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One of the more common questions we get these days is: What is the Virginian-Pilot's policy regarding use of photos? Or type on photos? Or photo cutouts?
Designers -- especially young ones -- will see some of the truly incredible pages produced by talented folks such as Julie Elman, Jim Haag, Sam Hundley, Judy Le or David Putney and they'll want to duplicate them. Only, they run into trouble when an editor feels they've gone too far with the design. Or when a photographer feels like his work hasn't been respected.
At the Pilot, we take a magazine-like approach to our design.
Our editors feel like while our stories and our photos and our graphics are IMPORTANT, they're not as important as the end product -- that rolled up piled of newsprint that we deposit on the front lawn every morning.
In this market -- populated with young suburban professionals, Navy retirees and enormous pockets of great poverty -- we feel that a more magazine-like approach cuts through the noise and grabs the attention of the folks at whom we're aiming.
Yes, that means that sometimes we put type into a photo. Sometimes that means we'll crop something into a strong vertical or horizontal. That doesn't mean we don't respect the photo. It means we're looking for a compelling way to put that photo in front of the reader.
Would you say that Sports Illustrated doesn't respect photos? How about National Geographic? Both will occasionally put type atop a photo -- especially on a spread kicking off an article.
And so we do it, too.
But that doesn't mean you should do it. What works for us won't necessarily work for just anyone. Readers' tastes are different. Editors' tastes are different. And that's cool.
Because of that, we've found it an enormous help to have a written visual ethics policy. Part of it is included in a larger document regarding newsroom ethics in general. Other parts of it are posted on the wall in our conference room. The policy is posted on our intranet site where any staffer can access and refer to it at any time.
Here's an excerpt of that policy:
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VISUAL ACCURACY
Documentary photo
This is a candid or unposed photo that records news, features or sports. The spirit of the documentary photo is to be honest and above board with readers. Any appearance or suspicion of manipulation of documentary photos strikes against our core values. Submitted photos should meet these same standards.
For questions about photo authenticity, check with a photo editor.
Posing or re-enacting a documentary photograph is unacceptable. Altering a documentary photo is also unacceptable. This includes eliminating or adding material to the photo.
Examples:
- Do not ask someone to repeat an action for a documentary photo. The photographer would not ask a wife to again hug her husband at a ship homecoming because he missed it the first time.
- Do not cut out a "live" news photo. Cutouts can make a news photo look like a feature photo. Let the reader have full information.
- A photographer, photo editor or designer should not eliminate a telephone line from a photo to "clean up" the scene. Clouds, sky, grass or other elements should not be added to make room for type or make the photo fit a hole.
Adding type to a documentary photo is permissible under "Type in Photo" guidelines, which are part of the design styleguide (see below). See the DME for presentation or News Editor.
Portrait photo
This photo is usually posed and it should be obvious to the reader if it is. A mug shot, a group photo or an environmental portrait with the subject looking at the camera are examples. With candid portraits follow the guidelines of documentary photos. Portrait photos shouldnŐt be altered.
Photoillustration
This type of photograph turns 180 degrees from documentary photojournalism and uses the medium as an artist uses colored chalk to illustrate a story. In a successful and ethical photoillustration, it is obvious to the reader that the photo is not a candid documentary photo. A photoillustration credit line should reinforce the fact that the photo is not a real situation.
Icon photos
This category is much like the photoillustration -- almost anything goes. It includes simple photos that illustrate or label stories. Examples include photos of planes, ships, money, hockey sticks, hands, buildings, etc. Cutout photos would be included in this. It is not necessary to credit these photos.
To use or not to use
When in doubt, use common sense. Know privacy rules and laws. Shooting the photo usually is not the problem. Publishing the photo may be. Using sound judgement, the photographer should almost always shoot the picture. The editing process will determine whether the photo will be used. The photo editor, page editor and news editor will also help determine publication. Some photos should be approved by a deputy managing editor, managing editor or the editor.
Some red flags:
- Death
- Nudity or sexual content
- Exaggerated grief
- Blood or other body fluids
- Photo is too good to be true (it may be set up)
- Vulgar words or gestures (these may be hidden in a photo)
- Cheap shot (zipper open, food on the face)
- Unflattering expression not related to the event or situation
- People performing dangerous acts
- Violence
- Racial stereotypes
- Photos that may otherwise shock or appall readers
GUIDING QUESTIONS
- Is the photo appropriate to the story?
- Is the news value worth upsetting the reader?
- Is the photo from this community or from far away?
- What are the paperŐs general standards of taste?
- Do you need to pass the photo through the top editor?
- Does it pass the "breakfast table" test?
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Was that helpful?
Here's another excerpt -- this one from our Design Style Guide
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RESPECT THE IMAGE
Photos should be visually compelling and tell the story. They should enrich a story and be informative, honest and accurate.
- Picture size and play should be determined by the image's news content, quality and/or readability. If the photo editor and designer determine that the only available art is weak, it shouldn't be overplayed. Rather, if the lead story has weak art and there is no other display-quality art, the designer could create a dominant package, using less-than-dominant art in concert with typography and other graphic elements.
- Visual elements with stories don't have to be photos. The element can be a graphic or typography. Photos and other visual elements should add meaning; they should not be just an eye-catching device. Also, it is important to mix the visual elements on a page. Photos, graphics or typography alone can produce a cluttered page. But the visual element's content, or meaning on the page, is the most important thing to keep in mind.
- Designers should consult with photo editors about cropping and photo selection. Ideally, we want to crop a photo for maximum impact and readability, but that doesn't mean just to crop it tight to bring up the image size. Cropping should be done carefully to give the photo maximum impact and meaning while maintaining the integrity of the photograph.
- Electronic manipulation is not permitted on news pages. It might be effective on some features pages, however. Features designers should check with photo and content editors on a case-by-case basis.
- For visual impact, consider using art dramatically when it's available and cropping is appropriate. For example: deep verticles and six-column horizontals. Same-size art, day in and day out, is monotonous.
- No cutouts of news photos. But cutouts of file photos are allowed for special presentations or features packages. Discuss the presentation with photo editors before cutting a photo. Also, promo images in the "ears" of display packages may be cut out.
- For standard column widths, mug shots should run in one of two sizes: 5p7 or 12p2 wide. But other sizes may be used if text runs in bastard measures. Try to maintain consistency on a page.
- No tilted photos on news pages. Tilts are allowed for some feature treatments.
BOTTOM LINE: RESPECT THE IMAGE
- MORTICES: Mortices are not forbidden but should be used only in special situations. Breaking news stories are not conducive to mortices; more opportunities exist with features.
- TYPE ON PHOTOS: The same rules apply for type on photos. As with mortices, the type must not overlap the image area -- type should be placed in the "dead space" of the photo. The use of type on photos is a sensitive issue in our design. It can be an effective tool, but it also can be misused when handled incorrectly. Consult with photo editors and senior editors on a case-by-case basis. The bottom line: Use words and images only when you're sure it's the best -- and possibly only -- way to convey the information effectively.
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Also, I'll pass along this bit from a memo our managing editor, Denis Finley, sent out last year. He was mediating a dispute between the design desk and the photo desk. The designers had cut the background out of a couple of live photos. That's a no-no around here, unless the photo editor specifically signs off on it. Which he didn't.
Denis, by the way, isn't "just" a managing editor: He worked several years as a photographer and then a photo editor. Then, he was news editor before he took over our presentation team. He spent a few years as DME/Presentation and then was promoted to Managing Editor in early 2003. So the man knows what he's talkin' about:
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Finally, just to be clear, none of what the designers do is just for the sake of the design. That would be like saying that a creative approach to a photo shoot is just for the sake of photography. Rather, it is for the sake of the reader and for the sake of making the paper interesting through the creative use of design and photo.
Unfortunately, sometimes our agendas compete. In a perfect world photographers would like to see their photos run full frame, six columns and uncropped, while designers would like to be handed the photos that they need and then be left alone.
I realize that's an oversimplification. I also realize that it is never going to happen. There will always be creative tension between photo and design, between reporters and copy editors, between reporters and photographers, between graphic artists and designers, and on and on.Ę We have to continue to do our best in an imperfect world, try to appreciate the other discipline and be willing to accept that, in our pursuit of excellence, we will all make mistakes.
I am reminded of a quote that Chip Scanlan of the Poynter Institute relayed to me when I first got the M.E. job and I was anxious because my background was in visuals, so I asked him for advice:
"There have always been two kinds
of journalists, word and picture.
Learn your craft and respect the other." |
-Elizabeth Osder, N.Y. Times |
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