Graduate Schools for Visual Anthropology

After attaining my bachelors degree, I plan to attend a graduate program for Visual Anthropology.  Currently there are many more options overseas to get a degree in Visual Anthropology, but I did have luck finding some programs in the United States offering a Masters in Visual Anthropology and Digital Anthropology. 

The first school to have this program I found was USC Dornsife, they offer a Masters of Visual Anthropology and also a Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology.
The Masters program is "an intensive one year program combining academic coursework and hands-on training in ethnographic documentary techniques, including researching, shooting, and editing a documentary (usually 20 to 30 minutes long) using digital media. The program is offered in collaboration with the Institute for Multimedia Literacy at the USC School of Cinematic Arts (Dornsife)". 
The MA in Visual Anthropology is new to USC Dornsife. USC has a 25-year tradition of ethnographic documentary production, with over 60 documentaries produced by students and over 20 by faculty, this new program updates its format for the digital age.
The MVA program is open to college graduates who have a background in anthropology, ethnographic documentary production, or cross-cultural visual studies, and to USC undergraduates majoring in Visual Anthropology (Dornsife).
The Visual Anthropology program uses the practice of anthropological media, hands-on training in ethnographic documentary production techniques (camera, sound, editing), as well as the opportunity for group projects and peer critique (Dornsife).

The second school I found is Temple University, they do not offer a Masters Degree program, they only offer a highly selective doctoral program leading to the Ph.D. degree. The first three years are devoted to course work. Beyond that, each student is expected to develop, in close consultation with his or her faculty advisors, an original, doctoral-research project that involves substantial field-based or laboratory-based research. The student's doctoral research must build on, and go beyond, existing scholarly work,  making a significant contribution to the discipline of anthropology (Temple).
"Temple University's Department of Anthropology is committed to producing doctorates in anthropology who are well prepared for professional careers in academia, government, non-profit/non-governmental organizations, or the private sector" (Temple). 
I read on their website that they admit applicants who are well qualified and show strong promise of being able to complete the requirements for the doctoral degree. The requirements include doing independent research and writing a dissertation that makes a significant contribution to contemporary scholarship in anthropology. I like the fact that they do not admit applicants on the assumption that some won't "have what it takes" and will have to be "weeded out." They also try to avoid putting students in the position of having to compete against one another for grades, financial resources, etc. (Temple).

The third school is MIT and they offer a program in Digital Anthropology. Digital Anthropology is an applied social science and media art that surveys the digital-artifact enabled experimental sociology/anthropology. It emphasizes on both Technology Testbeds – systematically deploying research lab prototypes and corporate pre-production products in a sample human organizational population and carefully observing the social consequences, and Sociometrics – using digital artifacts to better observe and measure the complex social reality of interesting human systems. (MIT)

The fourth school is New York University. They offer a program in Culture and Media, which takes place between the departments of Anthropology and Cinema Studies. This is considered a specialized joint study leading to a New York State Certificate in Culture and Media for NYU graduate students who are pursuing their M.A. or Ph.D. degrees in Anthropology or Cinema Studies (NYU). "The program’s philosophy takes a broad approach to the relationships between culture and media in a number of domains including: ethnographic film’s significance for the fields of anthropology and cinema/media studies; problems in representation of cultures through media; the development of media in indigenous, diaspora, and non-Western communities; the emerging social and cultural formations shaped by new media practices; and the political economy shaping the production, distribution and consumption of media worldwide" (NYU).
The program takes a broad approach to the relationships between culture and media in a number of areas including: ethnographic film; problems in representation of cultures through media; the development of media in indigenous, Diaspora, and non-Western communities; the emerging social and cultural formations shaped by new media practices; and the political economy shaping the production, distribution and consumption of media worldwide (NYU). 

The fifth school is The University of Nebraska-Lincoln. They offer a graduate program for Digital Anthropology. "Digital Anthropology refers to the intersection of anthropological scholarship and various digital technologies. Anthropologists have routinely been "early adopters" of these technologies, leading to new approaches to and new questions in anthropological scholarship" (Nebraska).

At UNL, the Department of Anthropology relies on digital technologies for scholarships, teaching, and advancement of anthropological discourse and investigation. The program teaches students to use digital tools in their field and laboratory research. The support faculty handles the digital projects that are independent and in cooperation with the Center for Digital Research in the Humanities. They also facilitate department-wide digital projects that allow students and faculty to cooperate on common research; and explore how such technologies enable a wider and deeper sharing of anthropological findings (Nebraska).

There were numerous programs for Visual Anthropology overseas. I only chose a few to talk about that I found while researching programs. 

The first one is the Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology (Freie Universität Berlin) in Berlin, Germany.  The Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology at the Freie Universität Berlin, offers a continuing education Master's (M.A.) program in Visual and Media Anthropology. The two-year, full-time Master's program comprises 120 ECTS. It is an advanced graduate degree program educating both researchers and media professionals. The language of instruction is English. It is a web-based E-learning M.A. program with in-house workshops in blocks (2-3 weeks twice a year). The program is highly international. Since its inception (winter semester 2009), the program has a successfully high rate of applicants from countries all over the world. The program matriculates between 20 and 30 students every year (Berlin).

The Second school is the University of Manchester in England. They offer a Master's program in Visual Anthropology. This course provides training in practical audiovisual skills combined with the study of visual and sensory anthropology.
Prospective candidates must choose between 2 pathways; Ethnographic Documentary with Film (EDF) & Ethnographic Documentary with Sensory Media (EDSEM). "Semester 1 is the same for students on both pathways. It includes intensive hands-on training in ethnographic documentary, modules on the history of ethnographic film & theoretical issues of visual perception/representation. In Semester 2, the pathways diverge. Students on the EDF pathway undertake further film training, whilst those on the EDSEM pathway undergo practical and intellectually-oriented training in other visual & aural media, including photography, sound recording, moving images, art, etc. The kind of practice-based exercises that the students on this pathway may engage in are shown on the following page" (Manchester).
Over the summer, all students carry out a practical field project. EDF students make a documentary film and write a `companion text'. EDSEM students conduct an original ethnographic research & write a dissertation developed around one or more media presentations, which can be photography and/or sound recording, film, drawings, an art project. Students may carry out their field projects anywhere in the world, provided they present a well thought-out proposal. Some students have gone to the most distant locations (Sri Lanka, Kazakhstan, Japan, Brazil), whilst others have chosen topics closer to home in Manchester (asylum seekers, a local beauty parlor, the gay cruising scene)(Manchester).

The third school I stumbled upon is the University of Kent in the UK.
"Kent has pioneered the social anthropological study of Europe, Latin America, Melanesia, and Central and Southeast Asia, the use of computers in anthropological research, and environmental anthropology in its widest sense (including ethnobiology and ethnobotany). It maintains an active research culture, with staff working in many different parts of the world. Our regional expertise covers Western and Southeast Europe, Europe, the Middle East, Central South East and Southern, Central and South America, Amazonia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Polynesia. Specialisation in biological anthropology includes forensics and paleopathology, osteology, evolutionary psychology and the evolutionary ecology and behaviour of great apes" (Kent).

Graduate degrees in anthropology create opportunities in many employment sectors including academia, the civil service and non-government organizations through work in areas such as human rights, journalism, documentary film making, environmental conservation and international finance. An anthropology degree also develops interpersonal and intercultural skills, which make our graduates highly desirable in any profession that involves working with people from diverse backgrounds and cultures.

Some of the Jobs that you can get that mix both Anthropology and Photography are 
Documentary film making, photojournalism, Photography and Museum Archive Collections, Photographer with National Geographic, Explorer with National Geographic,

Bibliography 

Department of Anthropology. "Graduate Degree Programs." . http://dornsife.usc.edu/anth/degree-programs/ (accessed July 18, 2014).

 Department of Anthropology. "Masters in Visual Anthropology." . http://dornsife.usc.edu/anth/masters-in-visual-anthropology/ (accessed July 18, 2014).

Freie Universität Berlin: Master Visual and Media Anthropology. " Visual and Media Anthropology at Freie Universität Berlin." . http://www.master.fu-berlin.de/visual-anthropology/program/index.html (accessed July 18, 2014).

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. "Digital Anthropology." . http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/media-arts-and-sciences/mas-966-digital-anthropology-spring-2003/ (accessed July 26, 2014).

National Geographic. "Careers FAQs." Careers in Anthropology: Northern Kentucky University, Greater Cincinnati Region. http://www.nationalgeographic.com/siteindex/careers-faqs/ (accessed July 23, 2014).

New York University. "Culture and Media." . http://anthropology.as.nyu.edu/page/specialprograms (accessed July 26, 2014).

Northern Kentucky University. "Arts & Sciences." Careers in Anthropology: Northern Kentucky University, Greater Cincinnati Region. http://artscience.nku.edu/departments/sapdept/anthropology/careers-in-anthropology.html (accessed July 23, 2014).

Temple University Department of Anthropology. "Graduate Studies." . http://www.temple.edu/anthro/graduate/index.html (accessed July 18, 2014).

University of Kent. "Visual Anthropology (MA) ." . http://www.kent.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate/201/visual-anthropology#!overview (accessed July 20, 2014).

University of Manchester. "Visual Anthropology MA." . http://www.manchester.ac.uk/study/masters/courses/list/01342/visual-anthropology-ma/ (accessed July 20, 2014).

 University of Michigan. "Photography and Archive Collections." Careers in Anthropology: Northern Kentucky University, Greater Cincinnati Region. http://www.lsa.umich.edu/ummaa/collections/photographyandarchivecollections (accessed July 23, 2014).

 University of Nebraska-Lincoln. "Digital Anthropology." . http://www.unl.edu/anthropology/digital-anthropology (accessed July 26, 2014).

Visual Anthropology - The Unseen

The definition for Visual Anthropology as taken from the Centre of Visual Anthropology in Moscow, Russia reads; 

" A cultural activity where cinema art, humanities and information technologies interact to receive and include in social practice visual information on ethnic traditions to perform dialogue of cultures."

Visual anthropology uses all the arsenal of contemporary information means, cinema art and humanitarian scholarship. It seems to be one of the most effective means to prevent ethnic and religious conflicts. It aims at preserving images of little known and vanishing cultures, showing their specificity and universal essence, dialogue between alienated worlds.

Synthetic nature of Visual Anthropology which unites expression of contemporary art and humanitarian ideas provides interest not only of professionals but also of the broader circle of viewers intrigued by historical destinies of their family, their people, their world." (Kasparova, 2012)

Plainly put, visual anthropology is exactly what its name suggests - using visual representations to capture, document, and record information about any particular segment of any given population.  The name an also be deceiving however, because it seems like any artist can call him or herself a "Visual Anthropologist." Do not be fooled, there is also extensive research and writing involved in producing a final report. However, Visual Anthropologists use aids such as photography, paintings, and even video to document their findings.

The field of Visual Anthropology gives insight into other cultures and can help us to better understand these individuals and their society. Visual Anthropology does not only use photography as a visual means, it also uses film, which is commonly referred to as ethnographic film. 

"These films are valuable in revealing a more rounded representation of the issues that anthropologists normally investigate - particularly with respect to ritual, music, dance and other areas where a purely written description cannot convey the richness of the experience" (Banks). Many Professors of anthropology have also found film to be a great way to convey a sense of the work that anthropologists actually do in the field.
However, visual anthropology is much more than ethnographic film. It encompasses a broad study of visual systems. Most anthropologists produce visual representations in the course of their work through photographs, film, maps, and diagrams, these are used to explain that all societies make visible aspects of their social life and their cultural understandings. Visual anthropology is concerned with understanding the production and consumption of all these forms. Visual anthropology overlaps with the anthropology of art, but also includes the study of local photography and  television and film production (Banks)."

In 1984 the Society for Visual Anthropology was founded, this society promotes the use of images for the description, analysis, communication and interpretation of human behavior. The Society encourages the use of media, including still photography, film, video and non-camera generated images, in the recording of ethnographic, archaeological and other anthropological genres. Members examine how aspects of culture can be pictorially/visually interpreted and expressed, and how images can be understood as artifacts of culture. Historical photographs, in particular, are seen as a source of ethnographic data, expanding our horizons beyond the reach of memory culture. The society also supports the study of indigenous media and their grounding in personal, social, cultural and ideological contexts, and how anthropological productions can be exhibited and used more effectively in classrooms, museums and television (SVA,2014).

Some of the anthropologists I have found that have practiced visual anthropology include,

John Collier, Jr. who was an American anthropologist and leader in the fields of Visual anthropology and Applied anthropology. "His analysis and use of still photographs in ethnography led him to significant contributions in other sub-fields of anthropology, especially the applied anthropology of education. His book, Visual Anthropology: Photography as a Research Method (1967) is one of the earliest textbooks in the field and is still (revised 1986) in use today" (Biella, 2002). Collier published in 1967 a book called as Visual Anthropology: Photography as a Research Method. This was recognized as the first published use of the term 'visual anthropology', this book and its second edition (co-authored with Malcolm Collier) have remained important references in the field (Biella 2002).

John Collier via Peter Biella

Margaret Mead, an American anthropologist, who became widely known for her research with Samoan  native people of New Guinea, played an important role in the development of the use of image techniques in anthropological research. "Mead worked under Franz Boas (1858-1942), in Samoa, with research demonstrating how the behavior of Samoan adolescents was not shaped by the emotional crises attributed by contemporary Western psychologists to the inherent psycho-physiology of pubescent youths. Her research therefore emphasized the role of culture in a critical study of behaviour deemed to be 'natural.' However it was in Bali that the author embarked on her first and unparalleled extensive incursion into the use of images on anthropological fieldwork" (Mendonça, 2012).  Mead to perceived the importance of the camera in the development of anthropological methods( Mendonça).

Margaret Mead. Photo credit: Wikipedia

 Timothy O’Sullivan, was a journalist who documented the interactions among settlers and Native Americans in the Old West. His ethnographic style and eye for detail,  made an important effect to be authentic. "O’Sullivan was famous for not trying to romanticise the native American plight or way of life in his photographs and instead of asking them to wear tribal dress was happy to photograph them wearing denim jeans" (Confluey).

Timothy O'Sullivan. Photo Credit: Wikipedia

  As anthropological research goes, visual anthropology is one of the newest methods being used today. The entire field is only possible due to the advanced technology of the 20th and 21st century. Every industry and field of study is in a constant state of change and adaptation, much like the life and cultures that are studied by the anthropological associations. Using the past as a guideline, I am sure that as new technologies come about, they will in turn be used in more anthropological research, thus spinning a new sub-category of anthropology that will soon be taught in universities world-wide as the new accepted norm - and the cycle will continue. 

Bibliography

Banks, Marcus. "Visual Anthropology." . http://www.discoveranthropology.org.uk/about-anthropology/specialist-areas/visual-anthropology.html (accessed July 16, 2014).

Biella, Peter. "The Legacy of John Collier Jr.." . http://online.sfsu.edu/biella/biella2002c.pdf (accessed July 17, 2014).

 Braga de Mendonça, João Martinho. "John Collier, Jr.: A Visual Journey." . http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?pid=S1809-43412012000200008&script=sci_arttext (accessed July 16, 2014).

CEM Productions. "John Collier, Jr.: A Visual Journey." . http://www.cemproductions.org/documentaries/johncollierjr.html (accessed July 17, 2014).

 (SVA) Society for Visual Anthropology. "About the SVA." . http://societyforvisualanthropology.org/about/ (accessed July 16, 2014).

Wayne, Rachel. "Ethnography Photography of the Wild West." . http://anthropologyoffilm.wordpress.com/ (accessed July 16, 2014).

My name is Amy Deschaine.


I am a self taught photographer who loves to be behind the camera capturing wonderful memories for my clients. The main part of my business is photographing young children and newborns, as well as weddings. I occasionally do use studio lighting, however I consider myself a natural light photographer. This means that the photos I take utilize and enhance natural sunlight both indoors and outdoors.


 I have been taking photos professionally for about 5 years now. My interest in photography was sparked when my father-in-law gave me his Canon 50D (semi-pro camera) and I began "tinkering" with it. I literally stumbled into something that I was very passionate about. After setting up my first-ever photo session (with my toddler son) and receiving many compliments on Facebook, I decided that this could be a possible business venture.


 I was in my first semester in college, but in my spare time absorbed every bit of information about camera utilization and photography techniques. I began to realize that the more photos I took the sharper my skills became. Only utilizing Facebook as my first real "website" and only marketing platform, people began to contact me to ask for prices.


 Prices? I had not actually decided what to charge people yet! So, a few solid days of figuring, crunching numbers, and asking friends and family for advice on what they would and would not pay, I emerged with version one of my very first price list. Word of mouth began to work in my favor, and every time I did a session for someone new, I would post it to Facebook.


I have since received many personal referrals from happy clients, refined my pricing structure, and even set up a professional website which allows clients to have their own gallery and option to order straight from the website. I have even done work for other well-known photographers in this area, as well as paid a few freelancers as assistants myself. I am even beginning to create a client-base in New Jersey and Virginia!


My success in the photography industry still shocks me when I reflect on it. It was never meant to be a long-term plan. Photography was going to be "what I was doing" to help pay my way through college.  It was just sheer luck that I enjoyed it and wish to continue on with it.


Prior to photography, I always had two loves: History, and Indigenous tribes. To this day, I love learning about both. I actually suggested to my husband that I would love to one day get the chance to travel the world and photograph many tribal peoples in their daily lives. That is when my anthropological research turned me to Visual Anthropology!


I was so excited to hear that there was actually a career that encompassed my photography skills, and my love for the study of tribes. Since studying tribal life is actually like a modern day look into the past - I could not be happier.


My plan is to attend a graduate program for Visual Anthropology, ultimately attaining a PhD. During that time I wish to apply as a photographer with National Geographic in their explorer program.

A look at Cinemagraphs

I wanted to talk about these awesome images that are called Cinemagraphs! They are so life like its unreal! A cinemagraph is a still image with subtle motion. 

Cinemagraphs are still images that contain within themselves living elements allowing a glimpse of time to be experienced and preserved. Cinemagraph is a technique of blending the effects of images and videos. It was introduced by a New York fashion photographer Jamie Beck, in collaboration with motion graphics designer Kevin Burg. Since then, many other designers have created similar forms of cinemagraphs. Cinemagraphs are typically simply created as animated .gif files making them easy to use on a web page. Source

*Don’t scroll too fast if you want to experience the Cinemagraphs and look carefully – elements you don’t expect to move may do it…!

Here are some stunning examples of cinemagraphs. -All photos belong to Jamie Beck and Kevin Burg. 

By simply moving some grasses, the entire photo has been brought back to life completely.



Doesn't that bacon look delicious! cinemagraph will be the next big thing for food advertising. (Image source: Vickan Flickan)



How fresh it is! A tasty cinemagrah made for online grocery site, Gilt Taste. (Image source: From Me To You)



I hope you enjoyed my post!