Bothersome backsides and other photo failures
What editors look for when editing photography
Shutterstock / Janaka Dharmasena / Image of Leonardo da Vinci’s journal showing anatomical drawings of the muscles of a man’s arm from four different perspectives, with text written in mirror-image cursive beneath each drawing.
Most clients see editors as word experts and expect an editor’s brief to begin and end with the words on a page. However, editors also have a role to play in helping to check and refine the photography that accompanies a written piece. There are a number of things an editor may look for in photography, including checking for unexpected content and assessing if the photograph is suitable for the publication.
Backsides
One thing I often see in photographs are people’s backs. As a general rule, this should be avoided unless there is a good reason to use the photo. Photos featuring people’s backs often promote mistrust and, at worse, can be unflattering. I’ve even picked up on the occasional ‘plumber’s crack’ or ‘builder’s bum’ in photography destined for publication!
However, rules are made to be broken. Backs can be used effectively to add drama and provide perspective. Take these two photographs. The first photo is a bad example of using backs. It has a lot of people milling about, half of them with their backs to the camera. The second photo, with a person viewed from the back, adds drama and perspective to the image of the wind turbine. Taking an image from the back is also helpful when you don’t want people to be identifiable, for example photos of children, or when the photo is illustrating a sensitive topic, for example sexual abuse, and it is not appropriate to use images of recognisable people, even if they are models or have signed a release form.
Unexpected content
Background and hand gestures
I always check for unexpected content in photos, like things that may be sitting in the background, or what people are doing with their hands. I look closely at hand gestures, even accidental ones. More than once I have requested a change in photo because someone in the image is picking their nose or making a rude hand gesture.
In most cases, hand gestures are innocuous, but there are recent examples of photos that have been deemed offensive, like an Australian Rules footy team photo where team members inadvertently used a hand gesture that has a meaning in white supremacy. Some hand gestures can be hard to see, especially in group photos, like the example below.
Safety standards
Another thing to look for in photos is troubling safety standards. In this photo, an employee in sandals at a rubberwood factory is climbing into an overloaded truck.
Be aware that safety standards differ around the world and question whether a photo showing these is appropriate in the context of the publication.
Accidentally illegal
In some countries, taking photos of government buildings, sensitive infrastructure like airports, or police officers may be illegal. In some places, such as museums, art galleries and the Sistine Chapel, photography may be banned.
If it is illegal to take a photograph, it probably should not be published.
Is it the right photo, or should the photo be used at all?
Professional versus happy snaps
Some photos really need to stay in the family photo album because they are not professional enough to be published. These are pretty easy to spot, as they look more like a family holiday photo or a happy snap than a professional photograph. In this photo, the date stamp in the lower corner of the photo detracts from the image, as do the poor image resolution and the casual look and clothing of most of the people in the image.
Sometimes no photo at all is better than a bad photo.
Does the photo match the caption?
Always check photos against their captions. In this example, the caption refers to a box jellyfish but the photo shows a different jellyfish species.
FIGURE 1 The box jellyfish is a eukaryote and has genes containing introns. <Alt text: A large orange jellyfish in bright blue water. Shutterstock by almondd.>
Replace low resolution and blurry images
An obvious check is to ensure that the photo resolution is appropriate. Replace low resolution or blurry images with higher resolution or better images if required. The requirements for photo resolution may differ, depending on whether the photo is for a printed product or online, so check with the designer if in doubt.
Copyright
Editors should also check that copyright isn’t being broken.
I query images that look suspiciously too good for the author to have taken, and images without attribution. I also query whether copyright permissions have been obtained for photography.
Cropping and other photo manipulation
Cropping to remove distractions
Consider cropping to remove distractions. In this example, try cropping out the people standing next to the tree, as the text is about the tree species (not the people).
FIGURE 2 Pongamia pinnata is often planted as a street tree in Brisbane. <Alt text: Three people standing under a small street tree looking up at the tree. Photo by Joely Taylor.>
Cropping to remove sensitive content
Also consider cropping to remove sensitive content, such as personal details, images of children, or racist, culturally insensitive or outdated concepts. For example, I once cropped a photo from a handcrafts show that contained a knitted golliwog doll, which is seen by many as a racist caricature.
Photos that are upside down
Watch for photos that are placed upside down. Even stock images can end up upside down.
Photos that are flipped or reversed
Look out for photos that have been flipped or reversed. In this flipped image, the writing on the signs is backwards.
However, editors do have to be careful. Good general knowledge is always useful when editing photos.
This is an image of Leonardo da Vinci’s journal, with text written in mirror-image cursive beneath each drawing. This image is actually correct, even though initially it looks as though the photo is flipped or reversed, as da Vinci usually wrote in his journals using mirror-image script.
