Photojournalism tips

In news stories, your photos must convey both information and emotion. One is not enough without the other, especially in visual stories.

You should aim to include a range of scenes and scene types in your visual stories. Vary your photos in terms of shot type and plan to collect a few key shots. Make these decisions based on the story; that is, having all of these shot types at your disposal, let the circumstances of the story dictate which you will use.

Shot types

By scope and distance

A wide shot establishes a location or shows you the scope of something.

Medium shots add variety and transition the viewer to a new segment of the story or a new location. Sometimes known as “moving in.”

Tight shots add detail and subtlety that wider shots don’t allow.

By purpose and role

Lead shot. This is just like the lead of a text story. It works as a visual summary of the story but also draws you in and makes you curious to know more.

Here’s where our story on rising sea levels takes place: Miami Beach.

The scene setter, establishing shot. Shows where your story is taking place and helps the view feel situated in that context.

A portrait where the setting and facial expression combine to tell the story.

Portrait. Usually a tight shot of a key individual in the story. The angle at which you shoot this photo can give your subject power or take it from them. A portrait captures a person’s essence via a telling expression or action, or setting.

Detail shots. Something very close up, in a tight shot. It shows precisely how something in the story happens or works. It takes the viewer right to the heart of the matter, or adds telling nuance to the overall story.

Action shots. Showing people or events in action. Captures something as it’s happening. Focuses on motion and critical moments as people interact with each other and their world.

Action is not easy to capture but makes for some of the most exciting photos.

Sequence shots. A series of shots that show how something happens. Use this when a particular set of steps is important, or when things occur in a particular order.

Signature shots. These shots summarize the story or visualize essential elements of it. This shot helps your viewer put it all together and really connect with your story.

Written stories are made up of scenes, summary, and quotes. Go through any news story and you should be able to classify every sentence of it as either scene, summary or quote. The problem is that scene is so often forgotten.

Remember when writing to take your reader to the scene of the story. Do this by describing what it looks like, what it sounds like, even what smells are present. What vibe do you get from being there?

By angle and positioning

• High: Takes power away from people
• Low: Gives people power
• Eye-level: Neither takes power away nor gives power to people

High

Low

Eye-Level

Make a shot list

The best thing you can do to improve your photography is to plan ahead. Do a preliminary interview with the subject to gather ideas about what you will shoot. Of course this may change on the fly, but this way you can begin to plan what kinds of shots you’ll need. What will be the establishing shot? What might make the best portrait? Will there be any action shots? Can I plan to shoot a sequence of shots? What details will require tight shots? And so on.

Photography basics

Every photographer has their own style and approach. Here are just a few basic tips to get you started (special thanks to Jillian Bauer).

Lighting
Use natural light whenever possible. Direct sunlight and backlighting should be avoided. Partial sun or diffused sun is best, and try to replicate that in other settings if possible (such as by drawing a translucent shade).

The focal points in this image are at intersections of the lines.

Composition
Your goal is to fill the frame with everything you want the viewer to see, and nothing you don’t. Do this by getting into the right position, not by cropping. Don’t leave a bunch of headroom. Put interesting points off center by following the rule of thirds. Look for symmetry. Find ways to balance the photo (so that not all the stuff is on one side). Sometimes it’s possible to “frame” the image, by putting trees or buildings along the edge.

What is this a photo of?

Background
Be aware of the background. Use a dark background when shooting portraits. Make sure nothing in the background distracts from the main image (such as shooting people with road signs coming out of their heads).

This poor fellow has something coming out of his head.

Zoom with your feet
If you think you’re close enough to your subject, take another few steps closer. If your photos aren’t good enough, get closer. When you use your lens or camera to zoom in, the photo loses quality. Always, always, always zoom with your feet when it’s possible. We’re not the paparazzi sneaking photos from the bushes; just get close to your subject.

Be up-front with your subjects
Approach your subjects, identify who you are, and tell them what you are doing and where their photos are going. You’ll need to get their names anyway. It’s best to do this before shooting, but sometimes the moment happens before you can approach them. Make conversation before, during and after your shoot.

Avoid posing people
A posed photograph is not news; it’s an illustration crafted by the photographer. This is fine for some portraits, when the only goal is to show what a person looks like. Otherwise, your goal is to reflect what really happened and tell a news story. For instance, if someone receives an award, shoot the moment when the certificate is given and they’re shaking hands, not when they’re standing there smiling into the camera.

Spend time with your subjects
The more time you spend with your subjects, the more comfortable they become. When you spend time, you build a relationship. When you build a relationship, that relationship shows in the photographs.

Adding captions

For news photos, your captions must include:

• The name of the person in the photo. Also include something to help explain why we’re seeing this person: a title, if it’s an official, or age and hometown (or occupation) if its a random person. If you’re shooting a crowd, you can’t name everyone, but you should say who these people are (A group of Temple University freshmen…) or give some context to help us understand who we are looking at.
• The location of the photo.
• The day it was shot (following AP style).
• Additional information that ties the photo to the story and explains why it is newsworthy.

Every photo needs a unique caption. Every one! And all captions must be complete sentences.