Finding someone to take photographs that document a charity’s work can itself take a little work.
If there’s no money available to hire a professional to take pictures, an organization can either look for help from its staff or volunteer ranks or seek the donated services of a professional photographer.
The first approach may have its limits. As photography director for Catholic Relief Services, the aid group headquartered in Baltimore, Jim Stipe trains the charity’s international aid workers in basic photography skills but keeps his expectations low.
“Training will help most staffers take average pictures at best. The result we’re after is mainly usability,” he says. “The best equipment in the world can’t take a great picture on its own—it relies on the person behind the camera.”
Bob Longino, the creative director of Habitat for Humanity International, in Americus, Ga., is more optimistic about finding photo talent from within a charity’s ranks.
“Take a good look among your own people—staff and volunteers who already are familiar with your mission—and find out who takes photos all the time or is regularly posting Facebook pictures,” Mr. Longino says. “Then you can look through all these images and probably find somebody who is doing a pretty good job, already understands your needs, and will be excited to help.”
If there is no amateur Annie Leibovitz among the ranks, however, most communications experts say the key to finding a talented outside photographer to donate his or her services is simple.
“The main thing is, just ask,” says Rachel Reuveni, a photographer in New York who has donated her time and skills for charity causes such as Camp Towonga, a nonprofit summer camp near Yosemite National Park, in California. “The worst anyone can say is no, and even then they might say, ‘I can’t, but here’s someone else who could help you.’ Photographers know other photographers, you know, so maybe they can offer someone who can fit the bill. But you have to ask.”
Seeking Skills
Photographers and other people who help nonprofits create a visual record of their work offer the following suggestions for places to look for photography help.
Graphic-design firms. “If you have the wherewithal to ask for money from donors, then you can make a request to a communications professional,” says Mark Kozlowski, director of photography for QuadPhoto, a nationwide network of commercial photo studios whose members often take pictures for charities. “Even a small shop will work with different photographers and have an idea of who might provide the best photographs to suit your mission and who might work for free or a reduced fee.”
College photography programs. Arts Every Day recruits professional artists to volunteer to teach in Baltimore City’s public schools, and the two-person staff relies on unpaid interns from the nearby Maryland Institute College of Art, who work for college credit to take high-quality, creative photographs documenting the programs.
“It’s a natural fit,” says Kathy Beachler, Arts Every Day’s interim executive director. “Students need real-world experience, and groups like ours need visually adept, energetic people.”
Scott Anderson, a professional photographer in Minneapolis who, as a dog lover, has done pro bono photography for a local animal shelter, says to “call not just a school but an actual photo instructor within the school. They might be willing to make your photo shoot an assignment for one of their classes, or maybe recommend a particular student they think would be a good fit.”
Photography guilds and clubs. Contacting local photography clubs is a “great way to track down enthusiastic photographers who would be very willing to shoot something for free, since it’s their hobby,” suggests Mr. Longino.
John Zacher, director of biomedical communications at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, in Memphis and a photographer himself, suggests attending a meeting of a local professional photographer’s guild to see if anyone there “matches your culture and your charity” and then asking that individual in person to donate his or her services.
Stock photography sources. For nonprofit organizations unable to hire their own photographers, Sharon Heiber, a senior writer at Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children’s headquarters in Seattle, recommends searching online stock-photography sites such as iStockphoto.com for inexpensive but professional-quality photographs.
“Stock photography shouldn’t be used to speak on behalf of your specific mission,” she cautions. But, she says, such photos “can be helpful when you’re trying to illustrate a more abstract concept like, say, the effects of domestic violence on children, where you don’t want to use a photo of an actual client.”
Ms. Heiber adds that local charities can often find photos by asking national charities that work on the same issue. For instance, she says, her organization would share the professional photographs it commissions with small groups. “This is a way they can get great photos with no money.”