Reportage and Documentary Photography Services and Information for NGO's and Charaties

The following is a brief guide on how, as a documentary photographer I like to work with a development agency or aid agency. Although this is a guide, it does not mean it can't be changed to fit your needs better.

Availability
I am normally available to travel abroad at a weeks notice. For urgent situations it is possible to travel in 24hrs if the NGO is supplying transport (sorted visas, permissions etc.) as part of an emergency response.

Itinerary and Research:
I am happy to follow your itinerary, but may make suggestions on visual aspects, however I am aware that you are more in touch on the ground than I am. I also like to do research on the issues so I understand the issues and your goals more.

It helps enormously if the NGO sorts out travel arrangements and bookings as language mistakes on the internet can be costly and confusing. All my gear is light and compact and is under the weight limit of most airlines. I am also happy to travel by train, boat, or with aid vehicles going overland if it helps to keep the costs down.

Accommodation
Please don't put me in a swanky 5 star hotel, I need to be with the people I am photographing and learning about the situation and getting to know them, and letting them get to know me. I am happy to camp, stop in peoples homes and have even stayed in rat infested squats and tree houses in the past. There may however, be issues of security either for equipment, personal or for the hosts, and obviously some sort of secure accommodation may be needed; as well as power and internet access if you need images transmitting on a daily basis or after an important event.

Remote set up:
I have honed my equipment, so that it is light and compact, which includes recorders for audio, HD video, DSLR, flash and lenses for still images; all of which can be powered by small solar panels. This allows me to work in remote or disaster areas where there is no power supply, in addition, a lot of the equipment can also be powered with AA batteries that are compact and can be carried in to the area. I can also edit images in the camera and transmit images from the camera via mobile device (providing there is obviously a signal or a WiFi set up) Or I could use a SatPhone via a laptop. I also carry backup equipment as well and all this including camping equipment for temperate climate fits into a 45lt rucksack and allows me to function easily for up to two weeks, or more if there are food supplies

Hazardous Environments (HE)
Currently Include: Afghanistan, Cuba, DR Congo, Gaza, Iraq, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan (outside Islamabad), Somalia, Yemen, West Bank, Zimbabwe.
There may be others as well and this is not a complete list.

I may also add HE rates for reporting from the proximity of a natural disaster or conflict zone depending on the situation and what resources the NGO has in place

• Disasters: I have personal equipment that allows me to work in a disaster area (such as safety boots, helmet, water purifier, cooking equipment, shelter, personal medical gear etc which is selected depending on the circumstances and nature of the disaster) and can also accommodate power and communication devices see “remote set up” above
• Conflict: I don't class myself as a conflict photographer, but I am willing to work in an areas that have conflict and as such don't use ballistic body armour as I am not on the front-line, however if your staff need to wear ballistic body armour then it probably means I need to as well.

Please contact me for further discussion on this and the levels of protection needed. My insurance also covers me for such situations (see bellow)

Ethics
Please inform me at the time of enquiry if you have any concerns regarding images or captions that may have ethical, or cultural issues. There are often ways of portraying the subject matter without compromising ones ethics. There is no charge for applying ethics!

My personal aim on this is to:

• Minimise environmental impact

• Minimise Harm

• Have respect for the subject matter, where possible getting written permission, but maintaining awareness that this in some instances this could endanger the individuals.

• Avoid stereotyping of individuals and don't victimise them with photography. Photograph them as people not labels or objects.

• Act professionally as a photographer at all times and maintain integrity

• Be aware that other organisations may have different agendas to the NGO I am Working with

• No manipulation of the images and maintain creativity within the limits of the camera and keeping details for accurate captions for editing. Maintaining the goals of the NGO by editing sets of images in a way that meet that goal ethically

• Avoid picture styles and content that over dramatises, misleads or misinforms the viewer to the extent of the situation, or creates a false impression.

Insurance
Both public liability insurance and personal insurance are kept up to date, in addition my equipment is also covered for anywhere in the world and hostile environments. My health insurance also includes medical evacuation from hazardous environments and conflict zones due to illness, injury and outbreak of hostility if an official deceleration is made.

Rates: share the cost
It may be possible for me to supply pictures to the NGO without charging you directly, this largely depends on whether I can seek additional funding from other sources within the time frame, through grants etc. or if there are multiple interesting stories in the area that I can sell to the media and use to fund myself; this is perhaps better way for a longer documentary project or study. Expenses or an allowance for travel and accommodation may need to be paid up front. Please get in touch to discuss your media needs and Ill see what I can do. Otherwise I am happy to quote either in hours, day rates or a per job fee for your NGO and I always try to keep the prices as low as possible.

Cancellation: there may be a fee for cancellation as other work could have been booked in and depends on how long the assignment was for, or if it is just postponed. I am always reasonable over the matter of cancellations and realise we live in the real world and sometimes they can't be avoided, details will be sent with my estimate.

Copyright of Media for NGO's
Copyright remains with myself, but I supply images to NGO's for internal use and for use with your own in-house publicity as a perpetual licence with no extra charge or penalties, this means there will be no reoccurring fees needed to re use the media as the licence does not expire.

Credit: Images should always be credited to myself with an accompanying byline, you are welcome to add the name of your organisation to the credit if you have commissioned or assigned me: Gary Austin/Your NGO or Your NGO/Gary Austin

Publicity
Where practicable (and if you are in agreement) I will blog, Facebook and tweet the progress of the assignment to show transparency, raise awareness and give the issue some extra legs.

Delivery of Media
Media is be supplied on a digital disk as well as from my own hosted area, which can be accessed as needed for downloading of images, video, audio and text, this is a secured password protected area to the client and acts as a backup for your images, this is included free in the service.

Different media formats can be supplied to your specifications (e.g. images can be supplied web ready and in Hi-Res for printing) at no extra cost.

Multimedia: Obviously when creating multimedia; source materials such as still images, video and audio can be used separate from the final multimedia presentation which can be used in other ways, theses source files can also be provided, at no extra cost.

Workshops
I also run Workshops teaching Multimedia, Participation photography, and if you think this may benefit yourselves contact me to find out more.

To inquire about my photography services for NGO's and charities, or to obtain an estimate; please briefly explain your needs:

Submit the form to email us with your inquiry. I will contact you shortly.

Note: reservations are not final until I have spoken with you directly and we have mutual agreement.

Reportage Photographer and Documentary Photographer, Humanitarian Photographer & Cultural Photographer for NGO's, Aid Agencies, Development Agencies and Charaties