Visual content standards

Visual content is used daily across all ActionAid’s communications and channels
and is key to our engagement with supporters, influencers and campaigners.
Whenever and wherever we gather or use this content, we must do so responsibly
and with accountability to those who have contributed it.

Strong imagery has the power to move individuals or galvanise a movement; it can
seek to tell a truth or slay an untruth. Our imagery should always strive to inspire,
engage, differentiate and tell a story. Integrity and authenticity must also be at its
core.

The process of gathering images and film should be a positive and collaborative
interaction between staff and contributors. This guide will help you put in place all
the steps you need to gather content that safeguards and respects the rights of
contributors.

ALL members of staff gathering or using visual content must uphold these
standards. This includes all visual content gathered on a trip, both on ActionAid and
personal devices.

For technical requirements for delivering and uploading images please refer to
ActionAid UK’s Post Production Guide.

Photography and video

The role of visual storytelling is to bear witness to the lives of others and to
represent them in the most visually compelling way, with honesty and integrity at the
heart of everything we produce. ActionAid’s photography and film must represent
the wider values of the whole organization and our standards upheld in everything
we shoot.

Do
• Capture human emotion and feeling
• Let subjects own who they are
• Show strength, determination and personality
• Shoot in natural surroundings that are familiar to your subjects
• Create impactful, engaging images
• Keep backgrounds as clean as possible, clutter makes for a messy portrait

Don’t
• Shoot from above to make someone look vulnerable and helpless
• Take overly posed shots that look nothing like real life
• Use “props” in shots with children
• Dress children in clothes that are not theirs, or get them to pose with objects
that don’t belong to them
• Manipulate a scenario or image to our advantage
• Construct a scenario that misrepresents their experience

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Authenticity

ActionAid does not portray people as helpless victims. Where possible we capture
individuals or groups of people actively solving their own problems to reflect our
rights-based approach. Images should emphasise humanity, individuality and real-
life experience.

We take great care to be honest in our portrayal of individuals and would never
construct a scenario or change a person’s story in a way that misrepresents their
lives. For example, putting bandages on the heads of children affected by conflict or
disaster or asking individuals to pose for images in ways that make them
uncomfortable.

Our photography is a true representation of our activities and bears witness to real
life events. We don’t stage, distort or manipulate images. Post-production
techniques like Photoshop can change the meaning of a photograph and will not be
accepted without the permission of the Visual Content Manager.

Accuracy

Staff involved in gathering images must ensure they accurately document the
conditions they see and the story that they have been given consent to tell. Images
should only be taken of people’s typical activities and the story that they relate in
their interview. We should never imply that individuals are experiencing something
that they are not.

We do not wrongly attribute quotes. We do not imply that we will help an individual
or group of people pictured in an image if we know that this is not true. For
example, an image showing a girl at risk of child marriage taken in an area where we
do not work.

Commissioning photography and video

All commissioned photographers and videographers should produce work that
meets ActionAid UK’s professional standard.

Their work should elevate the subject matter, they should be proficient at
storytelling, familiar with working to tight deadlines and getting the most out of the
time available. Every image should stand out whether it’s part of a larger story or as
a single frame.

Communication is key. For the photographer to shoot their best work they must
understand the story and the reasons for telling it. What is ActionAid hoping to
achieve, the tone to be set, the high value shots?

Try to convey to the visual storyteller what’s needed through discussion rather
than through overcomplicated job briefs.

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What makes a visual story?

A good story has a beginning, middle and end. When working with the Stories team
and visual storyteller, make sure you’ve taken time to map out where these stages
fit. You might want to consider:

§ A shot to anchor the piece – perhaps a landscape that puts the geography
and location in context

§ The main protagonists – the people, the main thrust of the story

§ Incidentals – these are the gel that holds the set together, think coasts on
hooks, a small detail of a home, a hand holding another hand for comfort

§ If a story doesn’t have these elements then it’s not a story, it’s just a
collection of images

§ A strong visual story should always push to engage, inspire and educate the
viewer in some way.

Non-professionals in the field

Not everyone is a trained photographer or videographer, but there may be times

when it is appropriate to gather eyewitness accounts or additional material for
professional shoots.

Most people travel with a camera, it’s built into almost all phones, and they have
incredible capabilities if you know how to use them properly. With a little practice
you could be taking first class phone images that can really help with our content
offering.

If you’re interested to find out more, or would like some 1-1 training, please contact
the Stories team.

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Captions
All images must be captioned. When writing captions be concise but include any
relevant information. Here are some basic guidelines:

§ A caption MUST be factually correct

§ It must give the reader vital information; think WHO, WHAT, WHERE and
WHY

§ If it’s safe to dos so, identity the individual or people in the picture

§ An image is not complete without a photographer’s credit.

Photo credits and image rights

All images taken by ActionAid employees during ActionAid business are the
property of ActionAid and should be credited as such:
Credit: Name of staff member/ ActionAid

If you are submitting images to Stories Hub that were taken by a freelance
photographer credits should include:
Credit: Name of photographer/ ActionAid

You must include the photographer’s credit set in Helvetica Neue Regular, minimum
6pt, placed in the corner of an image. It can also run vertically along the edge of the
image, or next to the image.

AAUK works with a regular group of photographers, with whom we have specific
rights agreements concerning the use of images. If you are not working with one of
these photographers, you MUST ensure that you have a written agreement from the
copyright owner of the images (usually the photographer) granting ActionAid the
license to use them (see Short Contract document in the Help & Advice section of
Stories Hub).

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Safeguarding and the rights of individuals
Risk checking

Pre-trip
Ahead of a content gathering trip, a risk assessment must be completed which
looks at the story we wish to tell and whether it can be told in a way that safeguards
the contributors. Individuals are discussed on a case-by-case basis, and the in-
country programme lead assesses the risk to the individual of telling their story or
revealing their identity. This process involves programme staff and the stories team
lead overseeing the trip.

During trip
Before interviews take place, the interviewer must take time to explain how and
where the contributor’s story or image will be used. The right to anonymity must
also be explained in full. If the individual then consents to telling their story, you
must obtain fully informed consent which can be written, audio or video.

Post trip
All images, video and transcripts must be risk checked by the Stories Team before
they can be shared via Stories Hub. This includes the safe management of GPS
metadata, meaning that images published online are not tagged and do not have
identifying details embedded in the image file. Many cameras and mobile phones
can now embed exact GPS coordinates when an image is taken. Care must be
taken that this information is not used to identify the location of any individuals by
publicly giving locations of their homes or of equipment that AA tracks (such as
latrines).

Please note this is a mandatory process and forms part of our safeguarding
standards. Any images not meeting the standards set out here will not be uploaded
to Stories Hub and cannot be used by staff.

Informed consent

Photos, film and audio recordings are personal data. ActionAid has a legal and
moral obligation to obtain consent from every person photographed, videoed or
interviewed to use their personal data. This consent, in the form of written consent
forms, video consent or audio consent, must be delivered to the Stories and
Content Gathering Team so that it can be securely archived.

ActionAid staff must gather the informed consent of everyone we interview, film or
photograph. Informed consent means that someone you are photographing or
filming fully understands how and where their image may be used and that
somebody, they know might see it.

For under 18s, the consent of a parent or guardian must be obtained.

Always respect a person’s right to refuse to be photographed or interviewed. If you

sense any reluctance, confusion or distress, refrain from taking the photo. Make
sure that people can also retract their consent if they wish too, and that they are
made aware of exactly how to do this.

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ActionAid’s mandatory consent form and guideline, including information on group
consent, permissions to photograph in public spaces and child consent can be
found here: CPE Comms Hub – Microsoft Teams.

Child protection

Photos featuring child nudity, a sexually provocative pose or violence will not be
accepted and should never be taken. Ensure that children are suitably dressed.
Never take images of children with no clothing, appearing to be wearing no clothing
or wearing transparent clothing.

It is completely unacceptable to manipulate children during a shoot. This includes

dressing children in clothes that are not theirs, getting children to pose with objects
that don’t belong to them or using props to create a scenario that isn’t real.

All children (under 18s)

§ Remove last names

§ Remove the name of the child’s school or college
§ Remove the name of the child’s village or town
§ Remove anything that could identify the child’s specific location, for example
the school name on their uniform.

Where necessary we will also change a child’s name or use unidentifiable/partial

imagery to further protect them.

Survivors of violence and those at risk

Under 18s
Do not use footage or images of child survivors of sexual violence. Participants in an
information collection activity, who have survived abuse or are at risk, should never
be recognizable through photographs, and/or audio or video recordings. If using the
testimony of a survivor, always change her first name, remove surname and if
possible, agree a pseudonym with her during the interview. Remove all identifying
information from the story, including location, ethnic group or school.

Girl survivors of sexual violence are defined as:

• Girls under the age of 18 (legal age of consent according to the UN
Convention on the Rights of the Child) who have experienced sexual
violence.
• Girls who have experienced sexual abuse (‘rape’, ‘defilement’), child
marriage, FGM (often a pre-requisite to child marriage and therefore child in
image will most likely be a survivor of sexual violence at time of or since
image taken), a child who had a child while under 18 years old.

Over 18s
Do not use identifying images, footage or information unless it is of individuals who
have a) already spoken out about VAWG in their community or wider world, and b)
given informed consent.

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By ‘individuals who have already spoken out about VAWG’ we mean:
• Women who are publicly advocating for change
• Women who have spoken out in their community as part of an ongoing
program, for example an active women’s group or a One Stop Centre
• Women who have local support networks available to them.

The right to anonymity

All contributors have the right to tell their story but remain anonymous. Please
reassure contributors that we never disclose any personal information such as
names, ages, places of birth, locality which could put them at risk. Discuss the
different ways we can make anonymity effective and agree this on your consent
form, or via audio or video consent.

Here are some of the most effective ways to achieve anonymity:

§ Making sure a person's face is thoroughly blurred or obscured when taking

photographs. This depends on having the correct lens and the skill of the
photographer
§ Filming someone from behind, placing an object, or using a head scarf to
obscure a person's distinctive features
§ Photographing your subject as a silhouette
§ Making sure that distinctive items like a tattoo, an unusual watch, or objects
in the location are covered up or removed
§ Not revealing the outside of a home / school or a local landmark e.g. through
blurring background or shooting in a generic and communal location
§ Not revealing several pieces of information that could compromise a
person's anonymity when put together: so-called "jigsaw identification".