Fishing boats in the southern Taiwan port of Donggang.
A staple of good documentary storytelling, a photoessay exists to communicate a story through a sequence of images based around a common theme. If you think of the entire photoessay like a news article, then the individual images have to be like the sentences or paragraphs in a written work. A photoessay can contain words itself, but only to clarify the content of the images, much in the way that photographs clarify the content of a written essay. A photographic essay is a form of visual communication. The photographer should go into it with a plan or idea about what it is they wish to convey. This idea may evolve as the essay is shot, but it is essential to have in order to begin. Approaching a photo essay without a plan will usually be evident to the viewer, as it won’t seem as cohesive as it should.
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A strong photographic essay will show the photographer connecting with what is being shot. This connection may be achieved through prior research, on the scene observation, questioning, clarifying and often becoming emotionally involved in some way, all the while trying to remain an objective observer. Photo essays can be powerful tools for communication if done well; equally, they can cause viewers to gloss over serious issues if handled poorly.
The most common theme for photo essays is humanity and the lives of people. Look for somebody or a group who have an engaging story to tell. It doesn’t have to be globally significant. In fact, for most viewers, local issues will probably resonate more than worldwide ones. Once you have found the story you want to tell, you need to decide how to tell it.
Unloading tuna at the southern Taiwan port of Donggang
You’re probably going to want to open with a strong, establishing shot. This conveys a sense of place and possibly time that allows the viewer to know the location that the subject exists in. It needs to be striking enough to attract the viewer’s attention. Once this sense of place is established, the photographer should seek to place the subjects into the location. You are not looking for detailed close-ups at this point, rather seek out middle distance type shots. These serve to place humans into the scene and draw the viewer further into the story.
From there, it’s time to move further in. This is where portraits come into play. You may choose to offer a mixture of environmental portraits shot from various angles and distances or standard head and shoulders portraits. It is with these portraits that the viewer will probably find the greatest connection to the subjects. They (the viewers) should get a sense that you have connected with the subjects, that the subjects have allowed you into their lives. From there, you can seek out significant detail and move in for detailed closeups which will pull the viewer further into the story. To conclude the photo essay, you may wish to seek out a clincher image. This is one that will allow the viewers to walk away with the emotion that you want to convey.
Preparing to make sashimi. Donggang, Taiwan
Once you’ve completed the shooting part of the essay, the task of editing and presenting your work begins. This is often the most difficult aspect of creating a photo essay as poor editing has probably ruined more photo essays than poor photography. It often helps here if you have someone else you can work with at this point. If the photography itself was particularly demanding and emotional, it may be hard to objectively select the strongest images that tell the story best. Ask any editors you know, or your photography friends to give you some advice.
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