Master of Arts - Commercial Photography
- 1,5 years
- Duration
- 30,890 GBP
- Price
- September
- Start
- June
- Deadline
- Master
- Degree
- Campus
- Format
- London / United Kingdom
- Location
Program description
The MA Commercial Photography programme at London College of Communication focuses on technical excellence, preparing you to become a high‑end freelance photographer across areas such as advertising, fashion, still‑life, portraiture, fine art, lifestyle, and editorial. It also supports alternative career pathways like retouching, creative production, digital technology, or picture editing.
The course develops an advanced competence in responding to key developments in contemporary commercial photography, considering the impact of global, ethical, and technological changes that demand adaptive visual approaches and distinctive concept development. Independent learning is central, integrating contemporary technical and business skills with critical and research practices throughout.
Program structure
- Commercial Photography in Practice (40 credits)
This unit hones your image‑making skills and develops your style as a commercial photographer, providing robust theoretical and practical frameworks for producing a short series of images in response to a set brief. With an industry focus including visits and guest speakers, it equips you to work to commission in varied contexts, culminating in an assessed assignment after formative feedback.
- Histories and Theories of Commercial Photographic Practices (20 credits)
This unit positions contemporary commercial practices within historical contexts by analysing significant photographers, movements, and agencies. Grounded in photographic research methodologies, it examines concurrent practices - especially the work of global practitioners across generations - that relate to and intersect with ethical, social, political, and economic contexts.
- Collaborative Unit (20 credits)
This unit is designed to enable you to identify, form, and develop collaborative working relationships with a range of potential partners, such as other postgraduate students at UAL or external organisations like NGOs, businesses, or charities. The collaboration involves working on a project with agreed outcomes, conducted as group work either within the College or digitally/remotely.
- Professional Identities and Portfolio Developments (40 credits)
This unit develops your working knowledge of contemporary business practice with an emphasis on freelance photography, examining current trends and media convergence within the commercial field. Through research and practice, you will build a professional portfolio aligned with your personal interests, investigate how your practice fits within the commercial landscape, and explore strategies for marketing and branding your work.
By bringing together your developing skills, the unit enables you to produce a portfolio that demonstrates an adaptive yet distinct personal style within the context of commercial production.
- Final Major Project (60 credits)
The Final Major Project enables you to create a substantial self‑initiated project that synthesises your skills, knowledge, and understanding, while supporting the development of a professional portfolio for your future career. Supervised throughout, the unit includes research planning, methodologies, and the application of models to commercial photographic practice, culminating in the presentation of your findings.
Price
Tuition fee:
- 30,890 GBP per education*
*Tuition fees may increase in future years for new and continuing students on courses lasting more than one year. For this course, you can pay tuition fees in instalments.
You may need to cover additional costs which are not included in your tuition fees, such as materials and equipment specific to your course.
Requirements for applicants
Educational level may be demonstrated by:
- An Honours degree in photography or a photographic/visual/lens-based related area;
- Possession of equivalent qualifications;
- Prior experiential learning, the outcome of which can be demonstrated to be equivalent to formal qualifications otherwise required;
- Or a combination of formal qualifications and experiential learning which, taken together, can be demonstrated to be equivalent to formal qualifications otherwise required.
Applicants who do not meet these course entry requirements may still be considered in exceptional cases.
The course team will consider each application that demonstrates additional strengths and alternative evidence. This might, for example, be demonstrated by:
- Related academic or work experience
- The quality of the personal statement
- A strong academic or other professional reference
- OR a combination of these factors
Each application will be considered on its own merit but we cannot guarantee an offer in each case.
English language requirements
- IELTS 6.5 (or equivalent) is required, with 5.5 in speaking, listening, reading, writing.
About the university
The University of the Arts London (UAL) produces and encourages the creativity essential for a better future. Its colleges have been at the forefront of innovative education since 1842, creating work with a lasting impact on people and the planet, driven by curiosity, imagination, and purpose.
London is fundamental to UAL's identity, providing a vital context where the university connects and exchanges ideas with individuals from all walks of life. Globally, its creative network influences education, culture, business, and society.
Through innovative research and creative instruction, UAL's faculty and staff bring fresh perspectives to education. The university enables students to build the careers they desire by working with them at every level - from pre-degree to postgraduate, and from short courses to online learning.
UAL's colleges
Ranked second in the world for art and design, UAL comprises six distinct colleges:
- Camberwell College of Arts
- Central Saint Martins
- Chelsea College of Arts
- London College of Communication
- London College of Fashion
- Wimbledon College of Arts
Together, they form a community of creatives, innovators, trailblazers, and storytellers, united in their mission to reimagine the future.
Courses in the visual arts, animation, screen, communication, fashion, media, and performance are available at the undergraduate and graduate levels.
