Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
The fieldworker should select photographic equipment to suit personal
taste and individual competence or expertise. Hundreds of useful accessories
are available ranging from tripods to photo printers and from memory cards to
batteries. The aim, however, is to choose equipment that answers the needs of
fieldwork and to not become lost in technological sophistication. Given care-
ful treatment, a digital camera should last for a few years. Technological devel-
opments will continue to advance photography considerably but will not
necessarily make a camera obsolete for fieldwork.
Computer software programs help organize digital photos and videos into
“folders” based on themes or topics. Similarly, Web storage filing programs,
such as Picasa and Dropshots, make it easy to organize and share photographs
and digital videos with colleagues and the people you work with on the
Internet. The same software can be used to “tell a story” by using these pic-
tures to create digital slide shows and digital videos. I produce these kinds of
videos for many of my projects and post them on blogs and Web pages. They
help document a key event, share group projects with others who could not
attend meetings, and give voice to community members who would not have
otherwise been heard. They also serve as useful projective techniques, partic-
ularly as community members provide feedback on the video during the edit-
ing phase of video production.
The use of the camera or any photographic or audio recording mechanisms
in fieldwork requires the subjects' permission. Some people are uncomfortable
having their pictures taken; others cannot afford exposure. Many groups I
worked with in Israel had strong religious reasons for not wanting their picture
taken, including a fear of losing their souls. The issue involves individual pri-
vacy: The ethnographer may enter the lives of people on their terms, but may
not invade individual privacy. Photography is often perceived to be an intru-
sion. People are usually self-conscious about their self-presentation and con-
cerned about how and where their pictures will be seen. An individual's verbal
permission is usually sufficient to take a picture. However, written permission
is necessary to publish or to display that picture in a public forum. Even with
verbal and written permission in hand, the ethnographer must exercise judg-
ment in choosing an appropriate display and suitable forum.
Cameras, too, can be problematic. Inappropriate use of cameras can annoy
and irritate people, undermining rapport and degrading the quality of the data.
Cameras can also distort reality. A skillful photographer uses angles and shad-
ows to exaggerate the size of a building or shape the expression on a person's
face. The same techniques can present a distorted picture of an individual's
behavior. For example, much horseplay mimics physical aggression. Snapping
the shutter at the right moment and angle might suggest real violent behavior
when there truly is none. Photoshop and related software can easily modify
