Close Menu
The Baylor Lariat
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn
    Trending
    • Baylor graduate charged after killing cats with pellet gun, hanging bodies over utility lines
    • Baylor Football’s Alex Foster dies at 18
    • Board of Regents confirms budget, renovations, new leadership in May meeting
    • How facilities responds to storms, flooding in campus buildings
    • Welcome Week leaders now paid in hopes of increasing numbers
    • 5 Baylor sports storylines to look forward to in 2025-26
    • Castle’s grand slam lifts baseball to 30th win of season 10-7
    • What to Do in Waco: Summer Edition
    • About us
      • Spring 2025 Staff Page
      • Copyright Information
    • Contact
      • Contact Information
      • Letters to the Editor
      • Subscribe to The Morning Buzz
      • Department of Student Media
    • Employment
    • PDF Archives
    • RSS Feeds
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn
    The Baylor LariatThe Baylor Lariat
    Subscribe to the Morning Buzz
    Saturday, June 21
    • News
      • State and National News
        • State
        • National
      • Politics
        • 2025 Inauguration Page
        • Election Page
      • Homecoming Page
      • Baylor News
      • Waco Updates
      • Campus and Waco Crime
    • Arts & Life
      • Wedding Edition 2025
      • What to Do in Waco
      • Campus Culture
      • Indy and Belle
      • Sing 2025
      • Leisure and Travel
        • Leisure
        • Travel
          • Baylor in Ireland
      • Student Spotlight
      • Local Scene
        • Small Businesses
        • Social Media
      • Arts and Entertainment
        • Art
        • Fashion
        • Food
        • Literature
        • Music
        • Film and Television
    • Opinion
      • Editorials
      • Points of View
      • Lariat Letters
    • Sports
      • March Madness 2025
      • Football
      • Basketball
        • Men’s Basketball
        • Women’s Basketball
      • Soccer
      • Baseball
      • Softball
      • Volleyball
      • Equestrian
      • Cross Country and Track & Field
      • Acrobatics & Tumbling
      • Tennis
      • Golf
      • Pro Sports
      • Sports Takes
      • Club Sports
    • Lariat TV News
    • Multimedia
      • Video Features
      • Podcasts
        • Don’t Feed the Bears
      • Slideshows
    • Advertising
    The Baylor Lariat
    Home»News»Baylor News

    Baylor students and staff discuss ethics of mission trip photography

    Corrie ColemanBy Corrie ColemanApril 25, 2018Updated:April 26, 2018 Baylor News No Comments3 Mins Read
    Dr. Clark Baker discusses ethical photography with students at the Bobo Spiritual Life Center on Tuesday. Corrie Coleman | Reporter Photo credit: Corrie Coleman
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    By Corrie Coleman | Reporter

    On Tuesday evening in the Bobo Spiritual Life Center, Baylor Missions hosted a discussion about ethical photography on mission trips. The event challenged students to take photos with respect for other people and cultures. Bob Oei, coordinator of worship technology and communications at Baylor, and Dr. Clark Baker, professor of journalism, spoke about visual storytelling and later answered questions from students.

    Oei said he believes photography and videography are powerful tools that can trigger change if used effectively.

    “Visual storytelling is a thing that can impact people for good or for bad depending on how you use it,” Oei said. “It’s important to wield this tool responsibly.”

    Baker agreed, explaining that the job of a photographer is to portray the subject accurately.

    “You’re the voice of the subject. Often, the only voice … and so that’s a great deal of responsibility. That’s an illustration of how seriously you should take it, how deliberate you should be in telling stories,” Baker said. “Photographs can be misleading. It’s your responsibility to make sure that doesn’t happen, that the story you tell, at least to the best of your ability, is a truthful representation.”

    Baker urged student photographers to engage with the people in their photos instead of simply taking a photo and walking away.

    “You can’t be surreptitious and really tell a story. You have to engage with a subject. You have to do your research. You have to know who these people are,” Baker said.

    Baker hopes that students can approach photography with humility, remaining open to new views and beliefs.

    “There are all these things I think I know. But am I willing to unlearn something? Am I willing to be open to things that may really go against what I initially thought?” Baker said.

    Oei explained that many photos from mission trips or nonprofits are emotionally manipulative, playing on the viewers’ guilt or shame in order to get donations. Oei encouraged students to instead portray their subject with respect. When taking photos of children, this can mean lowering the camera to their level instead of taking the photo from above.

    “You can affect the viewer by how you frame the shot,” Oei said. “Something as simple as getting down on the ground can give a subject dignity and empower them.”

    Oei challenged students to examine their own motivations for taking photos on mission trips.

    “We all get that little endorphin rush when your photo takes off and gets likes,” Oei said. “But have that question in your head of, ‘What is this for? Is this for me? Do I want everyone to see how great and cool I am? Or am I actually telling the story?”

    Corrie Coleman

    Keep Reading

    Baylor Football’s Alex Foster dies at 18

    Board of Regents confirms budget, renovations, new leadership in May meeting

    How facilities responds to storms, flooding in campus buildings

    Welcome Week leaders now paid in hopes of increasing numbers

    Liberty, justice for all: Dr. Van Gorder confronts racial oppression in new book

    Texas math teachers strengthen skills at School of Education’s academy

    Add A Comment

    Comments are closed.

    Recent Posts
    • Baylor graduate charged after killing cats with pellet gun, hanging bodies over utility lines May 30, 2025
    • Baylor Football’s Alex Foster dies at 18 May 28, 2025
    About

    The award-winning student newspaper of Baylor University since 1900.

    Articles, photos, and other works by staff of The Baylor Lariat are Copyright © Baylor® University. All rights reserved.

    Subscribe to the Morning Buzz

    Get the latest Lariat News by just Clicking Subscribe!

    Follow the Live Coverage
    Tweets by @bulariat

    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn
    • Featured
    • News
    • Sports
    • Opinion
    • Arts and Life
    © 2025 ThemeSphere. Designed by ThemeSphere.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.