Editorial reseach

The fundamentals of creative photography

David Prakel, page 076

Editorial as a whole

The term 'editorial photography means 'Pictures for publication'. In other words to make public.

Editorial photography can be found in magazines and newspapers and isn't a picture that is advertising something but an image to tell a story or go alongside a story. Essentially the images are the reason those magazines and newspapers exist. A picture can draw the view towards the magazine or newspaper and then could potentially compel the to purchase it.

One thing that has compelled editorial photography into the new age is the internet, there is now a bigger demand for this kind of photography because the internet is a bigger platform which is filled with editorial opportunities it is no longer confined to magazines and newspapers. One things that is an issue with editorial photography on the internet is the increasing issue of copyright on images. As you know images online are literally there for the taking by literally anyone all around the world. Many people will use them for personal gain but in most circumstances they are used for harmless things like research etc which is something i do on a day to day basis. 

The editorial team

Being in the editorial field may mean that you may have to work as a team with other people. Although teams may be always together or just brought together for one issue, there are clear roles and responsibilities. 

Shooting for stock

Working only for one magazine now is very rare, as there is increasing amounts of freelance editorial photographers. Stock shots are no more widely used for magazine covers. 

In the past stock shots were images taken outside the terms of a commission and were a means of earning a little extra alongside a commission, once taken these 'stock shots; would be stored in a stock library. Once in the stock library they would be given to clients, for a fee on a loan basis meaning all rights to the photographs still belonged to the stock library but they can feature them in their magazines/ newspapers etc.