Photography Etiquette on Mission Trips

Going on a mission trip is a privilege that not everyone gets to experience. Serving alongside fellow brothers and sisters in Christ can be deeply moving and life changing. But, alongside this amazing honor of serving and sharing that experience with others, comes added responsibility.We want to ensure that all we do is pleasing and honoring to the Lord, protecting those we serve, and woven with integrity.

As you prepare for your trip, there are a few guidelines and general etiquette surrounding photography, videography, and sharing online that we would like to share with you. Posting about your mission trip online when you return home is exciting. We know you have experienced something deeply personal, profound, and unique and naturally, you want to share that with the world!

But, the guidelines we have outlined below for you are to help you, our organization, and the mission world at large, operate in the healthiest way possible while serving on the field.

THE HEART

We want to ensure that every time we pull our cameras to capture a moment on the trip, we are respecting the local church, culture, and people. As well, we want to make certain we aren’t interrupting a moment of ministry with the distraction of a cell phone or a camera being pulled out. It is our desire for you, as much as you can on your mission trip, to unplug from the tendencies to take a picture or record a video and instead, live in the moment. Put your phone down and take in the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and culture of the community you are serving in.

Along with being undistracted on your mission trip, we want to challenge you to a higher level of accountability with what you capture and share. As you may know, there is a long and sordid history in the missions world with exploitation of children and vulnerable people groups. It’s not enough to passively disagree with these failures, we must actively work on eliminating exploitation in any way from our actions. This is how we can inspire change and progress in mission work. To understand our role in respecting and protecting those we meet while serving on mission, we first need to define consent, and then how that impacts when we interact with minors and other vulnerable populations.

CONSENT

To share a photo or information about a person, we must have consent. Consent is defined as permission for something to happen. We never want to take a photo or video of someone without their consent, or their permission. Further, we never want to post any photo or video of someone online, without their consent.

There is a lot of vulnerability and trust required for a host church to allow a group of strangers to walk into their community and act in their name. They are trusting you to be humble and kind, listen and learn, and respect whatever they believe is best for the people in their neighborhood. They are trusting you to protect and respect the dignity of those who you interact with.

MINORS

The thing about consent is this: it cannot ever be given by a minor. The term “minor” usually refers to a person under the age of 18. Consent, or permission, to take and share a picture must be given by a parent or guardian of a minor.

There are many reasons a parent or guardian may choose not to give consent for photography of their child. Maybe they are in an unsafe environment; maybe their child is sensitive to being photographed; maybe they are in the foster care system and are not legally allowed to have photographs shared of them online. It’s not our business to know the reason why, it’s simply our duty to protect and respect their choice and privacy.

You may find yourself visiting a school or serving alongside your partner church’s children’s programming during your mission trip. A common misconception is that it is okay to photograph a minor if a school or church allows groups that visit to take pictures. In reality, a school cannot give consent for a child. Only a parent or guardian can give true consent for their child.

Children have been used by the media since its invention to motivate the audience to act. We do not want to utilize a child in any way, for our own gain. This is called exploitation.

We must understand that it can be difficult to understand the scope of our personal or professional influence, whose hands that picture may fall into (and their potential bad intentions), or the many ways we may utilize a photograph here at PPM to promote our mission and vision. So we just keep the line clear - no photos of the faces of minors. No pictures of faces of minors during kids ministry, or school ministry, or during VBS or summer camps.

So wait, is there ever a time I CAN post a photo of a child online?

We mostly see healthy and appropriate opportunities for this with pastor’s kids around the team during the week or at kids ministry if a parent is involved in the church, and only if the parent or guardian consents to their child being photographed. It is best if the photo isn’t of just that child only, but instead, a picture of the child with a group.

A photo of a child is fine if the parent/guardian is around and can give consent, however we still ask that you not post online. PPM will also not utilize it for marketing purposes.

But it’s fine to keep for your personal memories!

VULNERABLE POPULATIONS

Vulnerable populations include the elderly, disabled, socioeconomically disadvantaged, those experiencing homelessness, those in domestic violence shelters, etc. This is not a comprehensive list.

These populations are at-risk of exploitation, meaning they may not be in a place where they feel comfortable saying “no” when asked for something, especially if they are afraid whatever services they are being offered will be taken away as a result.

Even though these different groups of people are not minors, so they may technically be able to give consent for themselves, but given the circumstance, it may be best to have an involved guardian give consent based on their vulnerabilities.

This is where it is very important that we are doing everything we can to protect the dignity of those we’re serving. To treat a person with dignity is to believe they are worth your respect and honor

So it’s important to ask: how can we ensure we’re protecting their dignity?

Follow your gut. Does taking a picture feel invasive? Would it make you uncomfortable if you were photographed in their position? How would you feel if that was your family member in that photograph?

In order to respect and protect those we are serving alongside, it is best to focus on the ministry and not the photographs, in these situations. If you must document the experience, consider the practical photo tips below. And remember, always get consent first and ensure the subject(s) of your picture are aware of the photograph being taken.

PRACTICAL PHOTO TIPS

When in elderly homes or on home visits:

• take a photograph of hands being held
• photograph the wheels of a wheelchair or hands on a piano as the team is singing
• take a photo from behind, where the person’s face isn’t in the photo
• take a photograph of a unique decor piece
• photograph the team member’s face as they smile at someone
• take a picture of the location the ministry is occuring at
• zoom out and take a landscape picture of all that is happening

When serving at a VBS, kids ministry, school ministry:

• photograph the team on stage
• step behind the group and take a photo from behind with no children’s faces
• photograph the crafts on the table or balls from sports ministry
• take a photo of a pile of shoes sitting next to the bouncy house
• take a picture of the location the ministry is occuring at
• zoom out and take a picture of all that is happening

When serving those experiencing homelessness:

• PPM’s expectation is that we do not photograph this interaction.
• However, if you have someone that is up for a photo, we ask that they are looking at the camera and smiling with team members.
• To document this ministry with dignity, consider the following suggestions: take a photo of the street sign where you served, take a photo of a team member praying in the area, or even a photo of your feet standing in the spot you served.

When serving at a food/soup kitchen:

• PPM’s expectation is that we do not photograph this interaction.
• However, if you have someone that is up for a photo, we ask that they are looking at the camera and smiling with team members.
• To document this ministry with dignity, consider the following suggestions: photograph hands serving food, welcome signs, the backs of people sitting at a table, brochures, games being played, teams and partners who run the ministry, etc.

When serving at orphanages:

• PPM’s expectation is that orphanage visits are a NO CAMERA ZONE.
• There is never a situation where photographs should be taken in an orphanage or children’s home setting - by team members, staff members, or anyone involved.

IN SUMMARY

• Do your best to protect the dignity and privacy of those we serve.
• Never take a photo of the face of a minor or vulnerable person.
• No phones are ever allowed at children’s homes or orphanages.
• If you’re not sure if you should take a photo, ask someone.
• We cannot prepare you for every moment, but we ask that you use your judgment and let the Lord give you discernment about taking a photo or video in these tricky situations.