A powerful medium of expression.

Photography, at its best, is a powerful language which speaks to our emotions. It allows us to tell our story and show others our framing of the world around us.

Photography is a powerful medium of expression and communication. Roughly 90% of information that comes to the brain is visual, which explains why people often look first to images then to words. Visual aids can improve learning by up to 400%. With these facts in mind, it is important to understand that every image communicates a message, and does so with maximum impact.

At Fresno State, photography's primary goal is to tell our stories — stories that showcase Fresno State's people, their achievements and their impact within our community. Secondly, we look to showcase the campus atmosphere, which is especially important to prospective students by depicting compelling scenes of campus life.

When you need original photography, we recommend using our campus photographer, Cary Edmondson, whenever possible. If he is unavailable for your photo request, contact him at caedmondson@csufresno.edu to obtain a list of recommended freelance photographers. Our audio/visual release form is required for all recognizable subjects. Download the form below:

•  Audio/Visual Release Form (English) 75 KB (.pdf)
•  

Our Photographic Style

Visual storytelling

Photos should tell a story and present subjects and topics in the most intriguing and effective way. The most obvious method to achieve this is by taking photos of people doing the work that is related to the story. Posed shots lose precious energy, which translates into weaker impact.

We encourage our subjects to walk, talk, move, to be themself, to be comfortable. Our goal is for the viewer to see a photo and feel as if the photographer happened upon the person doing an activity and just snapped a picture. We discourage simply taking a mugshot or "grip-and-grin" pose and instead prefer to photograph relaxed poses in a relevant setting that helps tell the subject’s story.

 

We try to use natural lighting, interesting framing and, depending on the image, emotion to separate our subject from the background to help the eye identify the primary focal point of the photograph. Examples are shown above that describe a template that creates a unique brand and supports our main goal to tell a story.

 

Request Photography Services

General guidelines

• Campus clients should contact the university photographer at least two weeks in advance to schedule a photo shoot using the photo request form online.
• Allow two to five working days to fulfill requests for existing digital photography from the photo archive.
• Using or distributing a photograph from the university’s collection without consent is prohibited.
• Upon using a photo, clients should use high-resolution photos (high-resolution files measure at least at the size you want them to display at 300 dpi or higher; for websites, low-resolution images at 72 dpi should be used).

Request a photo shoot

University photographer Cary Edmondson is available for certain strategic on- and off-campus photo shoots for university clients. If your request is for a project that is being coordinated or managed by University Marketing and Communications, tell your contact that you need new photography or a photo shoot and he/she will help with the scheduling arrangements. Because we have only one staff photographer paired with one student photographer, you may be referred to a freelance photographer. Although photo shoots conducted by the university photographer are free of charge to our clients, you (as the client) must pay freelancers for their services.

You must contact the university photographer at least two weeks in advance to schedule a photo shoot. For weekend requests, a month's notice is recommended to avoid scheduling conflicts.

Request a photo shoot

 

Request an existing photo from the archive

The university photo archive is a web-based digital asset management system maintained by University Marketing and Communications at Fresno State. It is designed to provide campus communications specialists with a wide variety of photos that help tell the Fresno State story.

Registered users are welcome to search and download photos in the archive by using the keyword search field. Requests for access will be reviewed by the university photographer for approval.

If you cannot find what you are looking for and need to request photography for a specific project, please contact caedmondson@csufresno.edu.

Sign in to the photo archive

 

Freelance Photographers and Stock Images

General guidelines

Use of University Marketing and Communications stock photography and the work of the university photographer is deemed acceptable for on-campus clients, but University Marketing and Communications is not responsible for any charges billed by off-campus photographers for the use of their photographs or for charges for any stock photography requested by our clients. If you use the work of an outside photographer, copyrighted photographs, or other copyrighted art in your publication or on your website, you as the client are obligated to pay for it. University Marketing and Communications is not responsible for any charges incurred for the use of images provided to us by our clients without proper permission.

Conducting or using your own photography

Signed model releases are necessary for every recognizable person shown on your website. You are required to obtain releases to prove that you have the legal right to use those images of that person to promote or advertise Fresno State.

 

Copyright and Usage

Understanding photographic copyright

Photographs on the Fresno State website and those otherwise provided by University Marketing and Communications are copyright of the contributing photographer and Fresno State. They are only for use related to Fresno State and are not for commercial reproduction. The photographs in the university archive are not necessarily available for use simply because they are archived. This is a working photo archive of the university photographer and, therefore, includes proprietary photographs, daily photo assignment archives, photos with limited model releases, and photos created for single, exclusive use. The university photographer will deny or authorize the use of any photo based on set criteria and the type of photograph.

Using or distributing a photograph from this collection without authorization is prohibited. Photographs in this collection contain metadata that marks them as property of Fresno State. Photographs may not be altered in any way other than minimal cropping. Photographs may not be used in any way other than in their intended context and for the promotion of the university. Photographs that are copyrighted by the photographer or the university and published in off-campus media or public relations pieces must include a credit. “Courtesy of California State University, Fresno” is preferred. If you have any questions regarding appropriate use of a photograph, please contact Cary Edmondson at caedmondson@csufresno.edu.

For frequently asked questions about copyright visit https://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/index.html