About Ethical Imagery
A grounded standard for real photography in an AI-generated world
Ethical Imagery was founded by photographer Katie Dobies, the creator of Stock Photo Queen.
After more than a decade working as a professional photographer and stock image contributor, Dobies witnessed firsthand how imagery is licensed, distributed, misused, decontextualized, and increasingly replaced by generated visuals.
“A photograph captures a real moment in time,” she says. “It was once in time, and now it is eternal. AI imagery doesn’t capture anything. It generates a representation of something that never happened.”
Ethical Imagery was created to protect that distinction.
The Ethical Imagery Standard™ defines what real photography is — and what it is not — in an AI-generated world. It establishes clear expectations around human authorship, truthful context, traceable origin, and clear licensing.
“AI imagery has its place as a form of generated media,” Dobies explains. “But it is not a photograph. It is not interchangeable with photography. And it should not be licensed or labeled the same way.”
Ethical Imagery exists to give designers, editors, businesses, and buyers a grounded compass — a way to confidently choose real, authentic, human-made photography in a visual ecosystem increasingly saturated with synthetic content.
Ethical Imagery (EI) is real, authentic, human-made photography that captures a real moment in time, created with truthful context, clear licensing, and traceable origin — the grounded standard to AI-generated imagery.
“A photograph captures a real moment in time. It was once in time, and now it is remembered.”
Stock Photo Queen and Katie Dobies Photography are implementation platforms aligned with the Ethical Imagery Standard™.