500 Word Evaluative Report

This report will evaluate my own skills and the knowledge I have developed through the course of this unit in relation to the goals and plans I have for the future. This will enable me to critically reflect on my professional development and goals, helping me plan for the future.

Possibly the biggest thing I have identified as part of this self-evaluation and module as a whole is realisation of how I work as a creative practitioner. Overall, I am somebody who needs to break things down into smaller, more manageable chunks which I find much easier to process. This was evident when producing a SWOT analysis which identified my strengths and weaknesses. This task gave me great focus and allowed me to move onto producing a personal development plan that gives me the opportunity to improve myself as photographer. I identified that one area that needed improvement was producing images with correct exposure in-camera. I have been specifically focusing on this when shooting, taking advantage of bracketing and exposure compensation techniques. Overall this has made my editing workflow much more efficient.

Additionally, I have gathered that I am a visual learner - taking this into the world of photography, it is clear that it will be much more beneficial for me to be hands on with a camera or editing technique etc. when I want to develop a skill further. This has given me a great bearing on the ways that I can enable myself to be the most productive and creative possible version of myself. 

I have found the artist talks particularly insightful, as they have given me a very clear understanding of what it could potentially be like for me as a working photographer in the future. Specifically it has enabled me to analyse what will work best for me in the workplace after looking at the different ways each of these practitioners have built a successful career based on their creativity. Essentially I need to ensure that I am able to establish a personal brand that will stand me apart from other photographers in my field. This can be done collaboratively with a graphic designer, for example. Building this brand would involve founding a consistent character and style that is synonymous with my portfolio, social media channels and other works.

In conclusion, I believe that not all weaknesses/skills/traits can be changed or improved upon as easily as a SWOT analysis may make out. Some things are a part of our character and will stay that way. However, I still feel that I have made huge progress in terms of getting closer to achieving my goals for the future, specifically those that relate to my potential future career path.