Ethics and Photojournalism

Our first topic is loosely titled "ethics and photojournalism" but it could very well apply to any type of photography.  We discussed a bit of it last semester when we looked at Hurley's composites -

and many of you made compelling arguments in the final test both for and against Hurley.  We also briefly looked at James Nachtwey, and we were moved by his sense of compassion and integrity towards his subjects.

The ease and speed with which photography can be produced and disseminated today means that the topic of ethics is more important than ever before.  Photojournalists in the past would've had a series of filters or gatekeepers in the news editors and photoeditors who would be required to keep some checks of what is published and the context of it. Today, the internet allows you to pretty much publish anything, and the ethical responsibility resides on you as an individual photographer.  I suggest that as you read and reflect on this subject you work out for yourself what sort of code of ethics might shape who and how you photograph, regardless of what others are doing.  For example, with fashion photography it is easy to say "everyone is using 12 year old models, so if I don't I will be left out" - that's simply not true, and many fashion photographers have succeeded through choosing their models and refusing to do work that is exploitative or that contributes to the inappropriate sexualisation of children, or the ongoing promotion of the ultra-thin anorexic body as a desirable standard.  So, as we go along the various topics during the semester, we will go back again and again to these questions about ethics.

For now, you need to read the excerpt "Ethics and Photojournalism" from the chapter called "Contemporary Issues" - please note that you only need to read pp 446-452 at this point, but of course if you want to read the whole chapter, go for it.  You should be able to download the whole chapter as a PDF from elearn, and please let me know if this is not working.

Assignment # 2, once you finish reading, write a one paragraph reflection on what you consider the most important issues raised in this text. Include and example of a photograph (properly labelled, of course) that you think illustrates these issues. Post it all in your blogs, and please label the title of the posting "Assignment 2" as you will be posting other research you find during the semester so I need each assignment to be clearly identified.

A favourite photograph

The first assignment required that you post a photograph that you found inspiring, and write a bit about it, or next to it if you find "aboutness" problematic.  It is a hard task - photography permeates our lives. It is estimated  that in 2009 30 BILLION photos were uploaded to Facebook alone. How on earth can one image stand out from this cacophony of pixels?  As a photographer it is daunting to think how we can "be seen" or how we can be "different" . I propose we think of photographs like we think of words or language - the fact that most people are literate does not mean most people are poets or writers....

The next question is how do you teach a course that addresses so many types of images in a medium that is changing faster than I can blog?  The short answer is you can't expect to deal with all of it - what we are going to do during the semester is to deal with the major "themes" in the short history of photography, and I will lead you to the most important examples in terms of texts and images.  In your daily research you will come across many photographers that I do not know - so the way to build up this course is to keep posting and linking and sharing what you find.

So, I will now show you an image from a couple of photographers (they are a couple and they work together:  Robert and Shana Parkeharrison).  I love their work because it gives me a feeling of calm - there is always something odd or quirky about their composition and their subjects seem to be very normal/average people.  Apparently they do not photoshop anything - it is all set for the camera.

My reaction to a lot of their work is "I wish I had thought of that" -  I catch myself "thinking" visually in strange ways, but they take it to the next step, which is documenting that vision. I enjoy the thoughtful and quiet aesthetic - not trying to be too clever but making a profound observation about human nature all along.  I also am attracted to photography that references the craft or the technique of the medium - so although I can see the value of everyday snaps, I will always prefer to look at a photograph that is properly exposed and printed.

As you will have realised from the first assignment, writing about photography is not an easy thing. The relationship between language and image is complicated - even though we assume they have the same structure or the same ways of making meaning, text and image do not translate directly. We will talk about this "problem" later, and I will give you some good writings "about photographs" - but for now, trust your instincts and try to describe what you find appealing, what the image makes you feel or think without thinking there must be a right or wrong. Aesthetic experiences (as opposed to the dentist's anaesthetic/numbing) are very personal and whatever you "like" or "dislike" is completely valid.

Welcome to 2nd year

This is the main blog for our class - and you will find your individual class blog linked on the left.  As you all know, I am in steamy Brisbane, so distance teaching will be a new challenge.  It is an exciting one, and I think there are many ways in which we can learn so this will give you some freedom and flexibility that you might not have with the traditional weekly lectures.

I'm passionate about teaching and about photography - so the first rule for our online course is that if something is not working for you, please tell me asap. You might be feeling out of the loop, or finding too many assignments accumulate or just not knowing where to find information - whatever it is, speak up! My email is silvia.velez@cit.act.edu.au or you can ring me on 6207 3711.

Ok, so how will it all work I hear you ask.  The blog will be the main link between us in terms of posting photographs and assignments. You will have a series of tasks (every other week) which you must complete before the next task. They will range from simple reflections to more complex research, including visiting exhibitions, reading texts that I post or watching a DVD or youtube link.  I would like to encourage everyone to regularly visit each others blogs and leave constructive feedback - this really activates our online conversations and allows us to learn from each others posts. Speaking of which, I would also like you to endeavour writing in a professional manner - be mindful of spelling, grammar and treat your blogs like a pro showcase rather than a chat in the pub.

The next link between us will be through elearn, the CIT software that allows for online teaching. Like you, I am new to elearn, so we will slowly find out how to best use the tools and facilities it has to offer. I realise many of you have not been able to login or download information - let me know if this is not resolved soon. In elearn, for the time being, you will find the subject documents and the assignments and readings. I have to post the readings on elearn as they need to be centrally checked and cleared for copyright purposes.  Eventually we can try other things with elearn as live chat sessions - but for now, it will be more of an information repository.

If the two previous links do not work, I will be emailing you. I have already sent out two group emails - again if you did not receive anything from me it means you are not on my list, so please email me.

Lastly, I am planning to be in Canberra for a series of intensive lectures/workshops the week of May 16. I chose that week to hopefully fit in with your other classes - after Tassie but not too late in the semester so I don't have to compete with your time for final folios. We will organise the days around the Wed-Friday times that you would typically be in at CIT. During those days I will give you some lectures that summarise many of the topics we cover online and you will give the class your presentations - but more on that later.

For now, I need your urls if you haven't sent them already. Stay tuned for the next episode.