“We need good solid, honest photographers.” -Michael Kamber
Photo by Ron Terner
Good morning Grit Street Shooters! I want to share something with you: I came across an AWESOME, MUST read interview with professional photojournalist, Michael Kamber. In the interview, Kamber discusses the current state of photojournalism in the digital age. As many here know, ethics and honesty are two of my ruling principles.
Unfortunately, in photojournalism, ethics have been tossed out the window, not only by the photographers themselves, but by editorial staff as well. Ethics is SO important in this type of work. Unfortunately, in our world ruled by subjectivism, anything goes… (Oh, that Last Man thing again;-)
I recently had a disagreement with a fellow street photographer (not wanting to mention names) here in Chicago, who put forth the idea that: “I’m a photographer, and I’ll post whatever I want on FaceBook,” regardless of how the image may have impacted the subject. Many people have elevated photography to some sort of religious mysticism, and themselves as high priests – where “artists” are not bound by the normal rules of mortal men.
Interview: Michael Kamber on Photojournalism Ethics and the Altering of Images
Would you consider the problem of image manipulation an issue of ethics?
I think that’s the troubling part. Young photographers who frequently have not been given the right training, again to no fault of their own, don’t even see it as an ethical issue. The photographers I’ve talked to, many of them don’t even understand it as an ethical issue. They just say, ‘I’m trying to make the photo better. I’m trying to take out things that are distracting. What does this have to do with ethics?’ FULL ARTICLE