John Howard Loc: SW Florida and Blue Ridge Mountains of NC.

I have read here on UHH some positive reports on the New York Institute of Photography. Some advice also says that a real classroom situation would be better. Problem is the only schools where I live only have half day beginner classes.
I looked in to NYIP and am finding it a bit strange. Online, I ask to see course info, and before I log off, they are calling me and chasing me with emails. Their emails have a link to contact them, but it does not work unless you have a student id, which you only get when you sign up for a course. It's like, they want me to sign up for a course before they tell me the scope of the class and before I know it fits my needs.
Does anyone have any positive experience with this school?

Rongnongno Loc: FL

High pressure sale?

Forget it, rule of thumb.

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

John, there are tons of tutorials on youtube. Check out the videos produced by B and H Photo Video. You'll find lectures presented by some of the best photographers around.
--Bob

PixelStan77 Loc: Vermont/Chicago

Prior discussion here atUHH says the material is outdated. My personal recommendation is if you want to learn photography is to find a pro that will take you in as an assistant at no charge to him. Also many great books are available.

JPL

Smells like some sort of scam.

SharpShooter Loc: NorCal

John, I'm very fortunate because I have a JC with an outstanding photo Curricullum only one mile from my house. Even then, I waited 5 years before I enrolled in my first class there. I was too busy or always had other plans. Finally I just bit the bullet and dove in. 5 years later, I'm almost done. I'm still too busy and have other plans, I just wish I had made the sacrifices 10 years ago!!!
I've taken beginner classes, not because I am a beginner, but because they are a prerequisite I did not have. They are taught by the same pros as the advanced level stuff, so I just do beginner assignments at a highly evolved level to suit my own skills. It actually helps the rest of the class since they can see what is possible and I just push my own envelope and bust out of my own box!
John, you might try one of those classes. But they should be taught by a high level working pro, most community stuff is taught by an enthusiast and not a pro.
As for NYIP, I only know what I read here. Personally I would not take a correspondence course. The feed-back lag time would be to great and lose all its momentum!!!!
Good luck. ;-)
SS

rbfanman

I do. It is a good school, and is approved for Veteran's Benefits. Whether it is ideal for all prospective students, or not, is debatable, but for good training from a distance, with VA approval, it is better than many others.

Rongnongno Loc: FL

VA stamp of approval hey?

Ah!

jethro779 Loc: Tucson, AZ

That just means they will pay your tuition(or part thereof).

Rongnongno Loc: FL

I know, this is not a 'seal' of endorsement...

Countless internet 'schools' are trying to get onto the GI bill at the moment, look it up.

Papa j Loc: Cary NC

Hi John I have tried several types of educational opportunities on line and many are loaded with tags for student loans, grants, life insurance etc some even call the house without divulging a phone number. Sorry for the disappointment but the B&H tutorials are excellent free and you can review at anytime . I watch them on Apple TV as I follow along with my laptop on Lightroom

J

BuckeyeBilly Loc: St. Petersburg, FL

John,
"It's like, they want me to sign up for a course before they tell me the scope of the class and before I know it fits my needs." Oh my gosh...you better check to make sure that the person who is leading you in that direction is NOT named Nancy Pelosi! Before you go spending $800 to $1000 for the NYIP course, go to the following website and learn everything you could ever want to know about photography...and you'll do so at your own pace with ample opportunities to practice what you've learned. The best part? It's 100% FREE! If you view every topic and tutorial that's on this website, learn it, and practice shooting, it will take you about the same amount of time as it would taking the NYIP course.
http://www.cambridgeincolour.com/

The other thing I would do is go to meetup.com and do a search for photography clubs in your area so that you can practice even more as well as being able to get questions answered. But the real beauty about joining a club is that there will be PLENTY of photography events that you can sign up for and attend, which will allow you to actually meet other photographers face-to-face as well as practice what you've been learning. There might be a fee to join but it would probably be only $5 to $25 a year. For example, in my area of Florida, I belong to the St. Petersburg Photography Group which has over 700 members and the cost is only $5/year. BUT...it has people who are just beginning to learn photography as well as those who are pros and have had published works. The group even has classes to sign up for, usually at no cost, but the classes are taught by pros. You simply could not go wrong in supplementing your education with joining a group in this way. Simply go to:
www.meetup.com
Type in "photography" in the search box, then just to the right of this will be "within 5 miles" of (your location), click on that to expand your search out from 10 miles to however far you would be willing to drive, then click on the "Groups" box and this will bring up however many groups are in your area.
John, I'm here to tell you that doing these 2 things will be FAR more advantageous to you than spending money on the NYIP course.

Also, as a sidebar conversation, if you decide you want to go the NYIP route, DO NOT SIGN UP IMMEDIATELY! Hold your ground and don't respond for awhile because you'll see where they will lower the cost of the course just to get you to enroll. I think when I thought about taking these classes a few years ago, the cost of the course dropped about $300 or so over a 2 month period of time. So...just wait a little while.

Mary Kate Loc: NYC

I know a former business associate that lives in France. She took this course and loved it.

joegim Loc: Long Island, NY

BuckeyeBilly -thanks for the cambridgecolour link. Though I am not a novice I found this very informative.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

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