AI Rate Professor

Photography

Dan Fenstermacher

ARTS062A · ARTS62C · ARTS062C · ARTS62B · ARTS62A · 062B · ART062A · ART62B · ART62A · 62A · ARTS062B · O62B · 062A · ARTS062A71501 · 31 lifetime ratings

AI rating
96/100
RMP rating
4.8/5
Take again
96.77%
Difficulty
2.5

The decision

if you want a , not just hand out easy free As.

Best fit · Beginner FriendlyIncredible FeedbackBeginner Photography MentorPassionate & CaringPortfolio-FocusedInspirational Lectures
  • Near-universal praise for
  • Beginner-friendly structure with weekly practice and portfolio
  • Extremely high would-take-again rate with mostly A grades when students put in consistent effort

Key questions

Four answers before you build your schedule.

Is this an easy A?

EasyA

84/100

Most students report A or A+ when they finish weekly shoots and , so the grade is very reachable with steady work.

Both online and effort expectations.

Is the course easy?

Beginner

72/100

Content is intro-level photography with , though weekly practice and editing still demand real time.

Online students call it especially approachable; in-person adds studio practice but stays beginner-friendly.

Is attendance flexible?

Varies

48/100

as mandatory or important for participation, though some .

; several online reviews say photo walks or attendance are optional.

Is this professor recommended?

MustTake

97/100

Nearly every review strongly recommends him for , and real skill growth.

Recommendation is extremely high in both formats; only one old outlier is negative.

Course guide

See how this professor fits your week.

Grading

Lenient

82/100

Students repeatedly cite clear criteria and and still earn strong grades.

Format shift

Both formats describe encouraging, fair grading with detailed project comments.

Workload

Moderate

58/100

Expect , and a semester portfolio rather than a light busywork class.

Format shift

Online and ; black-and-white sections can feel busier.

Teaching experience

Excellent

95/100

Students describe passionate, structured lectures, honest critiques, and strong accessibility outside class.

Format shift

Praise is consistent across online and in-person sections.

Assessment method

FocusOnAssignments

22/100

Grades , and portfolio images rather than traditional exams.

Format shift

Both formats emphasize projects and portfolios with .

Luni fit check

Weigh these signals against your actual schedule.

Get help balancing workload, grading, and timing when no option is an obvious fit.

Course format

Compare the in-person and online experience.

Classroom format

In person

15 reviews

High confidence · Best fit for Beginner Friendly

In-person classes highlight passionate lectures, hands-on lighting help, and honest critiques that build beginner confidence.

Main concern

as important and weekly shooting work still takes real time.

What students said

“I ended the semester feeling so much more confident as a beginner photographer. Dan is supportive of students and honest.”
ARTS062A
“Dan's class is seriously awesome. , and focused.”
62A
“You can tell that Dan is passionate about and very active in the photography community.”
ARTS062C

Remote format

Online

16 reviews

High confidence · Best fit for Beginner Friendly

Online sections stay highly rated with , and creative freedom on portfolios.

Main concern

and and gear/software time.

What students said

“Very easy class. Took his asynchronous black and white photography class Fall 2021. .”
062B
“I liked how his comments on projects that we turned in was encouraging. He gave suggestions on what we could do that would elevate our work.”
ARTS062B
“Dan is a great teacher, very kind and considerate. He has informative lectures that will teach you how to use your camera.”
ARTS062A

Exam style

Know what to expect from exams and major assignments.

Assessment is mainly project and portfolio driven with creative freedom, not strict proctored testing.

Portfolio BasedWeekly Photo ProjectsCreative FreedomNo Traditional Exam Focus

Assessment risk

StudentFriendly

88/100

Low score means less forgiving assessment conditions.

In person

, and portfolio-style shooting rather than closed-book exams.

Weekly AssignmentsCritiquesStudio PracticePortfolio Development
“Be prepared that , and theyre very important for the finals.”
ARTS062B
“62B built on the skills in 62A & helped with portfolio development/storytelling.”
ARTS62B

Online

Online work focuses on weekly readings, discussions, photo assignments, and .

Weekly Photo AssignmentsDiscussion PromptsSemester PortfolioCreative Topic Choice
“Through the semester you will be taking photos for a total of 20 final portfolio images.”
ARTS062B
“The , camera, editing, everything.”
062B

Student evidence

See what students actually said.

Top student voice

“I ended the semester feeling so much more confident as a beginner photographer. Dan is supportive of students and honest.”

Voice snapshots generated from 31 reviews spanning online and size and consistent praise.

🎯 Teaching Quality

95/100

“Dan is a great photographer and teacher and his class of "Basic Photography" is a rewarding experience.”

👍 Recommendation Strength

97/100

“ .”

📸 Beginner Growth

90/100

“I had very little to no experience with photography when I took his class but I learned alot from him.”

💬

93/100

“He gave suggestions on what we could do that would elevate our work.”

Theme 1

👨‍🏫 About Teaching Style

  • , and focused.
  • He manage to make a good balance between theory and practice.
  • Lectures are simple, short, and to the point.

Theme 2

📈 About Difficulty & Grades

  • Very easy class... As long as you like taking photo's very easy class.
  • Requires a fair amount of time; some effort is needed but not terribly difficult.
  • As long as you finish your work and participate you will do great.

Theme 3

❤️ About Character & Support

  • Dan is supportive of students and honest.
  • Of all the teachers I've had at West Valley, Dan is the .
  • Dan is such an incredible teacher, by far the .

Data context

See exactly what the AI read.

Analysis sample

31

Recent reviews read by the AI

31

Lifetime ratings

90/100

Evidence confidence

31 detailed reviews across many years and both formats show strong consistency, with .

Inside 31 stored ratings

Quality ratings

5 out of 529
4 out of 50
3 out of 51
2 out of 50
1 out of 51

Course coverage

ARTS062B8 reviews
062A6 reviews
062B2 reviews
62A2 reviews
ART062A2 reviews
Show 9 more courses
ARTS062A2 reviews
ARTS062C2 reviews
ART62A1 review
ART62B1 review
ARTS062A715011 review
ARTS62A1 review
ARTS62B1 review
ARTS62C1 review
O62B1 review

Reported outcomes

A range results lead the reported letter grades.

30 reported outcomes

A range

22

A+ 4 · A 18

B range

3

B+ 1 · B 2

C range

0

No reported values

D range

0

No reported values

F

0

No reported values

No letter grade reported

5

Audit/No Grade 1 · Not sure yet 3 · Rather not say 1