Telling a Story with Photography

TutorialStory

Feb 21

So, you want to tell a compelling story with photography? Well, the good news is, you can do it! To prove that, I decided to take this little friend with me on my commute to work. So here goes, a day in the life of my new plant friend, Fred.

First things first, when working to tell a story, you of course need to capture a beginning, middle, and end. So before you begin shooting, try to plan out what you want the story to look like and each of the necessary components. If you’re hoping to convey a dramatic story, you’ll want to capture real emotion (this was hard to do with Fred the plant, without killing him or buying him his first car) and bring in a natural climax of the story. And lastly, learn from my mistakes – while getting that nice blurry background looks real milky smooth and nice, having some detail in focus can help to tell the story. So let’s get into it!

Setting the scene

Capture your subject in a location that is important to them. Doing this can help to connect them to the session and help to draw out some of that natural, authentic emotion you’re looking to portray. Here, Fred the plant is photographed outside the office building where we work. This spot was selected because a plant’s natural habitat is outside (of course), and the building is the location where Fred and I first met, so really it’s where our journey together began Plus, he liked the lighting…it helped show off his good side.

By selecting this location, I’ve left the viewer in a state of wonderment, they have begun to ask questions about the significance of this location - like, why is Fred being left outside on a ledge? With that introduction I’ve pulled the audience in, which puts me in a good position to further tell the story.

Start at the start

Give your viewer that natural progression from beginning to end. Where did your subject begin their journey that got them to this place? For my little plant friend, Fred, it all began when a coworker gifted him to me in my office. So I captured exactly that – Fred sitting comfortably on my desk.

For some plants, this could be the end of their journey. But not for my plant friend, he’s coming home with me to join my little plant community. So the next step in Fred’s story, is trek home - which offers a nice opportunity for a transitional shot.

Transitions are everything

The transition pieces in a photo journey really help to move the story along. At first, Fred seemed like a regular plant that sits outside or sits on a desk or drinks regular old water. But now, it is clear that he is going places – specifically, on the train! With this transitional photo, the audience is pulled in and begins to ask questions again – where on earth could Fred be going now?

Here is where you can turn the story on its head if you are working to create a more dramatic story timeline. Maybe you want to introduce another subject into the story or perhaps this is leading up to a climactic event. This is a great opportunity to dive deeper and expose more of the story to the viewer. So what is next for Fred?

The Grand Finale

In my case, since this is a short story, now is a good opportunity for the wrap up image(s). After a long journey on the train, my pal Fred has finally arrived at his final stop and made it back to my neighborhood. Here I chose to wrap things up with some nice bokeh of the city lights, almost acting as that blur you see right before going to sleep after a long day of traveling.

[Not pictured: me dropping my new plant friend, trying desperately to get this final shot – be careful, plants are fragile. Thankfully, Fred is pretty hardy.]

Hey there! It’s bopphoto, aka Sarah Bopp, your internet pal and photographer. Lover of coffee, plants, nature, and old cameras.

Here you will find everything from my photoshoots, posts on tips & tricks, things that inspire me, and some behind the scenes content.

Peace & love,
Sarah