1. Syllabus for History of Photography-Tech 2032
Fall 2011
Meets; 12:30-2:00 PM Tuesday and Thursday, Rm 17, Harper Hall
Instructor: Pac McLaurin pac911@charter.net home: 828-963-7883
Office: Room 108, Harper Hall Office: 264-8405
Text: Hirsch, Seizing the Light, Required
1. Life Value of the Course
Learners/students will appreciate the interconnectedness of photography and
societal history. They will understand those elements in a photograph that make it
meaningful. Identifying the historical development of photography in the context of the
world’s evolving history they will better appreciate the contemporaneous practices they
undertake. There is a conundrum in the study of history that most students don’t
consider. That is that the study of the past is essential to our understanding or predicting
the future. To understand where one is going (forward looking), one must know where
they have been. The students who take this course will learn that lesson well.
In this course we are going to try to not only look at the beginnings of picture making,
but also at some of the major and often pivotal changes that photography has under gone.
Along with this we will discuss the power of the photographic image and its ability to
influence our behavior and society’s behavior. This course will look at the evolution of
photography over the course of the past 150 years since its origins in France to the
current phase of the leap to digital imaging. Along the way we will look into some of the
political, war, and social issues of that period. We will especially study the events where
photography really shined as a major influential force. It is impossible to cover all
photographers and photographic movements. There will likely be some gross examples of
this. If you have some favorite photographer who has some historical or cultural interest,
by all means bring them up. My prejudices as to important movements, important
photographers, and tastes in photography will inevitably show up. Please feel free to
challenge them. That’s how we all learn.
You will have to read and study images on a regular basis; there is simply no other way
to learn history. You cannot compress 150 years of happenings into 2 or 3 nights of
cramming for tests. Regular reading and review of images is essential. I will put them on
course’s AsuLearn site regularly. You will be responsible for knowing them. Image
recognition will be a part of test and exams.
I use the ASUlearn site very heavily. It should be considered an integral part of the
course. You are responsible for knowing what is there and checking it regularly. I
will try to alert you if I post something new, but you are obligated to check it. Sometimes
I will post things such as web sites or interesting articles that I hope you will read. While

2. they may not be required for the basics of the course, those tidbits are where the “A”s in
this course reside this year. A means superior, superior means above and beyond good.
We will have three on-line quizzes, and then a final on line. There will also be one-
page reflective essays that will be submitted on ASULearn. The class will be divided into
groups of ca. 5 students per group. The groups will do several projects working in class
and out of class and then will report to the class, sometimes a spokesman during class
will speak, other times it may be a report issued to the entire class for comment on
ASULearn. You must be in a group. If one person is just not able to function in their
particular group , we do have a mechanism for divorce, I take it seriously, so should you.
You can contact me if such strife occurs.
A term paper is required during this class. The paper will be a significant part of the
assigned work because you will be required to think critically about a specific issue or
topic. You are being told today that the requirement for a paper exists. I will give
you a separate sheet re: term paper and the various dates for submissions. If it is not
turned in on time, you will lose one letter grade for each class (not week) it is late. It will
not be accepted after two weeks. All this knowledge does you no good if you can’t use
it. The paper is due on Thursday, November 24.
You might get an assignment on ASUlearn that requires that you upload a paper to the
site. I will grade those or give you some form of credit.
The points toward your final grade are all listed on the schedule. You will notice that
there are a lot of seemingly small or insignificant things worth a few points, they are not
insignificant and if you miss them they are gone forever. You simply can’t get them back.
When you parse out the points for each stage of the term paper you will see it is a big
item. Doing it the right way is also a big item. Spreading the points encourages you to do
it the right way.
Incompletes An “I” provides us a way to accommodate those who fall ill or have some
other crisis that forces them to not be able to deal with the work and they don’t not want
to drop the course or are in a position where they can’t drop without suffering some
academic harm. Incompletes are not a way to “CYA” when you just did not get the work
done. That just doesn’t work out well for anyone. So, if you decide you need an
Incomplete, have your data ready and meet with me.
Attendance is essential for you to do well. It is up to you, but it is your job these days.
According to Woody Allen ninety per cent of success is just showing up. I will supply
you with any handouts you might have missed, but you will be on your own otherwise.
After 2 cuts each absence costs you one letter grade. So if you miss 4 classes, the best
you can hope for is a C. Photo majors will need a C+ to get useful credit. I recognize that
bad things happen to nice people and that you might become ill, have a family
emergency, or something of that nature. I will try to help all I can in those circumstances.
You simply need to approach me and talk with me about that. Remember though, the
bottom line is that attendance is important. How will I take roll? A class this large can’t

3. have roll call each meeting. There will be exit cards with questions about the day’s class,
one minute essays, or other issues that must be turned in when you leave That’s how you
get counted present. So get some index cards and use them.
If you are having difficulty with any aspect of the class-the lectures, the text, or whatever,
then it is your responsibility to speak up at the time. I am very approachable, I may or
may not understand your problem, but we can at least work on it. If you ask me if you
can miss class to go do other photography, study for another class or because your work
schedule got messed up I will tell you that you must make your own judgments. If you
leave, then I will mark you absent. That is called responsibility. If you are depressed,
having difficulties with this or any other class, then you should speak to me sooner rather
than later. The University has excellent counseling resources, and you should take
advantage of them rather than have your work slide.
Cell phones must be cut off. If your phone goes off, then I will ask you to leave, and
mark you absent. Lap top computers must be cut off and kept closed. Keyboarding
notes has been studied and has been shown to be almost useless. If you have some
disability that requires that you make notes with special software, bring a note from the
appropriate student support service and you will be accommodated. All of the standards
of the Academic Integrity Council apply to this course. Cheating, plagiarism, and
lying, will be dealt with as aggressively as the council permits. Such activities have no
place in the University and will make your life much more complicated than you might
have hoped for. You must not cheat or plagiarize; it will be dealt with severely if it
should occur.
If you have any disability or special needs, then I will work with you to the fullest extent
permitted and available. It is your responsibility to be registered with the office that
assists those with disability and to notify me of your special requirements.
A class like this is tough-tough to take, tough to teach. Both activities--listening for an
hour and twenty minutes or talking for the same period are equally hard. I will try my
best to keep it interesting; each of you can do the same by speaking up and participating
in the class. Some days it will work, others we will just have to take in stride. Most
photographers are strange enough people that they are fun to talk about, so let’s remain
optimistic.