Southern Utah University

Course Syllabus

Southern Utah University
Southern Utah University
Spring Semester 2026

Photography Capstone (Face-to-Face)

ART 4850-01

Course: ART 4850-01
Credits: 3
Term: Spring Semester 2026
Department: ARTD
CRN: 10460

Course Description

Students focus on refining skills for building a personal and professional porWolio. This course provides @me and facili@es for advanced photo students to develop increased mastery of photographic methods, techniques, and processes in order to create photographs for use in their porWolio. Study includes comprehensive and cri@cal readings, screenings, and exhibi@on visits surrounding the medium of photography. The student must be in their senior year and have passed the BFA review.

Course Content/Philosophy:

This course is intended to provide the student with conceptual and theore@cal grounding related to their senior-level prac@ce. The intent of this course is to move you, the ar@st, from the act of randomly taking photographs and assigning meaning to a more mature prac@ce involving research and cri@cality.

READINGS and assigned videos etc. are a core component of the class. In this course you will be responsible for the conceptual basis of your images at every level. This is not a course where an “A” is automa@cally granted.

Required Texts

NONE: However…. I will be providing text for EACH of you to read. This is text that I have researched for you-so please take a moment to at least skim the material and make talking points for class.

Learning Outcomes

As a result of successfully comple@ng this course students will:

  • Apply research and suggested readings to their crea@ve prac@ce
  • Develop a highly refined body of senior level work
  • Submit work for cri@que and both provide and apply feedback in the peer group -Refine and develop advanced photography skills and concepts.
  • Express their work verbally and in wri]en form addressing issues of concept and idea@on.

Course Requirements

Assignments:

This will NOT be an assignment-heavy course. We will have four moments to submit work. It is crucial that you meet these deadlines. This is THE senior level course on photography, work that is not executed well, turned in late, or submi]ed in an unfinished manner will be cri@qued harshly.

Cri@ques:

We will have four major cri@ques this semester and also smaller cri@ques that may count for points. It is important that you prepare and present work during these @mes. Since this is about work you will be both exhibi@ng and using to enter the professional world, cri@ques will be more direct and unfiltered.

Authorship / Quality Policy:

All work submi]ed for credit must be new work made THIS semester for this class and must be made personally by the student. For digital output, if you use an outside service bureau (i.e. Walmart, etc.); you must supervise the process closely enough so that all prints meet your final approval.

The student is fully responsible for the technical and aesthe@c quality of all the work submi]ed for credit in this class.

Points Breakdown:
  • Ques@onnaire: - 50pts
  • Presenta@on of Current Work: -50 possible points
  • Ar@st Statement: -50 possible points
  • PorWolio of work: -50 possible points
  • Final Body of Work: -100 possible points

Course Outline

Due to the one-on-one nature of this course our schedule will depend on the students taking this sec&on and their schedules. We will meet roughly once a week and talk about a variety of topics.

Please also note that there is ample opportunity for you to bring in topics which you would like to cover so please do not be shy in reques&ng content that assists the comple&on of your porBolio.

Week 1
  • Intro/Syllabus
  • Handout ques&onnaire
Week 2

Review ques&onnaire and present current porBolio

Week 3
  • Image presenta&on for each student based on their expressed interests in photography.
  • Please remember to bring notebook
Week 5

Image presenta&on on copyright

Week 6

Presenta&on on methods materials and processes and their link to concept

Week 7

Students present outline of proposed work

Week 8

Work week, meet in studio for technical assistance

Week 9

Prin&ng framing and presenta&on

Week 10

Copyright

Week 11

Contracts and professional forms

Week 12

Progress cri&ques on work in progress

Week 13/14/15

Weekly mee&ngs on progress of projects

Week 16

Final presenta&on

Instructor's policies on late assignments and/or makeup work

Assignment Due Dates:

Everything due for an assignment is listed on each individual assignment sheet along with the date when it is due. All assignments are due at the beginning of class.

It is the student’s responsibility to keep track of what is due and when it is due.

Late Work Policy:

All assignments are due on the date as stated on each assignment sheet. Late work will NOT be accepted.

Wri]en Document Policy:

All wri]en documents due for credit must be printed and turned in at the beginning of the class on the assigned due date. It is the student’s responsibility to have their wri]en documents printed before class and turned in on @me. No wri]en document will be accepted late or electronically!

Attendance Policy

Due to the studio nature of the course a]endance is flexible. It is, however, important to a]end the days when we actually meet.

Course Fees

 

Program Fee: $51.00 ($17.00 per credit)

The program fee charged for this course is designed to maintain high quality programming, equipment, software, materials, and supplies and services for students in the College of Performing and Visual Arts at Southern Utah University.

Prerequisites

Prereqs: ART 3800 and ART 3810 - Prerequisite Min. Grade: C

  • Meet assigned deadlines
  • Accept and apply feedback
  • Interact professionally with their professor and peers
  • Prepare for and contribute to class discussions and cri@ques

You are responsible for keeping track of your grades. All grades will be posted on SUU’s online instruc@onal media system called CANVAS.

The use of cellular phones or any mobile communica@on device in class is not permi]ed. Students are responsible for silencing such devices and stowing them out of sight during class. If you are caught using such a device during class, you will be asked to leave and marked absent for that class.

Students are responsible for all materials covered in class and note taking is highly encouraged. The professor is not responsible to re-teach missed or neglected material (see a]endance policy), but rather will review the student’s notes with the student to clarify misconcep@ons.

ADA Statement

Students with medical, psychological, learning, or other disabilities desiring academic adjustments, accommodations, or auxiliary aids will need to contact the Disability Resource Center, located in Room 206F of the Sharwan Smith Center or by phone at (435) 865-8042. The Disability Resource Center determines eligibility for and authorizes the provision of services.

If your instructor requires attendance, you may need to seek an ADA accommodation to request an exception to this attendance policy. Please contact the Disability Resource Center to determine what, if any, ADA accommodations are reasonable and appropriate.

Academic Credit

According to the federal definition of a Carnegie credit hour: A credit hour of work is the equivalent of approximately 60 minutes of class time or independent study work. A minimum of 45 hours of work by each student is required for each unit of credit. Credit is earned only when course requirements are met. One (1) credit hour is equivalent to 15 contact hours of lecture, discussion, testing, evaluation, or seminar, as well as 30 hours of student homework. An equivalent amount of work is expected for laboratory work, internships, practica, studio, and other academic work leading to the awarding of credit hours. Credit granted for individual courses, labs, or studio classes ranges from 0.5 to 15 credit hours per semester.

Academic Freedom

SUU is operated for the common good of the greater community it serves. The common good depends upon the free search for truth and its free exposition. Academic Freedom is the right of faculty to study, discuss, investigate, teach, and publish. Academic Freedom is essential to these purposes and applies to both teaching and research.

Academic Freedom in the realm of teaching is fundamental for the protection of the rights of the faculty member and of you, the student, with respect to the free pursuit of learning and discovery. Faculty members possess the right to full freedom in the classroom in discussing their subjects. They may present any controversial material relevant to their courses and their intended learning outcomes, but they shall take care not to introduce into their teaching controversial materials which have no relation to the subject being taught or the intended learning outcomes for the course.

As such, students enrolled in any course at SUU may encounter topics, perspectives, and ideas that are unfamiliar or controversial, with the educational intent of providing a meaningful learning environment that fosters your growth and development. These parameters related to Academic Freedom are included in SUU Policy 6.6.

Academic Misconduct

Scholastic honesty is expected of all students. Dishonesty will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent (see SUU Policy 6.33). You are expected to have read and understood the current SUU student conduct code (SUU Policy 11.2) regarding student responsibilities and rights, the intellectual property policy (SUU Policy 5.52), information about procedures, and what constitutes acceptable behavior.

Please Note: The use of websites or services that sell essays is a violation of these policies; likewise, the use of websites or services that provide answers to assignments, quizzes, or tests is also a violation of these policies. Regarding the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), you should check with your individual course instructor.

Emergency Management Statement

In case of an emergency, the University's Emergency Notification System (ENS) will be activated. Students are encouraged to maintain updated contact information using the link on the homepage of the mySUU portal. In addition, students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the Emergency Response Protocols posted in each classroom. Detailed information about the University's emergency management plan can be found at https://www.suu.edu/emergency.

HEOA Compliance Statement

For a full set of Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) compliance statements, please visit https://www.suu.edu/heoa. The sharing of copyrighted material through peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing, except as provided under U.S. copyright law, is prohibited by law; additional information can be found at https://my.suu.edu/help/article/1096/heoa-compliance-plan.

You are also expected to comply with policies regarding intellectual property (SUU Policy 5.52) and copyright (SUU Policy 5.54).

Mandatory Reporting

University policy (SUU Policy 5.60) requires instructors to report disclosures received from students that indicate they have been subjected to sexual misconduct/harassment. The University defines sexual harassment consistent with Federal Regulations (34 C.F.R. Part 106, Subpart D) to include quid pro quo, hostile environment harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking. When students communicate this information to an instructor in-person, by email, or within writing assignments, the instructor will report that to the Title IX Coordinator to ensure students receive support from the Title IX Office. A reporting form is available at https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?SouthernUtahUniv

Non-Discrimination Statement

SUU is committed to fostering an inclusive community of lifelong learners and believes our university's encompassing of different views, beliefs, and identities makes us stronger, more innovative, and better prepared for the global society.

SUU does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, citizenship, sex (including sex discrimination and sexual harassment), sexual orientation, gender identity, age, ancestry, disability status, pregnancy, pregnancy-related conditions, genetic information, military status, veteran status, or other bases protected by applicable law in employment, treatment, admission, access to educational programs and activities, or other University benefits or services.

SUU strives to cultivate a campus environment that encourages freedom of expression from diverse viewpoints. We encourage all to dialogue within a spirit of respect, civility, and decency.

For additional information on non-discrimination, please see SUU Policy 5.27 and/or visit https://www.suu.edu/nondiscrimination.

Pregnancy

Students who are or become pregnant during this course may receive reasonable modifications to facilitate continued access and participation in the course. Pregnancy and related conditions are broadly defined to include pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation, related medical conditions, and recovery. To obtain reasonable modifications, please make a request to title9@suu.edu. To learn more visit: https://www.suu.edu/titleix/pregnancy.html.

Disclaimer Statement

Information contained in this syllabus, other than the grading, late assignments, makeup work, and attendance policies, may be subject to change with advance notice, as deemed appropriate by the instructor.