Photo I, Photo II

The guy who started the Photo program at Columbia is also an immensely successful professional photographer. A tyrant in every way, you either love Tom or you loathe him -- and believe me, many students loathe him. His classes are fascinating trips from one subject to the next, covering stories, legends, radical politics, and of course, how much your photographs suck. In the end, he really knows his shit, and can talk better than anyone I've ever met about what exactly it is that sucks about my work. I would say he is the best teacher I have had at CU; some would say he is the worst. He wants it that way.