Commercial Photography Courses

As the world of photography progressed from analogue to digital cameras, this art of capturing the beauty of our world in a visual form also evolved towards becoming a full-fledged career. As a profession, photography has become an essential part of the media and entertainment industry and has sprouted into varied branches such as event photography, wildlife photography, food photography amongst others. For those wanting to delve deeper into this art with a focus on following it as a profession, commercial photography courses are the ones to opt for. These programs provide you with an in-depth knowledge of this visual art form, its technical aspects as well as aesthetic features. Through this blog, we will take a look at the wide range of commercial photography courses available across the globe along with listing down the universities offering them.

Overview

Commercial Photography courses generally comprise of foundational art concepts combined with the technical and artistic aspects of photography. From the history of how photography evolved as an art, they also cover the technical evolution of cameras as well as the structural progression of lenses. With the emergence of inventively advanced smartphones, many universities have also introduced mobile photography in their curriculums. Lab practicals are also an integral part of these programs as students get to learn about darkroom development and film editing along with photography tools like filters, lenses and flashes. Commercial photography also encompasses industrial photography and you will also study about fashion photography, food photography, portrait photography and photojournalism.

List of Commercial Photography Courses

A wide range of commercial photography courses is offered at diploma, bachelor’s and master’s level that one can choose from. The eligibility criteria for these programs may differ from course to course as well as one university to another but is quite flexible for diploma and certificate courses. The following table lists some of the major programs available in Commercial Photography and its related fields:

Level	Commercial Photography Courses
Diploma/Certificate	Diploma in Photography Graduate Certificate in Photography Diploma of Photography and Photo Imaging
Bachelor’s Level	BA in Visual Communication- Photography BSc in Visual Communication BA in Photography BFA in Photography BA (Hons) Photojournalism and Photography BS/BFA in Photography BFA in Art Photography BA in Studio Art BFA in Photography and Media
Master’s Level	MFA in Photography MA in Studio Art- Photography MFA in Studio Art- Photography MFA in Photography

To know more about these courses, check out Top Photography Courses!

Commercial Photography Online Courses

If you are aiming to begin with the basics of commercial photography, then online courses are the best ones, to begin with. Here are popular commercial photography online courses:

• Wedding Photography: Complete Guide to Wedding Photography on Udemy
• Basic Food Photography on Udemy
• LinkedIn for Photographers and Videographers on Udemy
• Commercial Photography: Still and Moving Image on FutureLearn
• Commercial Photography Masterclass on Udemy

Top Photography Schools in India

There are numerous specialised photography schools and institutes in India which you can explore study commercial photography. Here are the top institutes for learning commercial photography in India:

• Delhi School of Photography
• Pixel Institute of Photography
• National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad
• Asian Academy of Film and Television
• YMCA, New Delhi
• Light and Life Academy
• Jawaharlal Nehru Architecture and Fine Arts University, Hyderabad
• AJ Kidwai Mass Communication Research Center
• Osmania University

Check out our exclusive list of Photography courses in Delhi!

Major Universities Offering Commercial Photography Courses

Choosing a top university that equip with the right exposure and training in establishing a shining career in photography is a crucial decision. To help you further in your research, below listed are some fo the globally renowned schools and universities offering plentiful commercial photography courses that you can opt for:

• Rochester Institute of Technology
• New York University
• Syracuse University
• Rhode Island School of Design
• Yale University
• Washington University
• American University
• University of Southern California
• Brigham Young University
• California Institute of The Arts
• Goldsmith University of London
• Speos International Photo School 
• University of Leeds
• University of Hertfordshire  
• Ryerson University 
• RMIT University 
• Niagara College 
• University of The Arts London

Career Prospects

Commercial photography courses open up an array of photography jobs in a wide range of sectors. It is quite a common conception that photographers can only work in the media industry but with the increasing importance of online presence in almost every field, you can explore varied opportunities in many fields. Here is a list of career profiles that budding photographers can apply for:

• Fine Arts Photographer 
• Photojournalist
• Product & Commercial Photographer
• Wildlife Photographer 
• Fashion Photographer
• Automobile Photographer
• Film Photographer
• Sports Photographer
• Business and Industrial Photographer
• Wedding Photographer 
• Food Photographer

Thus, commercial photography courses aim to gear you up with the ideal technical and aesthetic training in this visual art field. Pursuing any of these courses from an international photography school can further provide you with incredible global exposure as well as networking opportunities. If you are planning to study a photography program abroad, reach out to our experts at Leverage Edu and we will help you choose a suitable course and university as well as throughout the admission process to ensure that you ger successfully shortlisted.