Policies on attendance and make-ups

A lot of our learning will be through in-class critique, discussion, and hands-on demonstrations. This time cannot be made up. Therefore, attendance is critical for your success in this class.

• Students who have 6 or more absences or tardies will have a letter-grade deduction on their final grade regardless of performance on assignments.

• Students who are absent 9 or more days are at risk of failure or being removed from the class at my discretion.

• Class assignments and quizzes cannot be made up.

• Photo assignments may be made up at my discretion if you communicate with me in advance.

• Makeups must be done within two weeks of the original due date.

Policies on shooting photos

• All work must be completed by you. 

• All work must be completed this semester.  You may not turn in photos or work you’ve done prior to this class. 

• Go into your camera's settings and make sure the date is correct. The date should be written into the metadata (it's invisible!), not seen on the front of the images like my grandpa's pictures of me from Christmas 1991. I also need the correct date to check when you've created the work.

• You may not turn in work that you’ve also submitted in another class.   You will receive a zero for work that wasn't done this semester or wasn't done by you. 

• All photos must be made with available light.  You may not use flash or other lighting to make images.

• You cannot use family members, friends, or animals/pets as your subject. I know it can feel weird at first, but it's really important that you start practicing getting pictures of strangers and using a network of contacts to find subjects. 

• You may not stage, direct, or pose any photos except for the portrait assignment. All other photos should be candid.  Your job is to witness and document, not stage or set things up.

Policies on editing 

• We will follow AP guidelines for acceptable editing.  These guidelines state:

  • "Minor adjustments to photos are acceptable. 

  • These include cropping, dodging and burning, conversion into grayscale, elimination of dust on camera sensors and normal toning and color adjustments. 

  • These should be limited to those minimally necessary for clear and accurate reproduction and that restore the authentic nature of the photograph. 

  • Changes in density, contrast, color and saturation levels that substantially alter the original scene are not acceptable. 

  • Backgrounds should not be digitally blurred or eliminated by burning down or by aggressive toning. 

  • The removal of “red eye” from photographs is not permissible."

• We will not be learning or using any advanced Photoshop techniques.

• In our class, I'll tell you when you're allowed to start cropping photos.

Policies in the classroom

• All submissions may be shown in class and critiqued/discussed by your classmates.  Do not turn in work you don’t want shown to the rest of the class.

• News photographs sometimes show offensive or graphic events – hate groups, victims of disaster or crime, etc. All submissions, but especially those that might be considered offensive, must have news value that justifies their use. You may be asked to view, discuss, and critique images of an offensive or graphic nature in class.

• No audio or video recording during class unless necessary as an accommodation with proper documentation from CASS. No sharing of recordings, posts, screenshots, or any other material from the course is permitted. This policy is determined by federal law and UTEP's acceptable-use policy and disciplinary action may be taken against students who are in violation. 

• You need to back up copies of your work.  I recommend a portable hard drive if you'll be working on school computers, because RAW files take up a lot of space. Even with your own computer, a portable hard drive or RAID system is a good idea to save space on your computer.

• I do not accept assignment submissions through email. Submit your work on Blackboard or Drive. 

• Late work is a pain to deal with and I don't like it. Let me know in advance if you won't be able to meet a deadline so we can discuss options and/or penalties. 

Academic dishonesty

• Academic dishonesty is prohibited and is considered a violation of rules articulated in UTEP’s Handbook of Operating Procedures. It is also contrary to the process of organizational leadership itself, and includes, but is not limited to, cheating, plagiarism, and collusion.

• Any sort of academic dishonesty attempted by a UTEP students is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.  Violations will be taken seriously.  Students will receive a zero on any assignment where there is a reasonable suspicion of cheating, plagiarism, and/or collusion.  

• Additionally, students who are suspected of academic dishonesty will be referred to the Office of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution for possible disciplinary action. Students may be suspended or expelled from UTEP for such actions. More information can be found in the UTEP Handbook of Operating Procedures, under the heading “Alleged Student Scholastic Dishonesty” and the UT System Regent’s Rules and Regulations.

Students with special needs 

• The University is committed to providing reasonable accommodations and auxiliary services to students, staff, faculty, job applicants, applicants for admissions, and other beneficiaries of University programs, services and activities with documented disabilities in order to provide them with equal opportunities to participate in programs, services, and activities in compliance with sections 503 and 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 and the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA) of 2008. Students who become pregnant or have parenting responsibilities may also request reasonable accommodations. Reasonable accommodations will be made unless it is determined that doing so would cause undue hardship on the University. The UTEP Center for Accommodations and Support Services (CASS) will process requests for accommodations based on a disability, pregnancy, or parenting. Contact the Center for Accommodations and Support Services at 915-747-5148, email them at cass@utep.edu, or apply for accommodations online via the CASS portal.

• tl;dr: If you have a documented disability or need that requires accommodations, you'll need to make a formal request by contacting the Center for Accommodations and Support Services (CASS) at cass@utep.edu.