Storytelling in Photography: The BIG Problem & How To Overcome it!

I’ve just published my latest video: The BIG Problem with Storytelling in Photography. And How I Overcame it! (Pro Photographer Tips). 

I explore the limitations of storytelling in photography and suggest ways to create narrative photos. A photo can’t tell a story, but it can be narrative.

Storytelling in Photography: The BIG Problem

As a photographer, I’ve always been interested in creating images that communicate more than just aesthetics. I’ve been asking myself: can a photo tell a story? The answer is no. A photo captures a small slice of time, and a story occurs through time. However, this doesn’t mean that photos can’t be narrative.

The Problem with Storytelling in Photography

Photos are limited in their ability to tell traditional stories. But, by adopting a cinematic style, viewers can be primed for narrative. This style, used by many successful photographers, elevates the model in your photo to a character in a story. A long exposure can also be used to show the passing of time and convey visceral concepts.

What is Narrative Photography?

Narrative photography is about communicating more than just aesthetics. It’s about weaving a story into your images. While a photo can’t tell a story, it can be narrative. By bringing time into your images and changing the narrator, you can encourage viewers to create their own stories. To master composition photography, you must improve your composition.

I explore a few storytelling in photography ideas, suggest some narrative photography techniques and give some storytelling photography examples.

Overcoming the Limitations of Photography

Photography has limitations, but that doesn’t mean you can’t create narrative photos. By using a cinematic style and a long exposure, you can prime viewers for story and convey visceral concepts. Changing the narrator can also encourage viewers to create their own stories. To improve your composition photography, find out how to bring time into your images.

Storytelling portrait photography,

Creating a narrative photo is about communicating more than just aesthetics. It’s about weaving a story into your images and encouraging viewers to create their own stories. While a photo can’t tell a traditional story, it can be narrative. By overcoming the limitations of photography, you can create images that communicate on a deeper level and tell a powerful story.

 

Takeaways

Here are five action points you can take away from this video:

1. Learn the limitations of storytelling in photography.

2. Understand what narrative photography is.

3. Find out how to prime viewers for story through cinematic style.

4. Learn how to bring time into your images.

5. Discover how to change the narrator to encourage viewers to create their own stories.

 

Learn Narrative Photography with JP Stones

Join me on one of my award winning Photography Workshops in Mexico.

Watch my free online course: Storytelling for Photographers!

 

Transcript

This is the video transcript.

Storytelling in photography

Storytelling in photography has a fairly big limitation.

A story occurs through time…but a photo is just this small slice of time.

So, can a photo actually tell a story? And if not, what is Narrative Photography?

Can a photo tell a story?

It’s a question I’ve been asking myself for almost a decade.

Ever since I realised the portraits I was making with a group of Mexica should be about… more than just aesthetics. My interest went beyond skin deep… and I wanted my photos to do the same. To not just document the Mexica, but to communicate the fascinating stories and characters that fill their mythology.

What is Narrative Photography?

So I’ve had a lot of time to think about this question.

“No”

And I think the answer is no.

Well, not in the way we typically think of stories. As a series of events, arranged into a particular sequence. One image just can’t communicate that level of complexity.

But if a photo can’t tell a story, what is narrative photography?

Overcoming the Limitations of Photography

Just because a photo can’t tell a traditional story, doesn’t mean it can’t be narrative.

This makes me think of another big limitation of photography. It’s not just time that’s absent from a photo, it’s also depth. Photos are 2D representations of our 3D world.

And of course, that limitation hasn’t stopped us fine tuning how we communicate that lost dimension.

Depth of field, tonal contrast, color contrast, atmospheric effects. These are all ways to simulate the depth within a 2D rectangle.

And if we can trick our mind into seeing depth, maybe we can trick it into seeing story.

Set the Scene for Story

Many of my favorite photographers create images that could be described as cinematic.

Nicki Hamilton, Kate Woodman, Alex Soth

This shared style probably isn’t a coincidence. Watch a movie and you’re watching a story unfold. The two are intertwined in our minds. When you emulate that cinematic style, you’re priming the viewer for story.

The feedback I get seems to back this idea up.

When a viewer is in that frame of mind, the model in your photo becomes elevated to a character in a story. And you’ve got a narrative photo.

Bring Time into Your Images

Adopting a cinematic style is an effective way to prime a viewer for narrative… but what if you want to say something specific?

If you’re limitation is a lack of time, then adding more time is a logical place to start. A long exposure shows the passing of time, which can help convey visceral concepts. Concepts that can be hard to visualise as a frozen moment

Concepts like calmness or serenity.

Or the complete opposite: loneliness and anxiety for example.

Long exposures can be used to communicate more specific story aspects. This image was inspired by Mexica mythology: a story where the god Xiuhtecuhtli uses fire to help usher in a new sunrise. I wanted to visually communicate that exact moment, using the long exposure to create the shape of a sun cresting the horizon.

Quick recap. A photo’s ability to tell a story is limited. We can prime a viewer for story… we can includes some narrative clues… but I think that about the limit for photography.

Luckily, that’s where something pretty awesome can happen. The viewer can take over the narrative.

Changing the Narrator

I remember the first photo where this happened to me, when I saw this photo by Gregory Crewdson.

I never saw someone posing for a photo here, to me, this was a scene from a story. And my mind filled in the gaps in that story. Because that’s what humans do. We’re story seeking animals. We can’t help but create narratives to help us make sense of the world.

I think this is where the bulk of storytelling happens in photography. Once you draw someone into this narrative frame of mind, they’ll weave their own story. Like I did with this guy, standing so desolately out there, in the pouring rain. That story is why I love this image.

Conclusion

Everyone has a different take on what makes a great photograph. I think it goes beyond skin deep, beyond aesthetics. A great photo has a story to tell. And you’re the narrator.