Sport Singapore (SportSG) is a statutory board of the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth.

Towards the tail end of the 2017 SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur, an article appeared on the Team Singapore website on Aug. 29, praising the work of volunteer photographers shooting for SportSG.

Volunteer photographers praised

The article featured prominently a 54-year-old Malaysian photographer, Andrew Tan.

Tan is one of 18 photographers who contributed pictures to SportSG's coverage of the recently-concluded 2017 Southeast Asian Games.

The photographs are used on SportSG’s website and Facebook page, as well as distributed to local media.

This group of 18 photographers had also volunteered to shoot for the 2015 SEA Games.

The piece also said that SportSG claims to have more than 300 volunteer photographers in Singapore.

The core group of 18 photographers were selected from this larger group based on experience and the frequency of contributions to local activities.

Tan, who is semi-retired, is regarded as a mentor to younger photographers.

In his free time, he conducts travel photography workshops, and also teaches in camera schools.

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Unsubtle message

The message in the Team Singapore article drew negative responses from the professional photography community, as well as observers of self-employment practices.

It has been perceived as an overt approval of the practice by government bodies to prioritise the granting of access to events for coverage over compensating work done via monetary payment.

In other words, the volunteers were praised for working for passion instead of money.

Backlash

The article was met with backlash on Facebook.

Two sides to issue

Photographers spoken to, on the condition of not being named as the community is small and tight-knit, said not all photographs taken by volunteers are not up to standard.

Other photographers, who defend the work done by volunteers, said these hobbyists can be relied upon to shoot all events, regardless of how glamarous they are.

They are doing the important work of documentation to bring events to light.

However, this practice of not paying for work done sets unhealthy precedents in the industry, as well as informs how government bodies work with individuals or smaller bodies that have less bargaining power.

All photographers said fair remuneration is key and it is up to individuals to accept the terms.

Another method professional photographers can do is provide value-added services, such as ensuring short turnaround times, where photographs are submitted to the customer within a few hours.

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