October 20, 2009 Special Issue

Calling the shots

The realities of photojournalism

by Elsa Jabre

Photojournalism is the art of capturing an event or a subject in a certain time or space that depicts reality with the use of a camera. It may seem like an easy task, but photographers are often taking pictures that could be life threatening.

Photojournalists face the decision of what subjects to shoot, what shots to use and if and when images they take can be altered. They also face tough decisions that print journalists don’t necessarily think about; is it actually legitimate to take pictures of people in private moments? During a shoot, how should we place public figures such as politicians, movie stars, etc.? Should photojournalists take images that are thought-provoking or dramatic, such as families in grief or pain, or is it unethical? And how can photojournalists take images of people without invading their privacy? This are the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the issues involved.

Capturing a live event or news story proves equally difficult. A photojournalist must be able to properly credit and caption people who appear in the photograph, in addition to capturing the height of the action.

This is a form of journalism in itself. The photographer is not only taking photos of a particular event, but is also documenting how an event unravels. In the case of capturing quick actions, like in sports photography, it’s crucial to notice highlights of the game.

Nowadays, images are produced digitally, which is a huge technological advancement over film. Images can be altered with software such as Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom or their imitators, instantly changing the shape, colour and distance between the objects the lens captures.

Objects could be removed from the image or inserted into the picture. It’s much too easy to alter an image and make it seem more dramatic, like removing a child from a photograph or adding a hockey puck to a sports photo.

However, photojournalists must abide by their own code of ethics that ensure their images are accurate. The Society of Professional Journalists’ Code of Ethics states that journalists “should [...] never distort the content of news photos or video. Image enhancement for technical clarity is always permissible.”

By this, they mean that one is allowed to make small changes to an image but not to remove or alter an image so as to distort it from reality.

Photos that have been digitally altered are referred to as montages or photo illustrations, and altered photographs intended to be published must now abide by their own ethical guidelines.
The technology behind photojournalism might have changed over the years, but the essence of truth-telling still makes or breaks a photojournalist’s credibility.