Add More Story to Your Photos with 5 Practical Tips

Monday 27 March 2023, 20:20 by Elja Trum | 5,678 views | 0 comments

This article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.

Do you want your photos to have something extra? Adding a story to your photo is a great way to do this. The viewer will spend just a little longer looking at your photo. In this article, 5 practical tips to make your photos tell more.

You don't necessarily need to have a person in the frame to tell a story in your photo. I do enjoy photographing people, though, so these tips are about telling a little story in portrait photos.

1. Have your model look away

The story your photo tells doesn't have to be a full-blown novel. It's about making the viewer look at your photo for just a little longer. Pausing for a moment to think about what's happening in the photo.

The easiest way to add a little mystery is to have your model look away. It's just like in TV series and films. When the actor isn't looking at the camera, you are a spectator. You watch what is happening, with no direct contact.

This works well in a photo too. Because your model isn't looking at the camera, the viewer becomes a spectator of the photo.

2. Give your model something to do

In a story, someone is usually doing something. That is, after all, part of the story. So it makes sense that it works well to give your model something to do.

Give them a camera, phone or musical instrument and your photo immediately tells a story. You can come up with particular scenes beforehand and have your model act them out. All you then have to do is take the photos.

3. Find or create the right setting

It's harder to tell a good story with a white paper roll as a background. Find a location that fits the story you have in mind and dress your model accordingly. That immediately creates a photo with a story.

4. Use multiple models

A film, TV series or book usually isn't about just one person either. The interaction between two or more people creates something to experience: a story.

Try using a second model in your photography. You can then portray a particular situation through the interaction between the two.

5. Give your photo an unusual edit

It can help not to give your photo a standard edit, but to make something special of it. The original photo may not have been that striking, but the edit makes the viewer pause for longer. You start wondering what is going on and why.

For the photo above, for example, I layered two photos on top of each other using Photoshop. The result was then converted to black and white, with a tint added. This makes this studio photo, which otherwise probably would not have stood out, attract attention.

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