Lecture Series on Ethical Literacy, Part 3: Photography Ethics: Putting Ethics into Practice


In October, VII Insider hosted a three-week public lecture series on ethical literacy. When discussing photography ethics, we are talking about applying concepts like responsibility, power, and dignity to how to take and share photographs.

Savannah Dodd, founder and director of the Photography Ethics Centre, facilitates the lecture series. Each session explores what photography ethics is, why photography ethics matters, and how you can apply photography ethics to your practice. We look at case studies, share experiences, and reflect on the ethical decision-making process of photographers and photo-editors. 

Lecture 3: Photography Ethics: Putting Ethics into Practice
In the first session, Savannah Dodd introduced a principles-based approach to photography ethics. In the second session of this series, Danielle Villasana discusses the power we have as image-makers to represent others. In the third and final session, we hear from Shaminder Dulai on putting ethics into practice. Coming from a background as both a photographer and a photo editor, Shaminder draws on his varied experiences to discuss the practicalities of integrating ethics into your workflow. He addresses questions like: How can we approach ethical discussions with editors? How can we navigate ethical decisions with others?

Video chapters:
00:00 – VII Insider in partnership with PhotoWings
00:43 – Welcome by Savannah Dodd
01:42 – Introduction by Shaminder Dulai
05:18 – What are ethics?
20:22 – Ethics as media literacy
37:40 – Conflict in ethics
53:19 – Public Q&A
01:12:28 – Closing remarks