4 Tips for Telling a Story Through Your Photos

Whether you're a professional photographer or enjoy taking photos as a hobby, here are 4 tips to help you tell a story through your photos.

4 Tips for Telling a Story Through Your Photos

Whenever you take a peep through the camera's viewfinder and focus on the subject, you might be thinking about what story you'll create with that frame. You're wondering whether the viewers will understand the photo's meaning you have in mind.

Apart from mastering composition and lighting, it's crucial for photographers to learn how to become visual storytellers. There are several tips you can use to get started and ensure every picture you take has a story to tell.

Tips for Telling a Story Through Your Photos

Whether you decide to take a single image or a series of photos, what matters is that viewers understand the story you are trying to tell. Aside from finding meaning, the pros at Táve explain how you can also portray stories through colors and editing.

Prepare a Shot List

It's common for photographers to go with the flow, especially with the thinking, "When I see it, I'll know it". While this is true in some cases, there are times when you need a shot list to make sure you have time for the essential shots. 

Researching the location is also part of preparation. Is there a specific time of the day when people flock to the area? Are there significant effects that happen in the marketplace during the morning? 

Even if it's for a studio or outdoor shoot, using a shot list helps you remember the ideas you've prepared. Make a list of the particular shots, lighting, angles, and subjects you want to cover. Taking these steps gives you a structure to follow when visualizing a story.

Create a Photo Essay

You've heard the saying, "A picture is worth a thousand words". While this remains true, there are circumstances wherein a single photo is not enough to convey the whole story. With photo essays, photographers can narrate stories using a series of photographs. 

When it comes to photo essays, pictures are shown in a particular manner, either chronologically or as a series, with the goal of stirring the viewer's emotions and visions. The first and last photos are the most important because they serve as the opening shot and conclusion, respectively. 

For instance, you'll probably take lots of photos during a medical mission. You'll see doctors attending to patients, people lining up to get their prescription medicines, and volunteers extending help. You need to take photos of these using different angles to represent every part of the story.

Capture Emotions

One of the simplest ways to tell a story through photos is by focusing on the emotions of people. For instance, you see an elderly couple eating at a restaurant. Are their body languages conveying some form of intimacy by touching or looking at each other? 

Look at the people's facial expressions while being stuck in traffic. Do you see signs of boredom like yawning, slouching, or glancing at their watches? Maybe they look angry with their brows drawn together and lips pressed together. 

Whenever you see a cluster of physical signals like these, you can show how such facial expressions or body languages become a pattern in a given story.

Include Even the Smallest Details 

A person's story is in the details. In a wide-angle shot, you can include several elements that will explain what the story is all about. 

For example, you see street kids looking for scraps in a large plastic bag while the city skyline serves as the background. You're illustrating the gap between the rich and the poor. 

The small details like the plastic bag, leftover food, and the children's skinny bodies, depict a stark contrast to the neat and towering buildings on the other side of the river. 

Conclusion 

Photography is about capturing images that stir emotions while also getting people to think and talk. Every photographer is unique, so don't be afraid to create stories through your photography style.

Header Image Credit: Photo by Clarisse Meyer on Unsplash

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Jen Landry

Jen Landry

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