I mean this so sincerely: run away. This class was so unnecessarily the difficult. The TA (bless his heart) was helpful, kind, and understanding, but the professor left much to be desired.

First, she sets unclear and unrealistic expectations. The first assignment was to analyze a photograph, but we were not allowed to choose a picture somebody else had already chosen-- and we weren't allowed to coordinate amongst ourselves and ensure we were all working on different pictures. A duplicate image was docked 10 points for an assignment worth 15. To not allow any kind of coordination between the students before they put in the time and work on an assignment that they may ultimately have to redo is ridiculous.

Second, her guidelines are unclear, even to the TA. Like I said, no hate to the TA, he was great, but her feedback and answers on certain things would directly contradict his. So either she was not communicating how she should, or he was just as confused as us.

Third, communicating with her outside of class feels like an impossible task. She will ignore parts of your emails and will forget that you have already covered something with her in an earlier email-- even if it is within the same thread. She also assumes that you have not read any part of the syllabus, attended any class, or have reviewed any assignment before reaching out to her.

That being said, fourth, she is incredibly condescending. She has repeatedly mentioned to us in our /mandated office visit/ that we are not anthropologists and our ideas for our projects (which often fall in direct line with her lecture material) are unfounded. She expects the worst in you, and definitely makes that clear in how she communicates with you.

Last, her take-home test clocked out at a minimum of 4000 words and took the class at least 8+ hours to finish, there are way too many readings required for each class, and the final project is daunting. There is not a whole lot that you are graded on, but what you are graded on is exhaustingly difficult.

If none of these things matter to you, or you've had worse, then the class itself can definitely be interesting. It feels more like a history of photography class than a visual anthropology class, but there is something very cool about the former and you will for sure learn some new stuff. And if you have a project idea that prof loves, you'll enjoy the final project. But, if you can't stand being talked down to, being told one thing by the TA and another by the prof, or her constant contradicting herself, then I would opt for literally any other anthro class that will be more in line with anthropological perspective on, literally, anything.

Lovely professor. She is very sweet, thoughtful, and helpful. Very smart. Answers emails quickly!

However, I found it a bit hard to hear her during lecture (the mic would go in and out). I found the lectures to be a little bit boring. Maybe if you really like photography and the history behind photos and styles of photos and the context, you would find the class to be more interesting. I didn't care for the subject matter but I guess it depends on the person.

The class has a very light workload and your whole grade is basically based off of 1-2 assignments, a big final photography paper, and a take home exam. Easy A. I appreciated the format of the class and was allowed to be creative which was fun!

The class was fascinating. I learned quite a bit about the field of visual anthropology and the history of photography. Slyomovics gives you a lot of freedom to engage with the readings and coursework and express your ideas through all of her assignments. She allows creativity and doesn't force students into any real prescribed formats for her class. She is, however, a stickler for correct grammar, spelling, and citations. Plan ahead to attend her office hours, even if you are like me and had to skip part of another class to do so. It will save you time at the end of the quarter. We ended up waiting in an hour long line to get her to sign off on our project proposals (mandatory). BTW, get your proposal signed during office hours ahead of time to save yourself the headache.

Slyomovics arranges her class throughout the quarter by themes and this helps to see broader contexts. All of the readings and websites and suggested field trips are useful for the exams and papers. If you are a lazy ass, you will most likely still get an OK grade, but if you actually care about learning and put some effort into the class and the materials, you will gain a ton of valuable knowledge... Its one of those classes where its totally up to you.

First thing is first, this class should be an easy A for anyone. I pulled of a 98% on the midterm and studied for a few hours. Around 75% of people get an A in the class. That said you should not take this class. One literally learns nothing in that class. I’ve walked out of the class every day, wondering what I just learned. I was panic stricken for the midterm, because I felt I hadn’t learned anything. Well it wasn’t me, the concepts on the midterm where elementary and if you just could memorize some random photos anyone could pass the midterm, regardless of taking the class or not. The “project” is also a joke. Its five pages long, you take photos relate your project to some reading and that’s it. Then there is the “professor.” She loves to micromanage, instead of giving you a list of approved topics she has you come up with one, only to reject it or complain about your project for some minor little thing about it. She wants you to come to her office hours, to discuss the project in fact it’s required. However, when you do show up she makes sure you know you are wasting her time. Inside of her office and in the classroom she is rude, condescending, and loves to put students down. Like I said the class if an easy A, if your reading this you probably would get an A in the class, but if you don’t want to take a class that is a complete joke and waste of time, with a “professor” who is high on herself, you should avoid this class.