How to Handle Photos PDF

How to handle photos A N D I L LUSTRATI ONS FOR E DI TORS CHAPTER 5 Mohammed Al-kahlout Lecturer 1 Visual world of editors Editors typically are not visual people. Editor training and practice traditionally was not in photography and illustrations....

How to handle photos A N D I L LUSTRATI ONS FOR E DI TORS CHAPTER 5 Mohammed Al-kahlout Lecturer 1 Visual world of editors Editors typically are not visual people. Editor training and practice traditionally was not in photography and illustrations. 2 Disagreement Some antagonism traditionally between editors’ and photographers’ approaches. But today photographs and illustrations have become essential to most publications and online. 3 Influence of design The growth of professional graphic design in print and online has required editors to become more visually oriented. 4 Growth of design In many mass media style publications and websites, the words have taken a second place to the power of the visuals. On the other hand, stand-alone photo stories are not as common as they were in the past. 5 Knowing quality Editors also are expected to choose photos and graphics—and to know the good from the not-so-great. Usually the editor has final say. 6 Generating images Editors don’t take pictures, usually. They employ photojournalists. Magazine editors may hire freelance photographers. 7 Creative Commons Editors may search for Creative Commons approved photos and images. 8 Other photos Editors need to know the system well, and avoid just using any image found on Google Images. These often are copyrighted. That means you need permission to use it. 9 Photo/writing teams Photographers and writers often go on assignment in teams. Most commonly editors ask photographers to produce photos of people to illustrate a story. 10 Types of people photos Portraits may be offered to editors in two ways: 1. mugshots—a typical head-and-shoulders studio portrait. 2. Environmental/personality portraits—photos of a subject in an interesting environment or doing something interesting. 11 Environmental portraits More sophisticated editors choose environmental portraits over mugshots, if possible. They will be more likely to attract readers, and they emphasize the goal of the media. 12 People doing things Editors try to avoid choosing photos of people posing, or staring at the camera. 13 Grip n’ grin Also amateurish are “grip ‘n grin” photos, that is, photos of people shaking hands and getting awards. 14 Dead animal pictures Fishing/hunting trophy photos offend some readers. 15 Group shots Group shots are boring, and hard to see individuals. Most professional editors avoid these as well. 16 Swimsuit photos Editors avoid so-called “cheescake/beefcake” photos as sexist in news media. 17 Magazine editing Magazine editors, however, know these kinds of photos sell magazines. 18 Photo quality Editors aren’t expected to fix photos, but can request photographers to do so. If that’s not possible, poor quality photos must be rejected. What is poor quality? 19 Poor exposure Poorly exposed photos, either too dark or too light, will only get worse when published. Dark photos especially do not reproduce well. 20 Out of focus Out-of-focus photos look amateurish. 21 Flash on camera Photos taken with a flash on the camera look like amateur snapshots, and generally are avoided. 22 Cropping Most photos will need some cropping, unless the photographer has done it. Mass media editors look for the poster effect: the photo should have a clear center of interest, should be direct, and should contain a minimum of subtle detail. This is because media consumers don’t give full attention to photos. Average is 2-3 seconds. 23 Distractions Crop distracting backgrounds. 24 Empty space Editors avoid empty space between subjects. In this case, it’s probably better to reject the photo, as cropping will ruin the context. 25 Cropping principles Editors should crop large empty expanses. This includes sky, walls and ceilings. Distracting backgrounds should be cropped as much as possible. But cropping can be overdone—we don’t want to lose context of a photo. 26 Publish large Album-size photos all the same size look amateurish in mass media publications. Photos should be published reasonably large, except mugshots. 27 Size to fit Photos are usually published in column width, abbreviated: 1 col, 2 col, 3 col etc. A mugshot may be ½ column, sometimes called a half-column runaround, because the text wraps around it. Photos that do not match column width may have white space surrounding. These are called floats. 28 Cutlines In mass media work, all photos must have cutlines. This gives the photo context, and helps to orient the reader to the activity taking place in the photo. Sometimes cutline are called captions. 29 Cutlines Cutlines 30 Cutline guidelines Cutlines should be written in present tense. They should be fairly short. They should identify the people in the photo. They should not describe what’s obvious. 31 Cutline guidelines They should not include unnecessary words such as “This photo shows,” “above is depicted,” or “The subject is posing.” Include a byline for the photographer or artist. Avoid using only the name for a cutline, unless it’s a mugshot. 32 Any questions? 33