<p>Hey,
So Im a Senior this year and this summer I've been working on my portfolio for applying to art schools. I was wondering if anyone would take the time to look at my "so far" portfolio and give me some critiques? My dream school is Parsons, so if you guys could give me advice on applying to that school, that would be totally awesome. </p>
<p>Hi Taylor, I hope some of the photo majors at Parsons, FIT or other schools like RIT chime in! I could be wrong about this, but you may need to include some observational drawings in your portfolio, even if you are going for photography. Check the websites of the colleges b/c under Admissions the portfolio requirements are usually spelled out for you…takes a lot of the guesswork away! If your college requires you to take a wide range of classes during your freshman year, your drawing skills will come in handy. My dd said the professors are aware that students in some majors will be more skilled in drawing than others, and they take that into account when grading. Anyway, if FIT and/or Parsons require drawings (and I would be surprised if they didn’t), you still have time to pull some together…just keep in mind that one thing they will be looking for is a wide range of values (darkest black to whitest white), and don’t do anime drawings!! Best of luck to you in your college search!</p>
<p>p.s. If you can get to the open house at FIT this fall, GO!! It is a major step toward getting admitted (per a good friend of mine who is a professor there). You need to register as soon as they announce the date, because space is limited and it’s hard to get in. They put together a terrific program and will spend tons of time with you, and you will get a tour as well. The faculty and students are among the nicest we met on my dd’s college search, and we toured many of the big names on the east coast. If you are a NYS resident the tuition is soooo low…frees up $$ for all your cool photo equipment!</p>
<p>Thanks so much! All of that is extremely helpful. And yes I do have alot of drawings and paintings I will be adding to my portfolio, that was just my photography portion which I still need to edit. And Im actually visiting FIT this august! But would you say that visiting the school is more helpful or going to the open house?</p>
<p>Hi Taylor, Are you close enough to the city to do both the visit in August and the Open House (I think it’s in October)? If so, I would do both because colleges like to see demonstrated interest, and they will have a record of your visits. It is not easy to get into FIT! If you can only do one, I would recommend the Open House, but be sure to register early; I can’t stress that enough! They had a full day of presentations, starting with check-in and some nice breakfast-y snacks, drinks, coffee. You will receive a ton of info and can attend small info sessions with professors in your major. Both before and after the sessions my daughter was able to speak with professors and students, and there was plenty of work to view. Attending the open house will give you a good feel for the school. If you can do both visits, maybe get a portfolio review during your private visit to see if there is anything you can improve before you officially apply.</p>
<p>Depends on what kind of program you’re looking for and i guess what your professional goals are. I guess the main question is whether you want to work more in ‘fine art’ as an independent artist or whether you want to be a professional photographer. Parsons’ photo program is known to be the super best but I believe it’s directed more towards professional training and commercial photography. On the flip side parsons isn’t all that reputable for fine art. If you are looking for a photography program that’s a little more fine art oriented you might want to consider Bard, SAIC or MICA. This is all assuming you want to study photography in the first place. In any case it depends on what exactly you wanna do.</p>
<p>Colon2010- yes im close enough to the city to do both. Im going to register thus week for the open house. Is it really that hard to get into FIT? My mom went there and I know a few other people who were recently accepted and they said that it wasn’t that hard at all</p>
<p>Kaelyn- I am looking more to work in the fashion industry like the buisness end, but I know for parsons that doesn’t matter really because you are highly recomended to take the foundations course. Which I also think applies to Pratt as well. Im also aiming towards graphic design as well</p>
<p>Really? Thats awsome! And thank you! My grades are ehh and my ACT score is also alright. Im not the brightest kid around lol My GPA really dropped because of my sophmore year chemistry. But otherwise I would say I’m at least an average B student. </p>
<p>How about you? What are your other schools?</p>
<p>AHH. So i had this whole thing written up about your portfolio but my dumb computer like erased it. </p>
<p>So to make this shorter some what, lol, I said that your work is really great! You have a strong eye for portraiture and I definitely think you should utilize that more in your portfolio set on flickr. Your black and whites are also very strong. Your contrast and focus is lovely, and I think you show a different view than most people which is what makes your photography interesting.
A few things about your portfolio:
I just completely finished applying to Pratt and Parsons yesterday for Early Action, and looking at yours, I think you need to narrow it down from 39 to 20. For Pratt 's portfolio it requires 12-20 pictures and for Parsons, 8-12. If you were to narrow it down, I definitely think you should take at least 2 of the doll pictures about because you have 4, which is a bit repetitive.
Also you should add more of your portraits like this
[. | Flickr - Photo Sharing!](<a href=“http://www.■■■■■■■■■■/photos/grahamblackall/6218630686/in/photostream/”>http://www.■■■■■■■■■■/photos/grahamblackall/6218630686/in/photostream/</a>)
because this picture is absolutely breathe taking. The girl looks gorgeous and the picture looks like it came straight out of Vogue.
Also one last thing, the Elizabeth picture that you have is good, but I think that you should use the second one with all four of her faces. Its different from your work, yet still is your work, and I think it would be a great element to your portfolio.</p>
<p>Sorry this is so long! If in any of my comments I seemed out of line or offensive, I am truly sorry.</p>
<p>Thanks so much! That portfolio set is so outdated. I made that like two years back for no reason. I might share my final portfolio with you before I finish the applications.</p>
<p>Good luck on Pratt and Parsons! I’m pretty sure that you’ll get in! Maybe we’ll be at the same school. :P</p>
<p>Ohh hahah okay! Yea definitely if you want to go ahead. I love looking at other peoples work. And thanks! I hope I do I really love both schools and I’ve like had my mind set on them for sooo long haha And maybe! That’d be so funny lol</p>