The photo story
Show & tell The photo story requires more than simply placing a few photos on a page.
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LIFE FORMULA FOR VISUAL VARIETY INTRODUCTORY: Usually a wide-angle or arial shot to establish the scene. MEDIUM: Focuses on one activity or one group. CLOSE-UP: One element, like a person’s hands or an intricate detail of a building. PORTRAIT: Either a dramatic, tight head shot or a person in his environment. INTERACTION: People conversing or in action. SIGNATURE: A summary of the situation with all of the key elements in one photo — the decisive moment). SEQUENCE: A how-to, before and after, or series with beginning, middle and end. CLINCHER: A closer that would end the story.
By Bradley Wilson
photo story could be a yearbook spread. Or a newspaper photo page. Or a multimedia presentation, such as a slide show accessed on a Web site or via a link. Always, though, a photo story is a collection of images that tell a story focusing on a central theme. The complete photo story may be told about a critical event, such as a celebration, an accident or a natural disaster. Or it may record activity that happened over months or years. The story may be told through a collection of portraits or settings in a variety of places. Successful photo stories might depict the day in the life of a dog or of a school janitor. Or they might depict the preparation for a school musical through the strike party after the last performance. No matter the time frame or locale, the photographs should all support a central, well-developed theme. As photographer Ken Kobré says, “[T]hese visual storytelling packages are the avenues through which photographers document ways of life, explore topics in depth, present a point of view or show with images the many sides of an issue.” When the photographer chooses to tell the story through time, it has a beginning, middle and end. A climax to the narration and resolution to the action help complete the story. Such a “narrative approach” might start as tryouts begin for the musical and then cover the blocking, the dress rehearsals and the final cast party. Not all photo stories are best told through time. The “documentary approach” works better when time is not a key factor. For example, the photographer might have a collection of images about different athletes at the school or various sections in the band. Regardless of whether the photographer uses a chronological approach or documentary approach, a successful story, while highlighting a central theme, contains a variety of images — the wide (storytelling) shot, the medium shot, the tight shot and a close-up/detail shot. For all approaches, order matters as does high technical quality. Photographers must pay attention to which photograph is the central image (often the dominant on a page or on a spread). It should be the one that by itself portrays the most important piece of the action. To enhance the impact of the photographs, pay attention to other essentials: the headline, caption stories that build on reporting and a copy block that adds enlightenment to the importance of the focus. Uniform internal margins are routine, but attentive design itself adds power to the photography.
RESOURCE
Photojournalism: The Professionals’ Approach, 6th ed. by Kenneth Kobré 512 pages Focal Press 2008 $55/paperback
More on the photo story SPRING 2009
COMMUNICATION: JOURNALISM EDUCATION TODAY • 19