Exploring Nature through a Lens

Overview

This course has been designed as a starting point on our exciting series of visual natural history and biological imaging courses, that use primarily photography as a method for exploring ecology. Starting with an overview of how the naturalists of the past have shaped contemporary relationships with the natural world. We look at the ancient’s work, through the Middle Ages, to pioneers of the Enlightenment and Victorian eras, using those examples to create our own images. We also look at early film makers, and the influence of the television age, and consider how wildlife documentaries and modern wildlife photography have pushed the boundaries of what can be captured giving us ever better insights of this planet’s diverse habitats and species. These techniques we will use ourselves, to record, photograph, and map the life around us. No previous experience in photography or ecology is needed, all that is really required is an enthusiasm for the natural world!  

The course has been designed with the bare minimum of technical requirements, just bring a working camera, digital compact or phone, or even a film camera, as long as you have some way of getting the images off your camera onto a computer. Cameras can be left in auto mode for this course. Please note that this course is not going to focus on the technical skills of photography, there is a ‘photo support unit’ but this is there to help you make the basic requirements of the course.

Programme

Activities and tasks will be embedded into each unit so students can practise the techniques they have learned and develop their skills. Students will be encouraged to share their own work and participate in discussions on Blackboard. Alongside the learning materials on Blackboard the tutor will be on hand via email to answer any queries and provide guidance throughout the course. They will also participate in the online discussions.   

Unit 1:  An Outline to Studying Natural History 

The course starts with an introduction to studying natural history, highlighting different areas within the subject, the key individuals, and the important develops that have taken place. The students are also introduced to the practical element of the course where we will be using this ‘natural history’ to guide and help us in making our own discoveries.  

Unit 2: Exploring Natural History  

A history of the naturalist movement, its origins in the ancient past, developments in the Renaissance, and the Enlightenment, its growth within the scientific circles of the 17^th, 18^th, and 19^th centuries, and the increasing professionalisation from the 20^th century onwards. We will focus on how discoveries and achievements have contributed to modern science and the eventual formation of a popular social movement.  

Unit 3:  The Wild and Cameras    

Starting with early photographical and film making pioneers we follow the development and documentation of the natural world on film and in photography and examine how it contributes to the modern wildlife photographer’s practice.  

Unit 4: Documenting Nature    

We examine images used in research, including studies in ecology, mapping data, photos as specimens, collecting data and their applications. This information is then used to with creation of a photographic species map of a set location / area chosen by the student. This map will show a collection of images built up during the course, influenced by the course, and contain species data that will help the viewer understand more about the habitats within the mapped area.  

Bonus Unit 5: Photographic Support Unit 

Officially this unit is not part of the assessed course, but rather has been included to help those students using their cameras for the first time in obtaining reasonable results whilst working on the course. The information contained here is a very condensed / bare bones version of the information on our new ‘Basic Camera Skills’ module. This short 5 credit module will be running alongside ‘Exploring Nature’ and it is recommended that those who are unfamiliar with photography yet interested in the subject may wish to also undertake this course. Basic Camera Skills will greatly expand on the information contained within the unit, with many more examples and practical’s to try. The information here will be helpful for this course, as well as other photographic, arts, science, and social science courses. 

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students should be able to:

1. Outline the development of natural history and discuss the key characters involved.   
2. Understand the relationship of photography to the natural world and how it has popularised natural history as a subject.
3. Understand the practical applications of image capture within ecological science.  

Assessments

1. Multiple choice questions on the development of British natural history (20% of overall mark)
2. A brief project outline for a hypothetical long term project using images to document nature (1200 word equivalent). (40% of overall mark)
3. The creation of a photographic species map (40% of overall mark) 

Reading Suggestions

Reading suggestions will be offered throughout the course. 

Entry Requirements

This course is for everyone. No previous experience is needed and there are no formal entry requirements. 

What Do I Need?

As this is an online course, you would need the following:

• Internet access
• Access to a laptop or computer with a web camera and microphone; the use of headphones might also be of benefit
• Use of the Chrome web-browser where possible.