Photography within Conservation International

Heather, how important is photography for CI?
"Photography is essential to CI’s success. Photos enable people to see things they may not have the opportunity to see otherwise. Photos also have the power to inspire, to shock and to tell a story. We use photography extensively in our communications to elicit these reactions and to remind people that we depend on nature for clean air and water, a stable climate, food, medicine, livelihoods, spiritual and cultural values—for our survival."

Do you get asked if the photos you use are digital manipulated?
"We do not get this question often. But the answer is that we only use photos that reflect the subject matter and the scene as it appeared. In some cases, images have been digitally altered for standard optimisation (removal of dust, cropping, reasonable adjustments to exposure, color and contrast), but nothing beyond that."

What is more important: the quality of the photo or the message (journalistic)?
"Both are equally important. If the technical execution of a photo is poor, it will fail to draw people’s attention to it—it becomes visual noise—on the other hand, if the subject is not relevant or appropriate, it does not matter that it is a high-quality photos since it does not support our mission."

What kinds of photos are most important to CI?
"Nature photography is essential, but photos of people and specifically images that highlight people’s relationship with and dependence on nature are becoming more and more important for communicating our mission."

Must a photographer have a photographic style of his own?
"Good branding requires consistency—not just in the use of logos, graphic design and language, but also in photography. Since we source our photography from a variety of places, we prefer photos that are not highly stylised."

Do you think that in the future, photography will become more important?
"Yes, I do believe that photography will continue to grow in importance for two reasons. As I mentioned, photos are a powerful tool for providing visual evidence to skeptics. But photography is also becoming more important in our current digital age where information overload is a daily occurrence. A person can’t possibly read every piece of information that comes at him or her, and yet it only takes a few moments to scan a photograph and understand something that may have taken a paragraph or more to explain."

How important is scientific photography at CI?
"Rigorous scientific research is an important part of our identity here at CI, and in some areas of research such as Rapid Assessment Programs, where a team of field biologists conduct collect and analyze the diversity of selected groups of organisms in a specific location or region, photography is extremely important for documentation purposes."


Insect have a important place in the eco-system, what should photographers be photographing for the CI to help give people a better understanding of insects?
"It would be great if every photo of an insect could show its important role within an ecosystem but the interdependencies within an ecosystem are complex and it is just not possible to show this in a photo. However, there are some exceptions like a pollinator in action, and we do use these kinds of photos as much as possible."

Many organisations use large animals to give people an understanding of conservation. Do you ever think they'll use images of insects for this?
"I do think that as more research is completed - ike the kind we do here at CI - insects and their critical role will be better understood, but that does not mean that it won¹t still be challenging to help the general public understand this, or that most people won’t still feel more sympathetic towards the plight of large animals, particularly, mammals."


Are photos of newly discovered insects species important at CI?
"We are always very excited to share photos of new species discoveries, including insects. These images typically generate a lot of interest in the media and on our website, but I would not say that they are more important than our other photos. They tell part of the story – about the fundamental role that biodiversity plays as a building block for all life on earth - but not the entire story."

Heather thank you very much for your time, I do believe that this interview gives people a better understanding of the meaning photography and conservation. There is a lot to do before we lose more pieces in nature and we people are responsible to conservation for now and the new generation.

More information of Conservation International please visit their website: www.conservation.org

More information on Edwin Brosens visit: www.edwin-macrophoto.com

Photos: © Edwin Brosens.