Photos appear too perfect

Photographers count as journalists too. Allen Detrich, a photographer for Toledo Blade, has been caught red-handed altering his photographs and has chosen to resign from his job.

Detrich had been doing his own altercations of photos for so long it easily slipped into his daily routine. He automatically fixed images in Photoshop even when they were strong enough photos to stand on their own.

Detrich claims that most of what he did was confined to cleaning up backgrounds and that he was good at capturing moments, but hated distracting backgrounds.

This is still ethically wrong because Detrich is altering the truth. Objects found in the background of photos give more information to the viewer, such as where the photo was taken, time of day, and much more.

The SPJ Code of Ethics states journalists should "seek truth and report it by being honest, fair and courageous in gathering, reporting and interpreting information". This code goes into further detail toward photographers and videographers. "Never distort the content of news photos or video. Image enhancement for technical clarity is always permissible. Always label montages and photo illustrations." Detrich not only altered photos but also altered his photography career for the worse.