Key points

Key points from the case study

• The planning and organisation of a photographic practice is not consistently taught, but largely learned from others and through experience. A module in photography courses about how to plan and organise work would be very useful
• Younger photographers are more likely to think their archive comprises solely photographs, negatives and digital image files and not to consider contextual material as particularly worth keeping, particularly as much of this is in digital form
• For photographers in the early stages of their careers, the issue of what will happen to their work and where and how it might be seen in the future is extremely important. However, the pressures of moving on to the next project mean that little time is spent thinking about and planning for a possible public legacy for their work
• Working digitally does not create a solution to the archiving of work
• Storage is difficult for peripatetic photographers
• There is considerable value in a photographer spending time on a project, not just in editing and presentation, but also in trying to develop a relationship with a collecting institution to secure a permanent home for a body of work when the work is made.