Photographic Professional Practices

Being a photographer is constantly oversimplified by the idea that all you do is point and press a button. There are hundreds of decisions that a photographer must make before picking a subject or project. Then more decisions to be made when shooting to do with the techniques. Then more in editing and retouching before finally having to make the last batch of decisions with producing and printing. In this small piece of writing, I aim to explore the professional practices of a photographer by researching what I want to do in my photography career, to the ethics behind their work and the possible legal issues that could have to be faced.

Pathways For A Photographer

There are many different paths for a photographer to go down, not all of them including taking pictures. You could decide to put the camera away and turn your skills completely toward being a printer and retoucher or you could completely remove yourself from the creation of images and go toward the role of a curator of galleries. The possibilities are almost endless. Personally, I have two aspirations as a photographer. Like many in my position, I dream of becoming an artistic photographer, with my photos being displayed in galleries across the world, my name being brought up in lectures and my work inspiring those who will become the next greats. However, my backup plan is also something that I could see myself being very happy with. I would want to teach photography in a college or sixth form before moving onto lecturing in a university. I’d be really happy doing either of these vocations, but the question remains though, how do I reach these goals.

Becoming A Photography Teacher/Lecturer

Unlike becoming an artistic photographer, a career as a photography teacher is far more straightforward. Firstly, you will more than likely need to have completed an undergraduate degree in an artistic field. From here, you will need to start your training to become a teacher but which kind of training depends on the level you wish to teach. For myself, that would be to start at a college level so it would be teaching 16+ years old. Now in the UK, to teach at this level, you should have Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) which is something that you can apply for after you complete a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE).

A PGCE is typically a 1 year course (if you do it full time) that trains you to become a teacher. It combines the understanding of theoretical studies behind teaching and the actual practical element of being in a classroom through placements in schools. It is not a requirement to teach but it is often encouraged as the theoretical studies taught on the courses create a solid foundation for you to be a better teacher. At the end of the course, you will be awarded with a postgraduate certificate meaning this is a level 7 qualification but it is not equivalent to a Masters degree as a PGCE is only worth 60 credits and a Masters requires 180. Like almost all qualifications post 18, a PGCE costs. The average tuition fee in 2024/25 for UK students was £9,250 (£15,000 for international students) however there are some ways to help with funding, most commonly being another student loan. Unfortunately, completing a PGCE and getting QTS doesn’t guarantee you a job but with the growing number of pupils in schools nationwide, there is a high need for new teaching talent.

Personally, I don’t want to stay in teaching at a college to sixth form level for my entire career. I want to move higher, onto university lecturing. To do this, you will first need to complete a Masters in a related subject to what you wish to teach. Masters courses are offered by most universities, the trick is finding the correct course for you. As I want to stay as a photography lecturer, I would need to complete a Masters of Fine Art (MFA). After looking at some courses and hearing stories about the course, I would want to complete my MFA at Ulster University. This course is 1 years (full-time) and costs around £9,600.

The Laws And Ethics Of Portraiture

Photography often finds itself in conversation with issues with ethics and the law. Most often, photos are presented as evidence, however sometimes, photography can be the subject of its own case. Below are two examples of just that. In the first example, the photos were used as an invasion of privacy and in the second, its invasive use was used in an attempt to deter crime.

Legal Issue: Weller and others VS Associated Newspapers Ltd

On the 21st October 2012, Mail Online (owned by Associated Newspapers Limited) published an article in which photos of musician Paul Weller and his three children. Dylan Weller, Mr Weller’s daughter, was 16 years old at the time and the other two children were his 10 month old twin sons, John Paul and Bowie. The photographs were of the family simply shopping in the street at stopping at a cafe. Weller sued the company for the misuse of private information and breaching the family’s rights under the Data Protection Act 1998 as the newspaper never pixellated or blurred the children faces in the photos. Associated Newspapers Ltd said that they had the right to publish the images under Article 10 of the Human Rights Act as it allowed them the freedom of expression.

The decision was made that the children had a rightful expectation to privacy and that the violation of their Article 8 right overrides Associated Newspapers Ltd Article 10 right. The Weller’s were awarded £10,000 in total damages.

Ethical Issue: Judicial Review On Behalf Of JR38

In July of 2010, there were riots in Derry, Northern Ireland in which a boy, who became known as JR38 was recorded on CCTV. He was actively involved in the riots and so under the PSNI’s newly introduced Operation Exposure, stills of the CCTV containing his image were taken and released publicly in two widely published newspapers. JR38 was 14 at the time of the riots so he filed an appeal for a judicial review as he felt it violated his Article 8 right under the European Convention on Human Rights to privacy.

The application was however dismissed as Article 8 is a qualified right meaning that authorities can dismiss it if it has a justifiable cause. In this case, the justification was that although the stills are of a child, the images were released as a deterrent for other offenders in the riots and therefore was used as a prevention of crime.