Eligibility

This course is for 14 – 17 year olds only, and no pre-requisite photography knowledge is required.

Drop-off & pick-up

A parent or guardian must sign 14 and 15 year olds in and out, and be present for drop off and pick up. If 16 and 17 year olds wish to sign themselves in and out then we will require written consent emailed to in advance of the course.

Drop off is from 9am – 9.30am, pick up is at 4pm.

Other requirements or queries

Once you have booked your place you’ll be sent a participant form for further information. You can tell us about any dietary, medical, or access requirements that we need to know about on this form and you’ll also be asked to confirm that you agree to our code of conduct for under 18s.

If you have any queries, would like further information, or would like to talk to someone before booking this course then please feel free to get in touch with our short course team.