Camera: NIKON D700
Shutter: 1/320 s
Aperture: f/4.5
Exposure Setting: Manual (spot metering)
ISO: 250
Strobe Flash: Did Not Fire
Lens Focal Length: 200 mm
White Balance: Auto
Editor's Note: When taking pictures at a crime scene, especially of victims, it is important to balance several priorities. Is the photograph informative? Does it add to the story? Is it in good taste? The question of taste may be last on that list, but it's certainly not the least important.
"Good taste" is a slippery creature. In the news business, we have established guidelines about how, when, and in what condition we will show crime victims. This is a sensitive topic, even more so when the people in question are critically or fatally wounded.
A photojournalist and educator I greatly respect, Terry Eiler, called it the "cornflakes test". Basically, if it's not something you would want to see over breakfast, consider carefully before you publish it.
In general, we think (and talk) a lot before using any image that includes one or more of the following elements:
1) It does not add any information to the story.
2) It clearly shows a body or body part of a victim.
3) It shows blood.
The bottom line is, there has to be a clear reason to include a graphic image in any publication. This is true both online and in our print product.
The photo above is clearly within the bounds of good taste. It was shot at a great distance and the person being loaded into the ambulance is completely covered. It shows that there is some sort of crime scene, because crime scene tape is there. The image also shows the crowd of people surrounding the situation, which offers context.
Any person who regularly consumes news will have noticed that the list above is pushed aside in certain situations. In recent years, major catastrophic events, like the earthquake in Haiti, or the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, caused many news outlets to use photographs and video that would normally have been considered too graphic. In those cases, the news value of the images far outweighed many questions of good taste.
-- Lara Neel, visual editor
