Ethics in Graphic Design (1)
Starting my first internship with the Research Foundation of CUNY has been an enjoyable process. There has been clear communication since the beginning. I have always felt as though I were on the same page as my supervisor. I definitely believe that to be a direct result of working with an ethical professional who respects the project, the clients and the employees. I have not seen a creative brief for the work I’m doing as of yet, but I did receive a very detailed email and had a clear conversation about what the objectives are, what my role is, and a simple outline of the project timeline so that I am aware of what to expect for each new week that comes along.
1a) For my internship I will be doing research and editing videos. I am required to gather up some stock photography to use for the project that I am working on. My supervisor let me know that the foundation has a budget to include licensed photographs from iStock. So eventually I will need to pick some imagery from that stock image site for them to approve. I need to pick imagery that has not already been used in previous RFCuny projects. The photographs will all involve people, so they also want to ensure I include images that portray people from different races and ethnicities in order to promote diversity and inclusion. They mentioned the possibility of using student images taken from a specific department at City Tech. But that is something that needs to get discussed further before being approved or moving forward with it. We will also possibly use icons from the Noun Project, which have usable assets under Creative Common licenses.
I understand that the use of stock photography for these projects helps in making the process easier. The budget as well as the nature of the project doesn’t really call for the hiring of a photographer. The imagery aids in visualization, but the most important aspect of these videos is the information being communicated to the audience.
1b) So far I have not needed to sign a non-disclosure agreement for this internship. That probably gives me more leeway to talk about what my internship is about for my journal entries. Despite that, I will do my best to be professional and discerning about what I share and what I do not.
- “Use of Photography” AIGA. (2001). PDF. New York City; Richard Grefé, AIGA.
- “A Client’s Guide to Design: How to Get the Most Out of the Process” AIGA. (2001). PDF. New York City; Richard Grefé, AIGA.
- “Guide to Copyright” AIGA. (2001). PDF. New York City; Richard Grefé, AIGA.
