The ethics of photography varies from photo to photo, situation to situation and audience to audience. It’s a complicated and controversial topic that has been spoken about in all corners of photography. Perhaps one of the most famous stories that have come out of photojournalism was when South African photographer, Kevin Carter took his own life. This happened after the aftermath of his most famous photograph of the famine in Sudan which also won him the Pulitzer Prize. Carter was heavily criticized around whether the image that he took was ethical and if he helped the child in need after taking their photograph. The backlash of this photograph was huge and unfortunately, Carter did not know how to handle this which lead him to feel like he could no longer live in this world.
Documentary, News and Reportage Article
Today, news outlets rely more than they ever have on images and footage provided by the public. Although the most popular media outlets try to have their own staff provide media, it is not always possible, particularly in areas of conflict and inaccessible war zones. When the public sees such footage, there is an immediate level of trust in what they see. As a result, such content can play a huge role in shaping up public opinion, potentially even influencing their future decisions. Because of the importance and the potential influence of such documentary footage, it is only ethical when such imagery is provided without ANY manipulation whatsoever.
This includes documentary photography, news and reportage of any kind, which in my opinion also includes street photography. When we see images of people, affected or unaffected, we want to believe in what we see. Such images become historical records and we cannot allow them to be manipulated. Take a look at some of the altered images that have appeared in media in the past:
Left: altered image showing four missiles in the air. Right: The original image that shows only three missiles in the air
At the time the image was taken, it was probably unacceptable for the Iranian state media to present only three missiles in the air, with one looking like it failed to launch, so the image was altered in Photoshop to make it look like all four rockets took off. In addition, a smaller car seen behind the rocket launching vehicle was also removed from the image to remove the unnecessary distractions.
Here is another image by Brian Walski, which was heavily altered to make a single composite from two different images:
Top Two Images: Original images, as shot by Brian Walski. Bottom Image: Digitally manipulated composite by Brian Walski
Sadly, Brian Walski thought that it would be a good idea to make a composite image from the two images to “improve composition” and thought it was acceptable for him to make such heavy edits. In some cases, people that practice such manipulations should be persecuted in court, especially if a photograph is used as any form of propaganda to lie about the actual facts.
We can see many examples like the above two all over the world. If you want to see some of the best examples of altered images in history, check out this website by the Bronx Documentary Center – you will find some shocking examples of altered images, some of which were used to manipulate the public.
It is clear that such documentary photography and footage should never be allowed to be manipulated. The good news is, those who get caught often get fired and potentially even jailed for doing it, but I bet there are far more cases where things go by unseen. If photographers destroyed their original images and only left the original footage, they would leave it up to public to decide whether their work is authentic or not. It is very uncomfortable to think that people would do such things, but sadly, it does happen.
Mansurov, Nasim. 2016. “The Importance of Ethics in Photography.” February 5, 2016. https://photographylife.com/the-importance-of-ethics-in-photography.
This article shows how photographers have deceived their audiences. When documenting and photographing people and scenarios such as war, then I do not think it is okay to manipulate and edit your photographs. The viewer is trusting that you have captured the image at the moment that it happened and by editing the composition and composition of the image you are derailing the truth. These are ethical boundaries that no photographer should cross as it is the photojournalists job to capture the truth when they stand behind the camera.