Napier University Film & Photography School, a great collaboration with Sony
Edinburgh Napier University is one of the UK’s top two Film Production and Photography Schools, according to the Guardian University Guide 2025. Based in the Scottish capital, the School’s primary goal is to prepare its students for the demanding and competitive reality of the professional photography industry. The School now has an enviable international reputation, attracting students from across the globe. With approximately a hundred and forty students across three years, it expects further rapid growth.
Napier has collaborated with Sony to create an environment where students can work with the latest cameras and lenses – the same level of equipment that the industry uses on real, critical commercial projects.
A workshop organised by Sony at Napier University
The world of photography has changed dramatically over the last few decades. The rapid transition from film to digital cameras has changed how professionals work with images. Production and finishing costs are lower, and the digital medium is almost infinitely more flexible. Modern cameras now typically exceed the capability of film in nearly every measurable way. But film remains a useful artistic reference for photographers, and the School respects the older medium’s legacy in its teaching.
Another change has been the rise of smartphone photography. Smartphones are now capable of credible photography in their own right and are highly influential as the first cameras many students have owned. But even the best smartphones can’t compete with professional digital cameras, which have a wider dynamic range, outstanding low-light performance, accurate colour and artistic control over an entirely natural depth of field. These essential capabilities allow the school’s talented students to create vibrant and engaging professional-level images.
It can all be overwhelming when you’re just starting out in photography. We provide an introduction to the professional level. Our USP is the ability to help students transition from personal exploration into a professional working mindset — introducing them to the expectations, rigour, and decision-making of real-world production. With our collaboration with Sony, working at the technological forefront expands what students believe is possible.
Emile Shemilt
Programme Leader for Photography
Sony has a team of photography Ambassadors. These industry professionals are available to the students to pass on their insider experience, knowledge, techniques, and skills with Sony cameras.
“When students work with Sony ambassadors, it has a big impact on them. It suddenly lights up their enthusiasm and their creativity. When we collaborated with Sony, the improvements were immediate and brought excitement to the department. It gives the students a connection with the real, professional world.”
Students at the School have access to Sony’s professional cameras in an entirely professional working environment. This gives them a radically different perspective on photography, especially compared to smartphone cameras, where images are more “transient”, according to Emile.
“The quality of the images from Sony’s cameras is a revelation to the students. Some of them come to us with a feeling that the ubiquitous availability of smartphone images has diminished the status of photographers. However, with Sony’s cameras and lenses, the sheer quality and the level of detail mean that you can work with an image in ways you simply can’t with smartphones. For example, you can crop pictures more dramatically because of the higher resolution. You can view them on a variety of professional high-resolution displays. You can genuinely see what’s possible with super-high quality. The Sony cameras’ full-frame sensors let in so much more light. They’re so much more sensitive and they’re so adaptable. You can push the cameras to their extremes – crank up the ISO, play with the shutter speed – and still capture a great image.“
The School teaches students how to create powerful images that resonate with audiences. They learn about iconic historical photographs and use their newly gained familiarity with classic photographic art to influence and improve their output. Working with the School’s lecturers and technical staff using Sony cameras and supported by Sony ambassadors, they start to understand and practice photography professionally. They appreciate the power, subtlety, and nuances of the medium.
The School teaches video alongside still photography because the industry now demands still and moving image capture skills. Sony cameras are ideal for this hybrid role, with a wide dynamic range, extremely high resolution, high frame rates, and accurate autofocus. They allow students to take extremely high-quality photographs and make all types of films, from documentaries to drama, with a single camera model.
Since we got the Sony cameras, they’re constantly in use - they never sit on the shelves like our previous equipment. Even if students are used to their own systems, they quickly recognise the advantage of working within the Sony platform. They go out, do their work, see the results - and many choose to continue working within the Sony system once they graduate.
Emile Shemilt
Programme Leader for Photography