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How to Create an Engaging Photo Essay (with Examples)

Photo essays tell a story in pictures. They're a great way to improve at photography and story-telling skills at once. Learn how to do create a great one.

Learn | Photography Guides | By Ana Mireles

Photography is a medium used to tell stories – sometimes they are told in one picture, sometimes you need a whole series. Those series can be photo essays.

If you’ve never done a photo essay before, or you’re simply struggling to find your next project, this article will be of help. I’ll be showing you what a photo essay is and how to go about doing one.

You’ll also find plenty of photo essay ideas and some famous photo essay examples from recent times that will serve you as inspiration.

If you’re ready to get started, let’s jump right in!

Table of Contents

What is a Photo Essay?

A photo essay is a series of images that share an overarching theme as well as a visual and technical coherence to tell a story. Some people refer to a photo essay as a photo series or a photo story – this often happens in photography competitions.

Photographic history is full of famous photo essays. Think about The Great Depression by Dorothea Lange, Like Brother Like Sister by Wolfgang Tillmans, Gandhi’s funeral by Henri Cartier Bresson, amongst others.

What are the types of photo essay?

Despite popular belief, the type of photo essay doesn’t depend on the type of photography that you do – in other words, journalism, documentary, fine art, or any other photographic genre is not a type of photo essay.

Instead, there are two main types of photo essays: narrative and thematic .

As you have probably already guessed, the thematic one presents images pulled together by a topic – for example, global warming. The images can be about animals and nature as well as natural disasters devastating cities. They can happen all over the world or in the same location, and they can be captured in different moments in time – there’s a lot of flexibility.

A narrative photo essa y, on the other hand, tells the story of a character (human or not), portraying a place or an event. For example, a narrative photo essay on coffee would document the process from the planting and harvesting – to the roasting and grinding until it reaches your morning cup.

What are some of the key elements of a photo essay?

• Tell a unique story – A unique story doesn’t mean that you have to photograph something that nobody has done before – that would be almost impossible! It means that you should consider what you’re bringing to the table on a particular topic.
• Put yourself into the work – One of the best ways to make a compelling photo essay is by adding your point of view, which can only be done with your life experiences and the way you see the world.
• Add depth to the concept – The best photo essays are the ones that go past the obvious and dig deeper in the story, going behind the scenes, or examining a day in the life of the subject matter – that’s what pulls in the spectator.
• Nail the technique – Even if the concept and the story are the most important part of a photo essay, it won’t have the same success if it’s poorly executed.
• Build a structure – A photo essay is about telling a thought-provoking story – so, think about it in a narrative way. Which images are going to introduce the topic? Which ones represent a climax? How is it going to end – how do you want the viewer to feel after seeing your photo series?
• Make strong choices – If you really want to convey an emotion and a unique point of view, you’re going to need to make some hard decisions. Which light are you using? Which lens? How many images will there be in the series? etc., and most importantly for a great photo essay is the why behind those choices.

9 Tips for Creating a Photo Essay

Credit: Laura James

1. Choose something you know

To make a good photo essay, you don’t need to travel to an exotic location or document a civil war – I mean, it’s great if you can, but you can start close to home.

Depending on the type of photography you do and the topic you’re looking for in your photographic essay, you can photograph a local event or visit an abandoned building outside your town.

It will be much easier for you to find a unique perspective and tell a better story if you’re already familiar with the subject. Also, consider that you might have to return a few times to the same location to get all the photos you need.

2. Follow your passion

Most photo essays take dedication and passion. If you choose a subject that might be easy, but you’re not really into it – the results won’t be as exciting. Taking photos will always be easier and more fun if you’re covering something you’re passionate about.

3. Take your time

A great photo essay is not done in a few hours. You need to put in the time to research it, conceptualizing it, editing, etc. That’s why I previously recommended following your passion because it takes a lot of dedication, and if you’re not passionate about it – it’s difficult to push through.

4. Write a summary or statement

Photo essays are always accompanied by some text. You can do this in the form of an introduction, write captions for each photo or write it as a conclusion. That’s up to you and how you want to present the work.

5. Learn from the masters

Making a photographic essay takes a lot of practice and knowledge. A great way to become a better photographer and improve your storytelling skills is by studying the work of others. You can go to art shows, review books and magazines and look at the winners in photo contests – most of the time, there’s a category for photo series.

6. Get a wide variety of photos

Think about a story – a literary one. It usually tells you where the story is happening, who is the main character, and it gives you a few details to make you engage with it, right?

The same thing happens with a visual story in a photo essay – you can do some wide-angle shots to establish the scenes and some close-ups to show the details. Make a shot list to ensure you cover all the different angles.

Some of your pictures should guide the viewer in, while others are more climatic and regard the experience they are taking out of your photos.

7. Follow a consistent look

Both in style and aesthetics, all the images in your series need to be coherent. You can achieve this in different ways, from the choice of lighting, the mood, the post-processing, etc.

8. Be self-critical

Once you have all the photos, make sure you edit them with a good dose of self-criticism. Not all the pictures that you took belong in the photo essay. Choose only the best ones and make sure they tell the full story.

9. Ask for constructive feedback

Often, when we’re working on a photo essay project for a long time, everything makes perfect sense in our heads. However, someone outside the project might not be getting the idea. It’s important that you get honest and constructive criticism to improve your photography.

How to Create a Photo Essay in 5 Steps

Credit: Quang Nguyen Vinh

1. Choose your topic

This is the first step that you need to take to decide if your photo essay is going to be narrative or thematic. Then, choose what is it going to be about?

Ideally, it should be something that you’re interested in, that you have something to say about it, and it can connect with other people.

2. Research your topic

To tell a good story about something, you need to be familiar with that something. This is especially true when you want to go deeper and make a compelling photo essay. Day in the life photo essays are a popular choice, since often, these can be performed with friends and family, whom you already should know well.

3. Plan your photoshoot

Depending on what you’re photographing, this step can be very different from one project to the next. For a fine art project, you might need to find a location, props, models, a shot list, etc., while a documentary photo essay is about planning the best time to do the photos, what gear to bring with you, finding a local guide, etc.

Every photo essay will need different planning, so before taking pictures, put in the required time to get things right.

4. Experiment

It’s one thing to plan your photo shoot and having a shot list that you have to get, or else the photo essay won’t be complete. It’s another thing to miss out on some amazing photo opportunities that you couldn’t foresee.

So, be prepared but also stay open-minded and experiment with different settings, different perspectives, etc.

5. Make a final selection

Editing your work can be one of the hardest parts of doing a photo essay. Sometimes we can be overly critical, and others, we get attached to bad photos because we put a lot of effort into them or we had a great time doing them.

Try to be as objective as possible, don’t be afraid to ask for opinions and make various revisions before settling down on a final cut.

7 Photo Essay Topics, Ideas & Examples

Credit: Michelle Leman

• Architectural photo essay

Using architecture as your main subject, there are tons of photo essay ideas that you can do. For some inspiration, you can check out the work of Francisco Marin – who was trained as an architect and then turned to photography to “explore a different way to perceive things”.

You can also lookup Luisa Lambri. Amongst her series, you’ll find many photo essay examples in which architecture is the subject she uses to explore the relationship between photography and space.

• Process and transformation photo essay

This is one of the best photo essay topics for beginners because the story tells itself. Pick something that has a beginning and an end, for example, pregnancy, the metamorphosis of a butterfly, the life-cycle of a plant, etc.

Keep in mind that these topics are linear and give you an easy way into the narrative flow – however, it might be difficult to find an interesting perspective and a unique point of view.

• A day in the life of ‘X’ photo essay

There are tons of interesting photo essay ideas in this category – you can follow around a celebrity, a worker, your child, etc. You don’t even have to do it about a human subject – think about doing a photo essay about a day in the life of a racing horse, for example – find something that’s interesting for you.

• Time passing by photo essay

It can be a natural site or a landmark photo essay – whatever is close to you will work best as you’ll need to come back multiple times to capture time passing by. For example, how this place changes throughout the seasons or maybe even over the years.

A fun option if you live with family is to document a birthday party each year, seeing how the subject changes over time. This can be combined with a transformation essay or sorts, documenting the changes in interpersonal relationships over time.

• Travel photo essay

Do you want to make the jump from tourist snapshots into a travel photo essay? Research the place you’re going to be travelling to. Then, choose a topic.

If you’re having trouble with how to do this, check out any travel magazine – National Geographic, for example. They won’t do a generic article about Texas – they do an article about the beach life on the Texas Gulf Coast and another one about the diverse flavors of Texas.

The more specific you get, the deeper you can go with the story.

• Socio-political issues photo essay

This is one of the most popular photo essay examples – it falls under the category of photojournalism or documental photography. They are usually thematic, although it’s also possible to do a narrative one.

Depending on your topic of interest, you can choose topics that involve nature – for example, document the effects of global warming. Another idea is to photograph protests or make an education photo essay.

It doesn’t have to be a big global issue; you can choose something specific to your community – are there too many stray dogs? Make a photo essay about a local animal shelter. The topics are endless.

• Behind the scenes photo essay

A behind-the-scenes always make for a good photo story – people are curious to know what happens and how everything comes together before a show.

Depending on your own interests, this can be a photo essay about a fashion show, a theatre play, a concert, and so on. You’ll probably need to get some permissions, though, not only to shoot but also to showcase or publish those images.

4 Best Photo Essays in Recent times

Now that you know all the techniques about it, it might be helpful to look at some photo essay examples to see how you can put the concept into practice. Here are some famous photo essays from recent times to give you some inspiration.

Habibi by Antonio Faccilongo

This photo essay wan the World Press Photo Story of the Year in 2021. Faccilongo explores a very big conflict from a very specific and intimate point of view – how the Israeli-Palestinian war affects the families.

He chose to use a square format because it allows him to give order to things and eliminate unnecessary elements in his pictures.

With this long-term photo essay, he wanted to highlight the sense of absence and melancholy women and families feel towards their husbands away at war.

The project then became a book edited by Sarah Leen and the graphics of Ramon Pez.

Picture This: New Orleans by Mary Ellen Mark

The last assignment before her passing, Mary Ellen Mark travelled to New Orleans to register the city after a decade after Hurricane Katrina.

The images of the project “bring to life the rebirth and resilience of the people at the heart of this tale”, – says CNNMoney, commissioner of the work.

Each survivor of the hurricane has a story, and Mary Ellen Mark was there to record it. Some of them have heartbreaking stories about everything they had to leave behind.

Others have a story of hope – like Sam and Ben, two eight-year-olds born from frozen embryos kept in a hospital that lost power supply during the hurricane, yet they managed to survive.

Selfie by Cindy Sherman

Cindy Sherman is an American photographer whose work is mainly done through self-portraits. With them, she explores the concept of identity, gender stereotypes, as well as visual and cultural codes.

One of her latest photo essays was a collaboration with W Magazine entitled Selfie. In it, the author explores the concept of planned candid photos (‘plandid’).

The work was made for Instagram, as the platform is well known for the conflict between the ‘real self’ and the one people present online. Sherman started using Facetune, Perfect365 and YouCam to alter her appearance on selfies – in Photoshop, you can modify everything, but these apps were designed specifically to “make things prettier”- she says, and that’s what she wants to explore in this photo essay.

Tokyo Compression by Michael Wolf

Michael Wolf has an interest in the broad-gauge topic Life in Cities. From there, many photo essays have been derived – amongst them – Tokyo Compression .

He was horrified by the way people in Tokyo are forced to move to the suburbs because of the high prices of the city. Therefore, they are required to make long commutes facing 1,5 hours of train to start their 8+ hour workday followed by another 1,5 hours to get back home.

To portray this way of life, he photographed the people inside the train pressed against the windows looking exhausted, angry or simply absent due to this way of life.

You can visit his website to see other photo essays that revolve around the topic of life in megacities.

Final Words

It’s not easy to make photo essays, so don’t expect to be great at it right from your first project.

Start off small by choosing a specific subject that’s interesting to you –  that will come from an honest place, and it will be a great practice for some bigger projects along the line.

Whether you like to shoot still life or you’re a travel photographer, I hope these photo essay tips and photo essay examples can help you get started and grow in your photography.

Let us know which topics you are working on right now – we’ll love to hear from you!

You'll Also Like These:

Ana Mireles is a Mexican researcher that specializes in photography and communications for the arts and culture sector.

Penelope G. To Ana Mireles Such a well written and helpful article for an writer who wants to inclue photo essay in her memoir. Thank you. I will get to work on this new skill. Penelope G.

Herman Krieger Photo essays in black and white

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Photo Essay Examples

Have you run out of interesting photo essay ideas? I have prepared a number of examples for you to draw the inspiration from. Find the photo essay example you like and you are sure to create a lasting emotional impact with your work.

30 Photo Essay Examples to Inspire

What is a photo essay? It is a series or a collection of shots created for the purpose of provoking feelings and emotions. They exist in a variety of forms – from photos only to images with brief comments or captions and written essays accompanied by shots.

Check out the following 30 photo essay examples I have found.

1. Protests

• View the “Resistance” photo essay by David Moore .

A great idea for photo essays is to shoot the protest to show its power. Don’t forget about angles, composition and framing. Go up to the front and photograph the leader of the protesters walking forward.

After that, go back to the end of the group to take pictures of families joining the protest. As a result, you will gain experience shooting big groups of people in motion.

2. Abandoned Building

• View the “Lost Collective” photo essay by Bret Pattman .

Old buildings are excellent photo essay topics since you can capture a large number of elements. Get approval before going in but mind that such places are far from being totally safe. Bring various lenses: the macro one – for details and the wide-angle one – when you want to include many elements in one shot.

3. Local Event

• Check out the “Monday Marathon” photo essay by Quinn G. Perini .

It doesn’t matter if you are a resident of a large city or a small town, there may be an upcoming local event, like a marathon or a festival. This is a nice opportunity to realize photo essay ideas.

You can capture the before, while and after stages of the event. Arrive earlier and take pictures of the preparation activities, then shoot the actual event starting with the official beginning.

Keep photographing even when the event is over, capture the cleaning up and disassembling processes.

• Check out the “Behind the Scenes with Obama” photo essay by Callie Shell .

Many people find behind-the-scene activities more fascinating than their results shown to the viewers. Movie filming, photo sessions, tours or stories of successful people are amazing photo essay themes. This always finds an emotional response from the audience. Such shootings show us the other side of a person or events which we knew nothing about.

5. Sport Fans

• View the “Homes of Football” photo essay by Stuart Roy Clarke .

Sport doesn’t only unite people but also evokes their passion and enthusiasm. Fans throughout the world are vigorously rooting for their favorite teams and players, regardless of the kind of sport.

The emotions are running high during different games and it is a perfect time to capture a photographic essay. No need to buy tickets to a big game, a local high school one will be enough to practice.

6. Social Issues

• View the “Juveniles in Prison” photo essay by Isadora Kosofsky .

The brightest examples of photo essays are related to social issues, like unemployment, domestic violence, gender discrimination and more. Address the topic carefully, with consideration and look for a proper perspective.

Your shots may draw the people’s attention to a truly burning and relevant matter and have a stronger effect than any text.

• View the “Last Moments” photo essay by Ross Taylor .

You don’t necessarily have to focus on profound photo essay topics to evoke emotions. Capturing pets enjoying their worry-free and untroubled life seems like an easy but at the same time interesting activity.

Choose any animal – from a domestic bird to a dog, cat or horse. For more emotional images, take pictures of a pet when it is still a baby and recreate these shots when it is older or is in its final days.

8. Street Style

• View the Tribal Street Photography photo essay by Hans Eijkelboom .

People often express themselves with the help of clothes. The way passers-by on the streets are dressed may reflect the clothing style of a whole society. That’s why you can travel around the world and capture people’s outfits in various areas.

This photo essay example allows you to get familiar with the identity of the inhabitants of various countries. You might be surprised to see that some stereotyped beliefs about people from a particular area aren’t true.

9. Landmarks

• View the “Volte-Face” Oliver Curtis .

The pictures of landmarks are typically taken from a certain spot. One of the best photo essay ideas is to try shooting sights from various angles. You will also have an opportunity to improve composition and your framing skills.

TA variety of perspectives is endless: through the streets, in the morning, afternoon and evening, with a drone or including reflections.

10. Charity

• Check out the “Helping to Heal” photo essay by Chris Usher .

Connect your persuasive photo essay to a relevant global problem. Look for a volunteer organization in your area, they will be eager to participate in your photography project.

Capture what exactly the volunteers are involved in, focus on the subjects they are providing help to and show why it matters.

11. Religious Traditions

• Check out the “Shanghai Sacred” photo essay by Liz Hingley .

Religion is an important part of any culture. The most prominent photo essay examples are connected to religious traditions across the world.

There are no limits on how you can interpret and reflect this topic in your shots. Pay attention to popular religious occasions, traditional religious clothing and dishes typical of these holidays.

• Check out the “A Look Inside a Public Boarding School” photo essay by David Burnett .

Consider visiting the school and capturing day-to-day activities of teachers and pupils as one of photo story ideas. Try to go unnoticed but feel free to ask people to take part in the shooting if they want to.

You can find plenty of captivating scenes at school: children and teachers on a break, different classrooms, cooks preparing food in the canteen.

13. Native Cultures

• Check out the “Indigenous Transitions” photo essay by Hannah Reyes .

Because of globalization, various cultures gradually begin to resemble each other. That’s why you can base your photographic essay on capturing native cultures.

In North America, you can try to find some Native American cultures. In Australia, you can visit aborigines and in Scandinavia – the Sami nation. Highlight their daily routine, traditions, the way of life, eating habits, etc.

14. Personal Space

• View the “Hackney Studios” photo essay by Jenny Lewis .

The working and living space of a person has a lot of peculiar details and is an ideal background for photo essays. You can narrow down this idea to representatives of certain professions.

For instance, the rooms and houses of people of creative professions will definitely surprise and tell a lot about those who live there.

15. Bodypositivity

• Check out the “Epidermis” photo essay by Sophie Harris-Taylor .

Modern beauty and fashion industry promote an unrealistically slim and perfect body. Therefore, the bodypositivity will make an excellent topic for powerful photo essays. For this project, you can invite people of different age groups, sizes, disabled people, etc.

Then place a real and retouched shot next to each other for comparison. Try asking your models the questions regarding parts of their bodies they are unsatisfied about the most and highlight them in the images.

16. Alternative Lifestyles

• Check out the “We are the Youth” photo essay by Laurel Golio .

Some people decide to lead a lifestyle that differs from the one generally accepted by society. Explore different areas and look for people with an unusual way of living. Take pictures of those, who reside in extraordinary conditions, representatives of various subcultures or the LBGTQ community.

These photo essay topics show other people that it is okay to go out of the comfort zone and run against the wind.

17. A Day in the Life

• Check out the “A Day in the Life of a Fashion Week Model” photo essay by Joseph Chi Li .

One of the best photo essays concepts is related to a day in the life. The main character can be any person – a relative or a family member, a teacher, a writer or policeman, etc.

People are generally interested in finding out facts about the lives and daily routine of others. A life of every human is incredible, especially if you learn it in more detail.

• Check out useful environmental photography tips .

18. Climate Change

• Check out the “Extreme Ice Survey” photo essay by James Balog .

It is possible to bring to life a variety of photo story ideas concerned to climate changes. Travel to places most affected by climate change, for instance, glaciers or famous resorts.

Capture the way the continuous drought has influenced the environment, animals and the inhabitants. As an alternative, take pictures of environmentalist protests or inexhaustible energy sources.

19. Struggles of Weight Loss

If you look at photo essay examples devoted to the improvement, they always attract plenty of attention from viewers. Capture the whole process of losing weight and show the results with the help of before/after shots. You are sure to get an inspiring and motivating photography essay.

Don’t hesitate to involve other people who have also become thinner. To add more emotions, snap pictures of people with loose skin after losing weight.

20. Pregnancy

• View the “What the Bump?” photo essay by Danielle Guenther .

As you already know, body changes are appealing and intriguing photo essay topics. Many shooters love capturing the way woman’s body is being transformed during pregnancy. In case you feel like experimenting and touching upon social matters, choose teenage pregnant girls as models for your project.

• Check out more maternity photo ideas .

21. Seasonal Changes

The most eye-catching photo story examples feature seasonal changes. This idea isn’t exactly an innovative one. But if you are ready for creative experiments, you can take fantastic pictures.

Come up with the way you can make this photo essay more unique. For instance, shoot your favorite location, a place where you spent your childhood or met the love of your life.

• View photography series ideas you can try to repeat.

22. “Every Day” by Noah Kalina

Noah Kalina, a photographer, has been taking photos of himself for 12 years every single day. After that, he managed to include all these shots in a video lasting for 7 minutes.

Noah isn’t going to stop and will continue taking pictures of himself till the last day of his life. A photography essay of a person growing up and then gradually getting older will be a touching and attention-grabbing story.

23. “42nd and Vanderbilt” by Peter Funch

One of the best photo essays 2018 was created by Peter Funch, a Danish photographer. He has been shooting one and the same place on a particular NY street at the same time for 9 years.

Peter combined shots of regular passers-by he captured on different days, focusing on identical activities, like drinking coffee or smoking, similar hairstyles and outfits.

24. “Standard” by Roger Eberhard

Hotel rooms in different areas of the world sometimes literally copy each other. Roger Eberhard, a photographer, traveled to 32 countries with the aim to capture repetitive interiors of Hilton hotel rooms.

Then he combined them with the shot of a window view for his book named Standard. Working on his photographic essay, Roger couldn’t help but wonder why people go traveling to different countries and in each new area, they live in identical-looking spaces.

25. “Riding the Tube” by Stefan Rousseau

On his way to the center of London, photographer Stefan Rousseau began taking photos of other passengers. People going in public transport often had their heads in the clouds and didn’t even notice him shooting.

Stefan takes pictures in black and white to avoid bright tones that divert attention from emotions on the people’s faces.

26. “Harlem Family” by Gordon Parks

Gordon Parks, the first African-American photographer of LIFE magazine, got an assignment to take pictures of the basis of urban violence in America.

He has been taking numerous pictures of one family for four weeks. This photo essay example touches the topic of racism, economic exclusion and poverty of many American citizens.

27. “Undocumented” by John Moore

John Moore has been concentrating on the problem of undocumented immigrants to the USA for ten years. He managed to photograph the entire US southern border, actively traveled all over Mexico and Central America, visited immigrant groups in the USA.

John’s unique photo essays feature massive deportations, ICE raiding immigrant groups and their growing panic that followed all these terrible events.

28. “Signed, X” by Kate Ryan

Among the most moving photo essay examples is “Signed”. It depicts various aspects of life after a sexual assault. Kate Ryan interviewed and photographed the sexual assault victims.

In this way, she wanted to reflect their traumatic experience and psychological stress that doesn’t go away even after many years.

29. “Aging in Prison” by Jessica Earnshaw

It took Jessica Earnshaw almost two weeks to take pictures of elderly inmates in prison. Her shots can be found on the pages of National Geographic and other well-known magazines.

Jessica’s project impresses people with its profound idea and special emphasis on people, who spend their last years being locked away. Prison photo essay themes should be explored even further.

30. “Breach of Piece” by Eric Etheridge

Eric Etheridge snapped photos of people approximately 50 years after their mugshots were taken. It is especially interesting to compare the portraits of that same women and men many years later.

Eric has added brief interviews to his picture study essay for a viewer to get familiar with these people’s stories.

Best Photo Essays Freebies

While editing your photography essay, remember that it is highly important to accentuate the concept and feelings you want to convey. With the following 5 freebies, stunning results are guaranteed.

Black and White Classic

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This black and white Ps action will put an emphasis on the artistic features of your shot and give a timeless B&W touch. Apply this action if you want to add a bit of mystery to your images. Due to the contrast between black and white tones, the photo will be more detailed.

HDR Contrast

Choose this Ps HDR action for photography essays with scenery and nature. It increases the detalization and saturation of pictures.

Smoke Mystery

Add more drama to your images with this Ps smoke overlay. With its help, you will be able to add subtle grey smoke wisps to shots for visual appeal.

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Make elements of a good photograph more prominent by applying this preset. It gives images blue toning, adds slight drama to the entire scene. Moreover, the preset increases the darkness of other shades and creates colder skin tones.

Portrait Vintage

A vintage effect will beautifully suit photography essays. If you like a film-looking style of pictures with deep tones, apply this Lr preset. It is equally perfect for enhancing shots taken inside and outside.

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17 Awesome Photo Essay Examples You Should Try Yourself

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If you’re looking for a photo essay example (or 17!), you’ve come to the right place. But what is the purpose of a photo essay? A photo essay is intended to tell a story or evoke emotion from the viewers through a series of photographs. They allow you to be creative and fully explore an idea.

But how do you make one yourself? Here’s a list of photo essay examples. Choose one that you can easily do based on your photographic level and equipment.

Top 17 Photo Essay Examples

Here are some fantastic ideas to get you inspired to create your own photo essays!

17. Photograph a Protest

Protests tend to be lively events. You will find people standing, moving, and holding banners and signs. This is a great way to practice on a moving crowd.

Try to capture the essence and atmosphere of the protest itself. There are many ways to do so and you will need to utilise all your skills.

Think about framing , composition , and perspective . Run to the front and capture the head of the group moving forward. Then run towards the back to capture the families walking along.

16. Transformation Photo Essays

Transformation is one of the most used photo essay topics. It is a great way to show change. The change can be slow, such as a woman going through pregnancy , or watching a baby turn into a toddler and beyond.

As a photo essay project, this doesn’t even need to be about people. A building being torn down and rebuilt can make for a great time-lapse or photo series .

This is a great way to practice how to show change through images. You will need to be creative and meticulous in your approach. You will need to take the same image over and over again, but changing them enough to be interesting.

15. Photograph the Same Place

Have you seen the movie Smoke  with Harvey Keitel? His character goes out every morning at the same time and takes a photograph. The photo is from the front of his shop. He then prints the image and stores them in huge photo albums. Another character flips through these images to see all the different scenarios.

These are easy photo essays to do as you use a simple set up. It might be a challenge to find somewhere accessible to you at the same time every day. The great thing about this photo essay project is that you can create it about anything.

14. Create a Photowalk

As a photographer based in Budapest, I give guided photography tours. The idea is that you join me for three hours, and in that time I show you the streets and how to photograph them.

You will learn about your camera, composition, and what to look for. There is nothing stopping you from doing the same in your hometown. This can make for really interesting photo essays.

Have a clear idea of what you want to achieve and create it as if you were teaching someone else. Look at reflections  in buildings. Or change your perspective to photograph people in different settings.

13. Follow the Change

This photo essay is like the transformation essay but on a short-term basis. Think about men growing their mustaches for Movember. Or someone who wants to shave their head for charity.

You start by taking a before image, and the end result of an after image, with many photographs in between.

12. Photograph a Local Event

No matter where you live, there will be countless local events throughout the year. They might be fundraisers, farmers’ markets, dances and festivals, or food and music. Their organizers will need a photographer. Even if it’s just for social media images .

They may even offer you money, and if not, they will share the images for you with your name attached. Here, you will capture candid images of people going about their day.

11. Photograph an Abandoned Building

Urban exploration or Urbex is a thing. It is where you enter an abandoned building for the sake of (interest and) photography. It is a great social commentary on the state of our world.

Abandoned buildings also show us how life used to be. It’s time-travel without a time machine. They make for great photo essays because there are so many details.

Get permission before entering. And be careful as these buildings can be dangerous. Photograph the rooms and the details. This means you’ll have to work with different lenses .

10. Behind the Scenes of a Photo Shoot

I used to assist  fashion photography studio shoots. This means I had the great opportunity to see what happens behind the scenes.

For me, behind the camera is way more interesting than what is happening in front of it. The models pose, and hundreds of images are taken, so it can be slow and drab.

9. Capture Street Fashion

If you have ever read FRUiTS magazine, you will know what street fashion can be like. I have even heard of a street in Milan where people walk up and down, showing off their best styles.

You can easily photograph these styles in a sort of street photography way. You will also capture portraits while having to be mindful of your environment and surroundings.

And you can even stop people in the street for a quick pose . Photographers have stopped in one location while photographing those who walk past. Here, the background stays the same, and only the people change.

8. Landmark Photo Essay

One photo essay idea that I have always wanted to try is to photograph one landmark from many different vantage points. Think about it. Look at the Eiffel Tower and how many collections of images have been taken of it.

All are from many different angles ranging from many different distances away. This is a great way to practice your positioning and composition through different perspectives .

You can incorporate details and a down-up viewpoint. Or you can photograph it from above with a drone. And there are thousands of ways to capture it through streets and using reflections .

The landmark is your study and it will help you look at the light during different times of the day.

7. Fathers & Children

We live in a very different time than we did 50 years ago. Or even 20 years ago, as more and more fathers stay at home and look after the kids. A great photo essay example would be to capture these small families to show this as social commentary for the times we live in.

These portraits and group photographs are a great way to practice and start building up a network of people. The first images are always going to be the most difficult to take. But once you pick up speed, you will have images to show and persuade the next group.

6. A Day In the Life

There are going to be many jobs and careers that people do that you have no idea about. A great way to understand what people get up to in their day-to-day is to follow them and photograph as you go.

For example, a photo essay entitled A Day In the Life of a Fireman will get you access to inside the station, documenting what they get up to on their downtime. You may not be able to go put out a fire with them, but you never know.

This is great practice for documentary images , capturing portraits and still life of all the equipment they use. Again, let them use the images for social media.

5. Education Photo Essay

One great way to support your community, and possibly even get some of your photographs published is to photograph inside a school. You may find it difficult at first, but lay down your intentions to those in charge.

Offer to let them use and share the image as they see fit. You now have a team of people sharing and liking your images. They are giving you promotion all over Facebook and other social media channels .

Get into the classrooms, photograph the students and the teachers during their daily grind. Be as invisible as you can, but involve and integrate those interested when and where you can.

4. Fictitious Meals

One great photo essay example is putting all those great works of literature to good use. Think about all of the meals that characters in books have eaten.

Some will be as fictitious as the names of the characters eating them. Think of the gruel in Oliver Twist. Make the meals as realistic as possible, with table settings and appropriate mise en scène .

3. Photograph Coffee Shops Using Cafenol

Cafenol is a film photography chemical that sits in place of the developer. The developer is what strips the film down to a negative after it has been exposed. The cafenol is made partly from instant coffee granules, hence the name.

A great photo essay idea would be to photograph a coffee shop, the staff, the patrons, and the equipment. Then use the coffee that they serve as a film developer.

2. Photograph the Photographers

How many times have you seen tourists photograph the same landmark ? These landmarks or points of interest are magnets for foreigners, all hosting cameras and taking the same shot. Sometimes, even pretending to hold up or grab the landmark themselves.

As the area in question has already been captured, why not go 180 degrees in the opposite direction for your photo essay. You will be photographing the photographers, who are the rarely seen artists.

1. Capture the Neighbors

One great photo essay would be to localize your efforts. No matter where you live, you will have neighbors. Unless you live out in the sticks, then you will have to find someone else’s neighbors. This would be a great way to get into portrait photography .

What a perfect scenario would look like is capturing the people in their own space. And everyone’s space is completely different.

You will come across stay-at-home fathers, night-shift workers, grandmas with heirlooms, musicians, and families. There is no telling what is behind these doors. It is a great way to work on your feet, and also meet those who make up your community.

Photo essays tell stories. And there are plenty of amazingly interesting stories to tell! Photographing photo essays is a great way to practice your photography skills while having fun. You might even learn something!

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Advice for an Unforgettable Photo Essay

Six steps for turning your images into a memorable photo essay, from curating your best work to crafting a title.

A man sits alone on a chair on the side of the road. We see him from above, surrounded by grey cobblestones neatly placed, a broken plastic chair, and some pylons scattered along the curb. A street cat wanders out of the frame and away from the man. He appears lonely, the only person inhabiting the place in which he seems so comfortably seated. As the eye wanders throughout the frame, however, the viewer discovers more: a vast city cast beyond the street and behind the man’s chair. This image closes Sarah Pannell’s photo essay Sehir , a quiet study of urban life.

Possibilities, discovery, and stories: these are some of the most effective elements of a photo essay. Collections of images can help produce a narrative, evoke emotion, and guide the viewer through one or more perspectives. A well-executed photo essay doesn’t rely on a title or any prior knowledge of its creator; it narrates on its own, moving viewers through sensations, lessons, and reactions.

Famous photo essays like Country Doctor by W. Eugene Smith or Gordon Parks’ The Harlem Family are acclaimed for showing a glimpse into the lives of the sick and impoverished. Other well-made photo essays offer a new way to look at the everyday, such as Peter Funch’s much-reposted photo series 42nd and Vanderbilt , for which Funch photographed the same street corner for nine years. As shown by these photographers’ experiences with the medium, a collection of photos can enliven spaces and attitudes. Strong photo essays can give voice to marginalized individuals and shine a spotlight on previously overlooked experiences.

You don’t necessarily need to be a documentary photographer to create a powerful photo essay. Photo essays can showcase any topic, from nature photography to portraiture to wedding shots. We spoke to a few photographers to get their perspectives on what makes a good photo essay, and their tips for how any photographer can get started in this medium. Here are six steps to follow to create a photo essay that tells a memorable story.

Choose a specific topic or theme for your photo essay.

There are two types of photo essays: the narrative and the thematic. Narrative photo essays focus on a story you’re telling the viewer, while thematic photo essays speak to a specific subject.

The most natural method for choosing a topic or theme for your photo essay is to go with what you know. Photograph what you experience. Whether that includes people, objects, or the things you think about throughout the day, accessibility is key here. Common topics or concepts to start with are emotions (depicting sadness or happiness) or experiences (everyday life, city living).

For photographer Sharon Pannen , planning a photo essay is as simple as “picking out a subject you find interesting or you want to make a statement about.”

From Paper & Stories , a photo series by Sharon Pannen for Schön! Magazine.

Consider your photo subjects.

The subjects of your photographs, whether human or not, will fill the space of your photos and influence the mood or idea you’re trying to depict. The subject can determine whether or not your photos are considered interesting. “I always try to find someone that catches my eye. I especially like to see how the light falls on their face and how a certain aesthetic might add to their persona,” says photographer Victoria Wojtan .

While subjects and their interest factor are, well, subjective, when considering your subjects, you should ask yourself about your audience. Do other people want to see this? Is my subject representative of the larger idea my photo essay is trying to convey? Your projects can involve people you know or people you’ve only just met.

“Most projects I work on involve shooting portraits of strangers, so there’s always a tension in approaching someone for a portrait,” says photographer Taylor Dorrell . For Wojtan, that tension can help build trust with a subject and actually leads to more natural images “If there’s tension it’s usually because the person’s new to being photographed by someone for something that’s outside of a candid moment or selfie, and they need guidance for posing. This gives me the opportunity to make them feel more comfortable and let them be themselves. I tend to have a certain idea in mind, but try to allow for organic moments to happen.”

Aim for a variety of images.

Depending on your theme, there are a few types of photos you’ll want to use to anchor your essay. One or two lead photos should slowly introduce the viewer to your topic. These initial photos will function in a similar way to the introductory paragraph in a written essay or news article.

From there, you should consider further developing your narrative by introducing elements like portraiture, close ups, detail shots, and a carefully selected final photo to leave the viewer with the feeling you set out to produce in your photos. Consider your opening and closing images to be the most important elements of your photo essay, and choose them accordingly. You want your first images to hook the viewer, and you also want your final images to leave a lasting impression and perhaps offer a conclusion to the narrative you’ve developed.

Including different types of photos, shot at different ranges, angles, and perspectives, can help engage your viewer and add more texture to your series.

Says photographer Taylor Dorrell: “After I have a group of images, I tend to think about color, composition, the order the images were taken, the subject material, and relevance to the concept.”

From Taylor Dorrell’s photo essay White Fences : “White Fences is an ongoing photo series that explores the theme of suburban youth in the United States, specifically in the midwest suburb New Albany, Ohio.”

Put your emotions aside.

Self-doubt can easily come into play when working with your own photography. The adage that we are our own worst critics is often true. It can be difficult to objectively select your strongest images when creating a photo essay. This is why putting together photo essays is such a useful practice for developing your curatorial skills.

“The most important part for me is getting outside opinions. I don’t do that enough, and have a bias in selecting images that might not be the most powerful images or the most effective sequence of images,” says Dorrell. Your own perception of a photograph can cloud your ability to judge whether or not it adds to your photo essay. This is especially true when your essay deals with personal subjects. For example, a photo essay about your family may be hard to evaluate, as your own feelings about family members will impact how you take and view the photos. This is where getting feedback from peers can be invaluable to producing a strong series.

Collecting feedback while putting your photo essay together can help you determine the strengths, weaknesses, and gaps within the collection of photos you’ve produced. Ask your friends to tell you their favorites, why they like them, and what they think you’re going for in the work you’ve created. Their opinions can be your guide, not just your own emotions.

Edit your photo selection.

Beyond post-production, the series of photos you select as your essay will determine whether you’ve executed your theme or narrative effectively. Can the photos stand alone, without written words, and tell the story you set out to? Do they make sense together, in a logical sequence? The perfect photo essay will give your audience a full picture of the narrative, theme, or essence you’re looking to capture.

A good method to use to cull your images down is to remove as many as half of your images straight away to see if your narrative is still as strong with fewer photos. Or, perhaps, deciding on a small number you’d like to aim for (maybe just five to ten images) and using this as a method to narrow down to the images that tell your story best.

From Taylor Dorrell’s photo essay Over the Rhine , featured in Vice.

Give your photo essay a title, and add a concise written statement.

Finally, you’ll want to create a title and written statement for your photo essay. This will help position your work and can enable the viewer to fully understand your intention, or at least guide their perspective.

A solid written statement and title will be relevant to your topic, detail your primary objective, and introduce your point of view. It’s an opportunity to clarify your intentions to the viewer and ensure they walk away with a clear interpretation of your work. Depending on your photo essay, you may want to include several paragraphs of text, but even just one or two sentences of background can be enough to expand the viewer’s understanding of your work.

Consider if you’d like to add the written statement at the beginning of your essay to introduce it, or at the end as a conclusion. Either one can be impactful, and it depends how you’d like people to experience your work.

For his photo essay White Fences, excerpted above, Taylor Dorrell wrote only one sentence of introduction. But for his series Over the Rhine, Dorell included a longer written statement to accompany the work, which is “an ongoing photo series that seeks to explore the Cincinnati neighborhood of the same name and its surroundings. The series was started in response to the shooting of Samuel DuBose, an unarmed black man, by officer Ray Tensing of the University of Cincinnati Police, which happened July 19th, 2015.” Dorell’s text goes on to offer more background on the project, setting up the viewer with all the information they need to understand the context of the photo essay.

Depending on the motivations behind your photo essay and what sort of subject it depicts, a longer text may be necessary—or just a few words might be enough.

Looking for a place to share your photo essays with the world? Take a look at our guide to creating a photography website for tips on showcasing your photos online.

Cover image by Taylor Dorrell, from his photo essay Hurricane Over Sugar .

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Ten examples of immersive photo essays

By Marissa Sapega — Contributing Writer

Photo essays are one of the most powerful forms of storytelling in the last century. From the great depression photographer W. Eugene Smith to the photojournalism of National Geographic or Life Magazine , the best photo essays entertain, educate, and move readers more than words alone ever could. 

But photo essays have changed. Over the last decade, web publishing technologies — including web browsers and file formats — have improved by leaps and bounds. A good photo essays today is more than a collection of images. It’s a truly interactive, immersive, and multimedia experiences.

In this guide, we introduce 10 stunning examples of visually arresting interactive photo essays to fuel your creative juices.

Now, let's set the scene with a short introduction to immersive, interactive photo essays on the web.

Publish stunning photo essays for free. Build immersive photo essays with Shorthand. No code, no credit card, and no commitment required. Start publishing.

The rise of immersive, interactive photo essays

What is an immersive, interactive photo essay? Let's take these terms one at a time. 

An immersive photo essay uses rich media and story design to capture and keep the reader's attention. Immersive content is typically free of the most distracting elements of the web, such as pop-ups, skyscrapers, and other intrusions on the reading experience.

As a basic rule of thumb, immersive content respects the reader's attention. 

An interactive photo essay is one that allows the reader to control how the content appears. It may include interactive elements, like maps and embedded applications.

More commonly, modern interactive photo stories use a technique known as scrollytelling . Scrollytelling stories allow the reader to trigger animations and other visual effects as they scroll. Many of the examples in this guide use scrollytelling techniques. Read more scrollytelling examples .

Until relatively recently, immersive, interactive photo essays could only be created with the help of a designer or web developer. But with the rise of digital storytelling platforms , anyone can create compelling, dynamic stories without writing a single line of code.

If you're looking to learn more about how to create a photo essay — or are looking for more photo essay ideas  — check out our introduction to photo essays . 

Photo essay topics

If you’re looking for photo essay examples, chances are you’re looking to create a photo essay for yourself. If you’re just getting started, you might want some guidance on exactly what kinds of topics make for great photo essays.

More experienced photographers — feel free to skip this section. But for those who are just starting out, here’s a quick list of classic photo essay subject matter, for all types of photo essays.

• Local events. A great way to start out is photograph local events in your community, such as a high school fundraiser. A bonus is that you’ll have a ready
• Historic sites. Another classic photo essay topic is an exploration of a historic site. This could be a building, a monument, or even just a specific location that has significance.
• Profile of a person. A great way to get to know someone is to profile them in a photo essay. This could be a family member, friend, or even just someone you’ve met.
• Animals in captivity. Another popular subject matter for photo essays is animals in captivity, whether that’s at a zoo or elsewhere.
• A day in the life. Have you ever wondered what it’s like to live someone else’s life for a day? Why not find out and document it in a photo essay?
• Street photography. Another great way to practice your photography skills is to head out into the streets and photograph the everyday lives of people around you. The world has plenty of photo essays of cities like New York and London. But what about street photography in your own backyard?
• Still life photography. Still life photography is all about capturing inanimate objects on film. This could be anything from flowers to furniture to food. It’s a great way to practice your photography skills and learn about composition
• Landscapes . Landscape photography is one of the most popular genres, and for good reason. There are endless possibilities when it comes to finding interesting subjects to shoot. So get out there and start exploring!
• Abandoned buildings. There’s something fascinating about abandoned buildings. They offer a glimpse into the past, and can be eerily beautiful. If you have any in your area, they make for great photo essay subjects.
• Lifestyles. Document someone who lives a lifestyle that’s different from your own. This could be a portrayal of an everyday person, or it could be someone with an unusual job or hobby.
• Social issues. Take photos depicting significant social issues in your community, remembering to respect your subjects.

Ten inspiring photo essay examples

Pink lagoon and peculiar galaxies — July’s best science images

In Pink lagoon and peculiar galaxies , Nature present a mesmerising series of images from the natural world. Highlights include:

• a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it photo of rare albino orcas performing feats of synchronized swimming;
• an arresting aerial view of the aftermath of the flash floods in Germany; and,
• a scarlet gawping Venus flytrap sea anemone. 

The best part? Nature publishes similarly powerful photo essays every month, showcasing some of the best and most creative photography of the natural world anywhere on the web.

Vanishing Lands

Vanishing lands — an ominously interesting photo essay from media company Stuff — opens with a bucolic visual featuring meandering sheep flanked by breathtaking mountains that blur into obscurity.

Soon, more awe-inspiring photos of breathtaking New Zealand farmland appear, accompanied by expressive prose whose tone matches the visuals’ stark beauty.

In this unflinchingly honest photographic essay, Stuff takes the viewer behind the scenes with a day in the life of a high country sheep farmer facing an uncertain future. One stunning photo fades into the next as you scroll through, broken only by the occasional noteworthy quote and accompanying narrative.

Olympic photos: Emotion runs high

This emotionally wrought sports story from NBC begins with a close-up of an anxious Simone Biles, her expression exemplifying the tension and frustration echoed on so many of her fellow athletes’ faces.

The subtitle puts it perfectly: “The agony—and thrill—of competition at the Olympics is written all over their faces.”

Devastation, disappointment, and defeat take centre stage in this piece — but not all the subjects of the photos in this compelling photography essay depict misery. Some of the images, like that taken of the gold medal-winning Russian artistic gymnasts, manage to project the athletes’ joy almost beyond the edges of the screen.

The NBC editors who created this visual story chose to display the series of photos using the entire screen width and limit the copy to simple captions, letting the visuals speak for themselves. The result is a riveting montage of photographs that manage to capture the overarching sentiment of the 2020 Olympic Games.

James Epp: A Twist of the Hand

In A Twist of the Hand , the Museum of Classical Archaeology at the University of Cambridge have produced a gorgeous photo essay. This online art show showcases artist James Epp’s installation, combining photographs of the exhibit with images of museum prints and authentic artefacts.

As you scroll down, close-up shots of the installation make you feel like you’re physically wandering among the ancient sculptures, able to examine hairline spider cracks and tiny divots marking the surface of every antiquated figure. In between the photos—and often flanked by museum prints—are James Epp's musings about what inspired him to create the pieces. It’s an absorbing virtual gallery that will no doubt inspire real life visits to the exhibition.

The Café Racer Revolution

Though it’s a cleverly built piece of interactive content marketing , Honda’s “ Café Racer Revolution ” is also a great photo essay. Alongside information about the latest and greatest motorcycles Honda has to offer, it details the history of the bikers who sought to employ motorcycles (specifically “café racers”) as a way to forge an identity for themselves and project a “statement of individuality.”

Scroll down, and nostalgic black-and-white photos give way to contemporary action shots featuring fully decked-out motorcyclists on various Honda models.

Dynamic photos of bikes rotate them 360 degrees when you mouse over them, and text superimposed over flashy shots rolls smoothly down the screen as you scroll. This photo essay will stir a longing to hit the open road for anyone who has ever dreamed of owning one of Honda’s zippy bikes.

Built to keep Black from white

In Built to keep Black from white , NBC News and BridgeDetroit have built a stunning narrative photo essay that encapsulates the history of Detroit’s Birwood Wall — a literal dividing line intended to separate neighborhoods inhabited by people of different races. 

The piece begins with a brief history of the concrete barrier. Between paragraphs of text, it weaves in quotes from residents who grew up as the wall was erected and a short video. Animated maps highlighting the affected neighborhoods unspool across the screen as you scroll down, accompanied by brief explanations of what the maps represent.

In the series of photographs that follow, contemporary images transition into decades-old shots of the wall when it was newly constructed. This is followed by images of original real estate documents, resident portraits, and additional animated maps — each considering the issue from different angles.

The piece ends with an interactive display of how Detroit’s racial makeup has changed over the past several decades, from majority white to black, and how the wall has impacted the lives of its residents who lived (and died) within its borders.

The story of Black Lives Matter in sport

The BBC pairs illustrations and bold imagery in this photo essay on how athletes participated in the Black Lives Matter movement . At the start, a narrow column of text leads into an iconic image of American football players kneeling during the pre-game national anthem in a solemn protest against police brutality. 

The first excerpt, a summary of Trayvon Martin’s death in 2012, draws you in with piercing prose capped off with photographs that bleed into one another. Every account in the photo essay follows this layout.

WaterAid Climate Stories

Climate change affects everyone on the planet, but some people are feeling the effects more than others. WaterAid’s scrollytelling photo essay illuminates the plight of individuals living in areas where extreme weather conditions — caused by climate change — have drastically impacted the water supply and environment, endangering their livelihoods and ability to survive.

This climate change story starts with an engrossing video that provides an up-close and personal look at the devastation that climate change-induced droughts have wreaked on people and the environment. As you scroll down, images of massively depleted bodies of water with superimposed text and quotes unfold before your eyes. It’s an efficient way to drive home the critical message WaterAid wants to convey: climate change is real, and it’s harming real people.

Each extreme weather story focuses on an individual to help viewers empathise and understand that climate change has real, drastic consequences for millions of people worldwide. The piece ends with a call to action to learn more about and financially support WaterAid’s fight to assist people living in the desperate situations depicted in the essay.

28 Days in Afghanistan

In this piece, Australian photo-journalist Andrew Quilty tells the story of the four weeks he spent in Afghanistan . He captures daily events ranging from the mundane—like a casual visit to his barber—to jarring. More than one photo documents blood-spattered victims of violence.

Viewers must scroll through the piece to follow Andrew’s daily musings and the striking photos that accompany them. His photo essay is a powerful example of how scrollytelling is transforming the art of long-form journalism .

La carrera lunática de Musk y Bezos (Musk and Bezos' lunatic careers)

Billionaires Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos are angling to conquer the final frontier: space.

El Periódico captures their story via a whimsically illustrated photo essay, filled with neon line drawings and bold photos of the massive spaceships, the hangars that house them, and footprints on the moon. La carrera lunática de Musk y Bezos describes the battle between the two titans’ space companies (Blue Origin and SpaceX) for the honor of partially funding NASA’s next mission to the moon.

As you scroll down, white and fluorescent yellow words on a black background roll smoothly over images. The team at El Periódico slips in stylistic animations to break up the text—such as rocket ships with shimmering “vapour trails”—then ups the ante with a series of moon images that transition into portraits of the 12 U.S. astronauts who visited the celestial body.

The photo essay ends with the question: “Who will be the next to leave their footprints on the dusty lunar soil?” At the time of publishing, NASA had not yet decided between the two companies. (Spoiler alert: SpaceX won .)

Marissa Sapega is a seasoned writer, editor, and digital marketer with a background in web and graphic design.

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How to Make a Photo Essay: 5 Tips for Impactful Results

A Post By: Christina N Dickson

Want to tell meaningful stories with your photos? That’s what a photo essay is all about: conveying concepts and narratives through a series of carefully chosen images.

While telling a story with photos can be a daunting task, there are several easy tips and techniques you can use in your photo essays to create striking, stunning, eye-opening results.

And that’s what I’m going to share in this article: five photo essay tips that you can immediately apply to your photography. You’ll leave as a better photo essayist than when you arrived!

Let’s get started.

What is a photo essay?

A photo essay is a collection of images placed in a specific order to convey certain emotions , specific concepts, or a progression of events.

In other words:

The photo essay tells stories just like a normal piece of writing , except with images instead of words. (Here, I’m using the term “story” loosely; as mentioned above, photo essays can encapsulate emotions or concepts in addition to traditional, time-based narratives.)

Plenty of world-class photojournalists use photo essays, including Lauren Greenfield, James Nachtwey, and Joachim Ladefoged. But the photo essay format isn’t exclusive to professionals, and photo essays don’t need to cover dramatic events such as wars, natural disasters, and social issues. Whether you are a complete beginner, a hobbyist, or a professional, the photo essay is a great way to bring your images to life, tell relevant stories about your own surroundings, and touch your family, friends, and coworkers.

So without further ado, let’s look at five easy tips to take your photo essays to the next level, starting with:

1. Find a topic you care about

Every good photo essay should start with an idea .

Otherwise, you’ll be shooting without a purpose – and while such an approach may eventually lead to an interesting series of photos, it’s far, far easier to begin with a topic and only then take out your camera.

As I emphasized above, a photo essay can be about anything. You don’t need to fixate on “classic” photo essay themes, such as war and poverty. Instead, you might focus on local issues that matter to you (think of problems plaguing your community). You can also think about interesting stories worth telling, even if they don’t have an activism angle.

For instance, is there an area undergoing major development? Try documenting the work from start to finish. Is there a particular park or nature area you love? Create a series of images that communicate its beauty.

One key item to remember:

Photo essays are most powerful when you, as the photographer, care about the subject. Whether you choose to document something major and public, like an environmental crisis, or whether you choose to document something small and intimate, like the first month of a newborn in the family, make sure you focus on a topic that matters to you .

Otherwise, you’ll struggle to finish the essay – and even if you do successfully complete it, viewers will likely notice your lack of passion.

2. Do your research

The best photo essays involve some real work. Don’t just walk around and shoot with abandon; instead, try to understand your subject.

That way, you can capture a more authentic series of photos.

For instance, if you document a newborn’s first month , spend time with the family. Discover who the parents are, what culture they are from, and their parenting philosophy.

If you cover the process of a school’s drama production, talk with the teachers, actors, and stagehands; investigate the general interest of the student body; find out how the school is financing the production and keeping costs down.

If you photograph a birthday party, check out the theme, the decorations they plan on using, what the birthday kid hopes to get for their gifts.

If you’re passionate about your topic, the research should come easy. You should enjoy learning the backstory.

And then, when it comes time to actually shoot, you’ll have a much clearer understanding of the topic. You’ll know the key players in the story, the key ideas, and the key locations. You’ll be able to hone in on what matters and block out the flashy distractions.

Make sense?

3. Find the right angle

Once you’ve done your research, you’ll know your topic inside and out.

At which point you’ll need to ask yourself:

What is the real, authentic story I want to tell?

Every story has a hundred different angles and perspectives. And trying to share the story from every perspective is a recipe for failure.

Instead, pick a single angle and focus on it. If you’re documenting a local issue, do you want to focus on how it affects children? The physical area? The economy? If you’re documenting a newborn’s first month, do you want to focus on the interaction between the newborn and the parents? The growth of the newborn? The newborn’s emotions?

As you’ll find out during your research, even stories that seem to be completely one-sided have plenty of hidden perspectives to draw on.

So think about your story carefully. In general, I recommend you approach it from the angle you’re most passionate about (consider the previous tip!), but you’re always free to explore different perspectives.

4. Convey emotion

Not all photo essays must convey emotion. But the most powerful ones do.

After all, think of the stories that you know and love. Your favorite books, movies, and TV shows. Do they touch you on an emotional level?

Don’t get me wrong: Every photo essay shouldn’t cover a sappy, heartstring-tugging tale. You can always focus on conveying other emotions: anger, joy, fear, hurt, excitement.

(Of course, if your story is sappy and heartstring-tugging, that’s fine, too – just don’t force it!)

How do you convey emotions, though? There’s no one set way, but you can include photos of meaningful scenes – human interactions generally work well here! – or you can simply show emotion on the faces of your photographic subjects . Really, the best way to communicate emotions through your photos is to feel the emotions yourself; they’ll bleed over into your work for a unique result.

5. Plan your shots

Once you’ve done the research and determined the angle and emotions you’d like to convey, I recommend you sit down, take out a pen and paper, and plan your photo essay .

Should you extensively visualize each photo? Should you walk through the venue, imagining possible compositions ?

Honestly, that’s up to you, and it’ll depend on how you like to work. I do recommend that beginners start out by creating a “shot list” for the essay. Here, you should describe the main subject, the narrative purpose of the image, plus any lighting or composition notes. Once you become more experienced, you can be looser in your planning, though I still recommend you at least think about the different shots you want to capture.

You can start by planning 10 shots. Each one should emphasize a different concept or emotion, but make sure to keep a consistent thread running through every composition; after all, the end goal is to create a powerful series of images that tell a story.

One final tip:

While you should stick to your plan pretty closely, at least at first, don’t ignore the potential for spontaneity. If you see a possible shot, take it! You can later evaluate whether it’s a worthwhile addition to your essay.

Photo essay tips: final words

Now that you’ve finished this article, you know all about what photo essays are, and – hopefully! – how to create a beautiful essay of your own.

Just remember: storytelling takes practice, but you don’t have to be an incredible writer to pull off a powerful photo essay. All you need is a bit of photographic technique, some creativity, and a lot of heart.

Once you start to tell stories with your photos, your portfolio will never be the same!

Now over to you:

Do you have any tips for doing photo essays? Do you have any essays you’re proud of? Share them in the comments below!

Read more from our Tips & Tutorials category

is a visionary artist and philanthropist in Portland Oregon. Her work includes wedding photography www.BrideInspired.com and leadership with www.RevMediaBlog.com .

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186 Photography Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best photography topic ideas & essay examples, 👍 good essay topics on photography, 🎓 simple & easy photography essay titles, 💡 most interesting photography topics to write about, 🔍 interesting topics to write about photography, ❓ photography essay questions, 💯 free photography essay topic generator.

• Photography as a career It is of essence to note that a number of variations exist in the field of photography, for example, self-employment and commercial photographing are just some of the ways one can successfully earn a living […]
• Evolution of Photography: Trying to Seize the Moment In his book A Concise History of Photography, Helmut Gernsheim takes the reader onto a time travel, explaining the origins of photography and telling about the opportunities that photography offers.
• The Exhibit Twilight Visions at the International Center of Photography The medium of photography in the post World War I period was almost too deliciously convenient a vehicle for certain proponents of the Dadaists and the Surrealists.
• Social Uses of Photography: Post-Mortem Photographs The art of photography was invented by Louis Daguerre in the 18th century; this invention promoted the representatives of the middle class family with an opportunity to memorize the events and people and not to […]
• Photographer – Robert Frank This element is evidenced by Rodeo which was taken in 1954 in New York city because one can not identify the face of the guy who is leaning on the dustbin but since Robert’s photos […]
• Photography: Jimmy Nelson’s Piece of Art According to Nelson, the Maasai are part of the few tribes in the world that are quickly fading due to civilization and the increasing need for the world to form a global community.
• Gordon Parks, an American Photographer After the death of his mother in 1926, Parks was forced to move to Minneapolis, where he made a living by affiliating himself with a number of odd jobs, such as the job of a […]
• Concept of Documentary Photography The purpose of composition in this case is to bring out a distinction between the different elements of a work that is being portrayed in such a manner that the elements of the work that […]

• Photography Art in 20th Century In its turn, this reflected the fact that during the course of the 20th century’s initial phase, the classical conventions of physics have been thoroughly revised, due to the emergence of the Theory of Relativity.
• Photographer Jeff Wall and His Paintings The room is clearly in a state of disarray as the dishes and several other things in the room are unattended to.
• Exhibitions at the International Center of Photography Focusing on the photographs by Chim, it is possible to feel as the part of the European society between the 1930s and 1950s.
• Critique of a Photographer, Tom Williams The major point is that the works of Tom Williams can be found in both private and public collections, this is why the popularity of his works raises day by day, and, it is quite […]
• The Art of Photography: Seizing the Moment Flying The vividness of the gender stereotypes which the art of photography disclosed was incredible, because of the new ideas of gender gap and the gender prejudices which the boldest photographers dared to take picture of.
• Impacts of Photography on Advertising So as to discuss this topic, this paper shall: trace the development of photography on advertising; discuss the positive impacts of photography on advertising; and discuss the negative impacts of photography on advertising.
• Surrealism in Photography Surrealism, which started after the World War I, in photography is one of the indicators of most important revolutions that have taken place over the history in the area of photography.
• “Escaping to Reality: Fashion Photography in the 1990s” by Elliot Smedley Written by Elliot Smedley, “Escaping to Reality: Fashion Photography in the 1990s” explores how contemporary fashion photography is adopting realistic styles by using realistic activities contrary to ideal styles that had dominated art and photography […]
• The development of lithography and photography in the nineteenth century For this reason, when the reproduction techniques of lithography and photography came up, most of the artists at the time viewed this as a gold mine. As to whether lithography and photography resulted in a […]
• Critical analysis of Barthes’s Camera Lucida-Reflections on Photography He maintained that a picture has a potential to create deceitfulness in the fantasy of ‘what is’, where the description of ‘What was’ is so specific.
• History of Photography Culture Thus, as a result of the credibility, reliability and realism of photography, the development of photography was closely related to the industrial revolution, the scientific revolution and advancement in philosophy.
• Mads Nissen, a Danish Documentary Photographer He has helped in expressing the plight of the minority groups in the society and also in championing of human rights of the people all over the world.
• Weegee and Goldin’s Photography This paper compares Weegee and Goldin’s photography to address the connection between the middle years of the twentieth century, when photography began to expose realities in life, and the modern distrustful era.
• The Impact of Nineteenth Century Photography on Visual Representation and the Development of Visual Culture The essay concludes with a showcasing of a number of nineteenth century photographs that illustrate the wide range of uses, particularly in the realm of portraiture, that photographers of the nineteenth century employed the photographic […]
• Eastman Kodak and Photographic Film Industry Major Changes This kind of study enables the marketer to evaluate the performance of the company in the market. Therefore, the application of the model is inevitable in case the market is to understand the performance of […]
• Photography’s Impact on Society The pictures taken from scenes of dying soldiers in the American civil war are some of the reasons that evoked strong emotions, which led to the end of the war.
• Jack Dykinga’s Outdoor Photography The works of Jack Dykinga have longed appealed to because this photographer is always able to emphasize the beauty of nature by paying attention to color patterns and space.
• The Description of Nature in Jack Dykinga’ Photographs There are several aspects of these photographs that I would like to discuss, namely the interplay of light and shadow and structured space. This is the main lesson that I learned from the works of […]
• Photography of High-End Art However, in order to capture the beauty and uniqueness of the original artwork, as well as incorporate a range of innuendoes concerning the artist, the era that the art was created in, etc, very specific […]
• A Comparison of Photographic Approaches Towards American Culture Siskind, on the other hand, used photography as a skylight into the subconscious minds of Americans and a technique to react to the dirty happenings experienced in World War II.
• Photographic Approaches Towards Landscapes: Peter Henry Emerson He insisted that science was a core part of art and photography and thus, he endeavored to prove how the two were completely dependent. He was able to capture the economical effects of the depression […]
• Araki Nobuyoshi and Photography He promoted a new genre of art which is up to date cherished in Japan and other parts of the world.
• Privacy and Photography in Public Places According to the protectors of privacy, it is inappropriate to take photographs and circulate them without the consent of the individuals.
• Photography and Beauty Perception His resistance stemmed from the fact that in the early decades of photography, photographs were meant to idealize images and for a picture to be considered beautiful, its subject had to be something beautiful.
• Surrealist Photography and Experimental Photography These two techniques showcase objects in an in-depth manner, concentrating specifically on the surroundings of the image and creation of an abstract form of art that shaped the history of photography.
• Reflection of Photographic Arts The knowledge influences the choice of image and the position of the subject in the photograph. The knowledge of the fundamentals of photographic arts creates a world of possibilities.
• Photographic Approaches for Manuel Alvarez Bravo and Ann Parker In this review, a comparison is made of the photographic approaches of Ann Parker and Manuel Alvarez Bravo, looking for similarities and differences in their art.
• The Photographic Approaches Towards American Culture of Robert Frank and Gary Winogrand Frank practiced many forms of photography and he did photography both for the commercial and fashion purposes and was considered an influential American photographer who was also a mentor to many young American artists.
• Melancholy Objects in Photography The purpose of this paper is to develop a critical evaluation of Sontag’s claim of melancholy and Photography, with reference to a photograph taken for a tombstone in a cemetery. In fact, the grave looks […]
• Photography: Finding Beauty in the Ordinary Therefore, the beauty that the photo represents is largely derived from the actual object. While Sontang acknowledges that the close-up is a reflection of truth, it is still subject to the photographer’s viewpoint.
• Photograph Discussion: Physical Elements and Content Telling from the photograph, the three boys were part of the group playing games in the background and were called to attention by the photographer.
• The Photography of the Arctic Ice Panoramic View The vivid play of light and color in the picture brings out the striking separation of the detached mass from the main iceberg.
• The Pool’ Pictures Balance in Photography Because of the unique combination of urban background and the green elements, as well as the presence of such details as the cast iron, the change in the pictures of the pool not only shows […]
• Photography in Arabic Countries New and new tendencies and fashion took over the generations of European and American photographers, while for the photographers of Arabic and Middle Eastern countries the art of taking pictures was still new.
• Photographic Representation of War Photography captures the moments that are gone, portrays the reality of the past, and preserves the images that used to be real at the second when the photo was taken.
• Technologies: Amateur Film vs Cell Phone Photography An analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of the two forms of photography concludes the paper. Cellphone and film cameras have apertures that regulate the quantity of light passing to the sensor and film, respectively.
• Lewis Hine’s Photography Art Being born at the age of great changes and stresses, Lewis since his childhood was interested in the imprinting of some great moments of the history of American society.
• Photography as a Mass Medium To demonstrate this fact, the study explores the works of Sontag in her article titled, On Photography, and shows how digital photography changes her analysis about the “photographic way of seeing” life.
• Andy Goldsworthy: Sculptor and Photographer Besides, the vast majority of artworks of this sculptor are installed in nature in the woods, fields, plains, at the ponds, or rivers.
• The Basic Critical Theory for Photography According to Berger, images depend on the way of seeing of the person who has taken them. Berger insists that ‘publicity images’ and ‘advertising images’ have the same meanings.
• Melbourne’ Keith Gallery: Photography Analysis However, at the entrance of the gallery, I took a picture that shows the entry of the gallery that has photos on it.
• The Photography Gallery in Melbourne The photos are mounted on glass and owing to the fact that the setting is indoor, a lot of lighting is applied to prevent any darkness.
• Hine’s Indianapolis and Kruger’s Help! Photography Nevertheless, unlike Lewis Hine, Barbara Kruger chooses to combine different media, and in this way, she departs from the canons of the modernist art. Overall, this comparison indicates that the works of Lewis Hine and […]
• Social Documentary Photography Then and Now In the first place, he tried to inform people about the diversity of life in the city, which was a common trend for the beginning of the twentieth century.
• Child Labor, Great Depression and World War II in Photographs The impression is of isolation and yearning for daylight, freedom, and a childhood foregone, in the midst of a machine-dominated world.
• Steve McCurry’s Photographs This approach has revealed the impacts of war on the lives of many people across the globe. McCurry had the opportunity to capture the portrait of a monk in Tibet.
• Photography Company’s Public Relations Campaign The accomplishment of each aim will be performed following the specificity of the targeted audience that is supposed to be composed of the middle-class population of the Seattle Area. In the meantime, they expect that […]
• The Photograph Description and Criticism In this picture, the foreground is where the woman is seated and the background depicts transparent window of the apartment The photograph was likely taken in a broad daylight since outside the apartment to be […]
• The “We Are All Equal” Photography by Haley Bell In spite of the fact that the photograph is rather straightforward in its message, it is important to focus on this image of a young white woman’s hand with words saying that we are all […]
• Photography Ethics, Reliability, and Principles As a result, it is often possible to guarantee that the photo provided in the news is not a product of Photoshop.
• Pathos, Ethos, and Logos in Photography The audience’s personal experiences affects its interpretation of what the picture depicts, it might be close to the communication the photographer had wished to convey or a totally different perspective.
• Timothy Hogan’s Photography Taking into consideration the infinite backing from the greatest producers, retouchers, and workshops in the professional photography niche, it is quite reasonable that Hogan and his team managed to furnace the lifelong contacts that provide […]
• Photography: the Art of Seeing The images that she deals with are associated with saucer magnolia blossoms and she aims to capture the exquisiteness of trees hence bringing-forth that magnificence to the attention of her audience.
• Fascination With Crime Through the Art of Photography The image is not for the faint of heart; however, it is fascinating in a way it is shot. It is evident that the robber fired a bullet into the camera to hide his identity.
• The History of War Photography The purpose of this report is to identify basic trends in the development of war photography and determine the conceptual, stylistic, and technical changes observed in the course of its formation.
• “Film und Foto” Exhibition and Surrealism in Photography Surrealism is considered to be a cultural movement of the early twentieth century and is commonly reflected in the works of art and writings.
• Perspectives on Photography In his essay, John Berger states that the war in Vietnam was one of the most influential transformations of the world.
• Photographs in a Written Society Visual literature requires one to have the ability to analyze, interpret, and understand images with the aim of acquiring meaning through the cultural context in which the image exists.
• Modern Art: Painting, Sculpture, Architecture, Photography Duchamp and his work have a connection through the refusal to accept the views of the majority of artists and art lovers.
• Michael Lesy’s Wisconsin Death Trip: Photograph Analysis As highlighted by the focus of the light and the enlargement of the image, this makes the ribs of the horse to be the photo’s point of focus.
• Photography and Its History This is termed as documentary photography in which a value of a photograph is measured by its worth of objectivity, which depends on the subject matter, the perception of why it is taken, and the […]
• Photography and Society Through History: Political and Ideological Functions Another example of a thoroughly politicized photo, which during the course of the thirties was meant to promote the cause of Communism, is Alexander Rodchenko’s Pioneer with Trumpet:
• “Memorial Day” by Anthony Suau: Photography Analysis The background of the image is blurry, indicating that when Suau took the photograph, he had one central area of focus and opted to indiscriminately isolate the other items in the shot.
• Hector Mediavilla Photographic Series “The Congolese Sape” The photographer’s decision to organize the order of photographs influences the viewer’s interpretation of the image. The photographer captures an image from a focal position; the decision to capture the image is influenced by the […]
• Richard Drew’s Photography: Visualizing September 11 This would have ensured that I had accommodated the rights of media, clients, society, and other stakeholders while still adhering to media ethics.
• A Critique of a Photographer’s Works: Matthew Abbott Matthew Abbott underlines one simple fact that Istanbul is the only place where East has all chances to meet West, this is why it is hard to predict the traditions and interests of Turkish people, […]
• Photography: A Cultural History In the middle of the 1850s, there were many photographers, whose projects caused people’s admiration, and the works of Edouard Baldus, Imperial Library of the Louvre, and Roger Fenton, Rievaulx Abbey, may be considered as […]
• Personal Interest in Photography Most of Cotton’s photographs were devoted to the exploration of the serenity and beauty in the natural world, as can be seen in the photographs below.
• Photography: Is It Possible to Recapture the Past? The problem of photography is twofold: the problem of representation, and the presumption of reality that the photographic images elicits in the viewer the pervasive belief that a photograph depicts a referent, a real “how […]
• Nature and Animals in Photographs In the picture, a viewer sees the glassy and smooth water surface, the banks and fir trees covered with snow, and a high dome of the mountain in the center of the photograph.
• Andreas Gursky’s “The Rhine II” Photography In The Rhine II, the photographer attempts to deliver “an accurate image of a modern river” and invites viewers to see the river enclosed in the deep-colored stripes of grass, concrete, and the clouded sky.
• Moholy Nagy’s “Laci and Lucia” Photography In order to make it fit the life in the 21st century, the famous quote by Laszlo Moholy Nagy can be rewritten in the following way: “The illiterate of the future will be the one […]
• A Distinct Camera Vision in Jacques-Henri Lartigue’s Photograph Also, there is no focus on the man’s feet because the camera concentrated on the leap in water, and the feet remain out of the water.
• Photography Changes Who We Think We Might Be This essay is interesting and was chosen because Bergen is famous for her acting and not for photography, yet she clearly has a passion for this trade.
• “The Valley of the Shadow of Death” the Photography by Roger Fenton Finally, from the standpoint of war, such a large number of cannonballs on the road testifies to the scale of the hostilities, which also makes one wonder about the alarming consequences of attacks. Therefore, the […]
• Robinson, Emerson, and Photography as an Art Both of them viewed the newly created form of image capture as a medium for the expression of art, but their views on the nature of the movement were radically different.
• Photographs and Danto`s View on Art This argument comes from the idea of the philosophic meaning of art and its ability to impact viewers by representing some objects of reality in unusual ways.
• Philosophy of Photography as an Art In conclusion, it is necessary to stress that photography is a specific form of art that involves the use of technology.
• ”Preferences for Photographic Art Among Hospitalized Patients With Cancer” by Hanson ET Al. The opinions of stakeholders, who are patients and nursing staff, as well as the outcomes of treatment, are factors that influence the response to the research question.
• Photography & Folk Art: America in the 1930s Exhibition The exhibition “Photography + Folk Art: Looking for America in the 1930s” is a remarkable venue where visitors can see and even feel the atmosphere of the years of the Great Depression in the United […]
• Edward Weston’s Modernist Photographs More attention should be paid to the analysis of Weston’s photographs and the comparison of their style to my photographs. The object in my black-and-white photograph looks like a kind of tubes, which texture is […]
• Imogen Cunningham, an American Female Photographer The high contrast and neutral tones of the image bring to the viewer’s attention a variety of details, including the woman’s hair, her wrinkles, and the unevenness of her skin.
• Publishing Controversial Photographs: To Be or Not To Be? Harte took some pictures of the rescue operation, including an image capturing the moment when the rescuers found the body of a drowned boy and showed it to the family.
• Snapshot vs. Fine-Art Photography in Digital Age The scale of distribution of everyday photography is associated with the improvement of photographic technology and the spread of electronic and digital technologies, making exploring snapshot photography particularly relevant. To analyse the functions of snapshot […]
• History of Photography: Road and Poplar Trees Analysis The picture artistically depicts the distance between the poplar trees making the trees on the right side to be smaller than the left side.
• History of Photography: Brief Overview of the Most Exciting and Impressive Ways of Cultural Representation Photography is one of the most interesting and impressive ways and techniques of culture representation. For instance, photography documented the culture of the 1920s and world wars, the Great Depression-era, and the liberation movement.
• Contribution of Modernity to Photography and Film Movements Modernity in visual arts and cinema is part of the ever-changing world, wherein the establishment of ideas, different people in the world of art participates in experimenting with the forms and styles of art, thus […]
• Edward Steichen in History of Photography Edward Steichen is one of the central figures in the history of photos. The astonishing sale charge of the print is, in part, featured to its one-of-a-kind personality and to its curiosity.
• Photographic Pioneer: Paul Strand One of her eyes is a stone eye and with the other eye she is trying to view something on her left side.
• Visual Art and Photography Ice Sculpting is truly an art of its own, and even though this style of art is not permanent, unless a person were to place the item into the freezer, this would still be categorized […]
• Photography: Brief History of Invention At that time all images produced were in black and white and eventually all masters of the art came to believe that the only artistic way to record photographic images was in black and white. […]
• Atta Kim: Presentation of a Photographer While many techniques Atta uses are not new, in some context the works of Atta can be considered as a philosophical opinion that was visualized using photography.
• “China and Its People in Early Photographs” by John Thompson In spite of the fact the majority of his works are believed to be documentaries, Johnson is often referred to a photojournalist, because he often focused attention on the social aspect of human relationships, it […]
• Yosemite National Park and Connecting With the History of Photography By the time the Yosemite series was started, Carleton Watkins was a famous master of the so called wet-collodion technique that made use of the “mammoth” plates made of glass to allow for the better […]
• Invention of Photography and its Social Impact Although photography was invented in its full form only in 1835, an understanding of the social impact that was a result of the invention of photography is rightly portrayed by Azoulay in his article “The […]
• The Exhibition “The Arlen Ness Photographic Exhibition” Watching the landscape in reality and the same view on the photo, the viewer may not notice the difference as the professional photographer, the artist tries to make his/her photos so realistic and inconceivable that […]
• Photographic Exhibition in Melbourne Australia The concept of space in the exhibit depicts that of loose and un-articulated. But nowhere in the exhibit were photos shown of men or women building gabions baskets, or showing the river.
• Photo Art: Photographic Exhibition This is the photo produced by Samantha Everton in 2009 as a part of her Vintage Dolls series: The photo is installed in a frame during the exhibition to ensure the considerable attention the viewers […]
• Three Questions About Photography If they do, it is through the main webpage where it is displayed and the user is not allowed to copy the image.
• Pia Johnson’s Photography Exhibition The main aim of the photographer is to stop the time and to make people to be delighted by the beauty of the picture, as the time is the substance which flows fast and the […]
• Photography Exhibition “Threads” in Melbourne The subject matter of the photograph under consideration is the nature of identity or, to be more exact, the exploration of it.
• Photograph Description: Nature The photograph reflects a marvelous landscape combining the elements of human interference in the form of buildings; it is necessary to underline the fact that the picture is to be referred to as representational […]
• Evaluating Evidence: Paperwork and Photographs The paperwork evidence is one of the main evidence, as it is the prejudicial evidence of the witness, who walked the cemetery and saw the act of vandalism of the tomb.
• Photograph Works by Laura McPhee This particular feature in the works of Laura McPhee impresses the viewer owing to the mastership of the photographer in playing with the background and foreground.
• Sports Photography and Its Evolution The death of Niepce was announced in 1833, but the experiment was still been performed by Daguerre and he succeeded in the development of the daguerreotype finally in 1837.
• Has Digital Technology Improved the Quality of Photographs? In the case of our apple, most of the wavelengths are absorbed with the exception of those that lie on the red end of the spectrum.
• Ansel Adams and John Sexton: World Photography The first assumption that we can make about these works is that both of them achieve an effect of optical illusion and this is one of the most difficult tasks for a photographer to carry […]
• Without Sanctuary: Lynching Photography The photographs in Without Sanctuary provide a record of the intolerance and racism that was standard in the United States at the turn of the twentieth century.
• Knowing Andy Warhol’s Life and Photography The Post-Modernist Movement of pop art and culture in the latter half of the twentieth century was a revolutionary movement and it was started by the American artist Andy Warhol’s very amundane’ looking paintings of […]
• Photography Exhibition: Examples of the Works This is an outstanding piece of art which made me, for instance, think of our world and humanity: first of all I thought about the perfection of the both, and then I passed to contemplations […]
• Horst Wackerbath and His Great Photography This mystic twist in Wackerbath’s work keeps people looking out for more of his works in a bid to try to understand not only how he manages to pull such a delicate feat, but also […]
• Photography: Robin Fox’s Proof Of Concept The subject and concept of the exhibition is as unique as it can be and the gallery is the best place where the photos can be exhibited.
• Photography: Critical Analysis The vertical, restive position of the pencil in each of the slides is indicative of a resort to have finished a particular task, presumably that of writing on the foolscap, with the pencil resting in […]
• HDRI and Tonal Mapping in Photography The science of High dynamic range imaging has developed the dynamic range of processing, transmission, and representation of imaging photography beyond the traditional forms.
• History in Abbass Studios Ltd. Fonds’ Photographs The approximate creation date of the collection is mentioned as 1940 the year when the eldest of the Abbass brothers became interested in photography. George was in charge of the office and the studio.
• Julia Margaret Cameron: A British Photographer As the photographer later wrote in her unfinished memoir “Annals of my glass house”, from the moment of the first shot, the camera had become a link to the world of artists, scientists, and writers.
• Nikki S. Lee and Photography Considered to be one of a kind, the unique nature of this exhibition placed her in the limelight. In ‘The Seniors Project’, Lee managed to transform herself to fit the image of an old woman […]
• Margaret Bourke-White: A Historically Significant Photographer Among Bourke-White’s exclusive works are the photos of the First Five-Year Plan in the Soviet Union, the daily struggle of the Allied infantrymen in the Italian campaign, the siege of Moscow, and the conflict between […]
• Jack Dykinga’s Photography In addition, this use of light adds to the beauty of color harmony and color saturation in the picture. Because of the duly chosen perspective and the angle of shooting along with the time of […]
• Chris Hondros: War Photographer This leads the author of the current paper to discovering the key three topics that have to be covered in order to evaluate Hondros’ contribution to war photography during the first decade of the 21st […]
• The Beauty of Photography: An Opinion However, ultimately, I leaned toward the DSLR cameras and still photography rather than the motion of the film. As a result, good photos make one look at the situation from a different angle, capturing a […]
• Photographer Diane Arbus’ Creativity Analysis Therefore, Arbus showed consistency with the portrayed ugliness of the subjects in the photographs. This enabled Arbus to capture moments that genuinely depicted the feelings of the people in their environment.
• Dream Deferred: Timeless Relevance. Poem and Photograph Review The relevance of showcasing social inequality through voices and faces of the Afro-Americans in the United States draws the parallel between the historical and contemporary context.
• Town Photography Studio Online Branding In order to convince our potential customers about the quality of our new product, we need to use attractive images of the new product which can easily capture the attention of our potential customers.
• Macro Photography: Features, Techniques, and Common Mistakes It is customary to call macro photography the shooting of objects comparable in size to the size of a film frame or much smaller than it.
• Photography, Impression and Alfred Stieglitz A striking example of this is the emergence of photography as a category of art after the invention of the camera.
• Photography in the E-Business: Marketing Strategy Business owners or those in the photography business are now thinking of possible and probably the best way to reach a wider market in the most fashionable and quickest way.
• Composing With Light or Color in Photography Light, shadow and color are the components of an image. The balance between each element affects the quality of the image.
• Ethics in the Age of Digital Photography by Long In his article, ‘Ethics in the age of digital photography,’ Long expresses his concern over the problem of “the public…losing faith” in photojournalists.
• The History of Photography of the Nineteenth and Twentieth Century They assured the recognition of photography as a kind of art. Alfred Stieglitz created a series of clouds photographs that combined the technical and aesthetic principles of his work.
• Photography: An Artist Statement In the first image, I arranged the details in the composition to guide the observer through the place I captured by the camera. With the help of the play of the light and shadow, I […]
• An Analysis of a Photograph By Mike Wells This spread of technology-enabled many people to document the environment around them and allowed millions of people to relate to stories of others told through photographs.”A Starving Boy and a Missionary” is one of the […]
• Photography: Art Creation & Reflection The thematic connection between the two pieces is based on the illusionary vision of the simple scenes and experimental approach to the art of photography.
• “Tom Torlino Student File” Photograph Analysis The before and after photo of a native American student is vivid evidence of American influence on the disappearing cultural heritage. What was the impact of such boarding schools on the identity and values of […]
• Note-Taking and Crime Scene Photography Concerning the effectiveness of notes, generally, they should contain a high level of detail, and straightforwardness and cover all areas of the crime scene.
• Photographer Lene and The Heart Project Lene has had an opportunity to work in a large variety of creative mediums, utilizing the skills acquired in a number of projects. The use of paint, charcoal, and mosaic in her art creates a […]
• Significance of the Photographs Created by T. Simon and J. Riis In turn, Riis presents a unique perspective on the immorality of the Victorian neighborhoods serving as evidence of erroneous people’s attitudes towards appropriateness.
• Jeff Wall, a Contemporary Photographer and His Works Most of the photographer’s works are staged, depicting everyday scenes related to the problems of representation and the history of art.
• Special Features of the Photography by Luc Delahaye and Ansel Adams The above photograph is one of the works by Ansel Adams, who is recognized as a pioneer in the evolutionary field of expertise.
• Photography Comparison and Contrast The focus on the naked parts of the body, like dirty and scratched hands, necks, and faces, allows for learning about the terror and horror of that period. In my photo, the style differs due […]
• Photography of Global Disasters: Violence or Not? There is a moral dilemma in people’s urge to respond to suffering photographs of others by either just looking at the pictures or doing something to stop the disaster.
• Photographs Depicting Sufferings of Real People Recording reality may run counter to the goals and ideals of the person making the recording. The dilemma of reaction to shocking photographs is often limited by the viewer’s psychological predisposition and internal values.
• The Search for Truth: Early Photography, Realism, and Impressionism European colonialism led to the popularity of ethnography and the emergence of Orientalism the Western representation of the Middle East visually or literary.
• The Ellen Terry Photograph by Julia Margaret Cameron The value of the artwork is that it reminds the world that people are all the same. An interesting fact about the artwork is that the picture was taken during the honeymoon of the actress.
• The Visual Argument in the Photograph The photograph and the remark appeal to pathos, striving to first show the emotions of the child in the picture and then accentuating how the words shown through the hand around the boy’s neck can […]
• The Background of Photography and the History of Racial Strife Overall, Ardizonne argues that Day’s work was destructive to the political discourse, based on an assessment of the pictures and the content of the anthropological section.
• The Connection of History and Photography Overall, photography falls under the visual sources of chronological data that historians can use to understand and write about recorded events.
• Photography as Quick-Paced Creative Medium Photography is interesting since it helps keeps memories alive and prosperous because it freezes a scene that lasts forever. In capturing moments of importance and beauty, photography helps one revisit memories in a way otherwise […]
• What Is the Difference Between Film and Digital Photography?
• What Is the Most Popular Photography Website?
• How Does Photography Affect the Social and Political Arena?
• How Photography Has Changed Our View of the World?
• Why Was Post-mortem Photography Popular?
• When Was Photography First Invented?
• How Romanticism and Photography Shaped Western Modernitymodern?
• What Was Photography Originally Called?
• How Digital Processes Change Photography?
• What Photography Can and Really Should Document?
• What Is the Best Photography Course for Beginners?
• Why Photography Is an Art?
• What Would the World Be Like Without Photography?
• How Photography Has Changed Changing Business Environment?
• How Did Joseph Nicephore Contribute to the Early Development of Photography?
• What Is the Target Market for Portrait Photography?
• What Are the 4 Styles of Photography?
• How Has Fashion Photography Changed and Developed Over the Years?
• How Did Photography Reflect the Values and Stereotypes That Underlay European Colonialism?
• Why Is Photography So Important?
• How Does Photography Affect Our Lives?
• Which Type of Camera Is Best for Photography?
• Why Is Digital Photography Better Than Traditional?
• How Are Music and Photography Related?
• What Are the 7 Principles of Photography?
• How Did Female Surrealists Aim to Subvert the Male Gaze Within Surrealist Photography?
• How Photography Works and Has Evolved?
• How Have Photography and Photojournalism Transformed Media?
• What Was the Effect of Photography on Painting in the Nineteenth Century?
• What Makes a Good Food Photography?
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45 Photo Essay Topics

Most academic writing assignments involve just that – writing. But in the case of a photo essay, the assignment becomes one of both writing and photography. A photo essay is simply an essay that uses images instead of (or in addition to) words to tell a story or make a point.

A good photo essay will capture your audience’s attention and tell a story that resonates with them on an emotional level. To create a successful photo essay, there are a few things you should keep in mind.

This detailed guide will walk you through the essential steps of creating a photo essay and provide you with 45 photo essay topics to get you started.

What Is a Photo Essay?

A photo essay is a written piece that uses images to tell a story or make a point. In other words, it’s an essay that depends primarily on visuals rather than text to communicate its message.

Photo essays are usually themed around a particular subject or topic and can be created for a variety of purposes. They can be used to:

• Tell a news story
• Raise awareness about an important issue
• Share a personal experience
• Document a place or event
• Highlight the work of a specific artist or photographer

No matter what the purpose of your photo essay is, there are a few key elements that should be included in order to impact the audience to the best degree.

What Makes a Good Photo Essay?

A good photo essay will have a clear focus, with each image adding something new to the story. It should also be structured to make sense so that the viewer can easily follow along and understand the point you’re trying to make.

When choosing images for your photo essay, be sure to select ones that are high quality and have a consistent theme or style. This will help create a cohesive story that is visually pleasing and easy to follow.

It’s also important to ensure that your images are appropriately captioned and credited, especially if you’re using someone else’s work. This ensures that your photo essay is both accurate and legal.

Steps for Creating a Photo Essay

Creating a photo essay is a process that requires time, patience, and careful planning. Follow these steps to create a successful photo essay:

1. Choose a topic or theme

The first step in creating a photo essay is to choose the topic or theme you want to focus on. This can be anything from a place, an event, or even a person. Once you’ve decided on your subject, it’s time to start brainstorming ideas for your essay.

2. Do your research

If you’re documenting a place or an event, it’s important to do your research beforehand. This will help you understand your subject’s background and give you a better idea of what to include in your essay.

3. Gather your material

Now it’s time to start gathering the material for your essay. This includes both images and text. Remember, if you’re using someone else’s photos, be sure to get their permission first.

4. Choose a format

There are a few different ways you can format your photo essay. The most common is to create a series of images that progress in a linear fashion, such as from left to right or top to bottom.

Another option is to arrange your images more abstractly, such as in a grid or collage. This can help to add visual interest and variety to your essay.

5. Edit your material

Once you have all of your material gathered, it’s time to start editing. This includes both choosing which images to use and writing the accompanying text.

For the images, you’ll want to select those that are the most visually appealing and that best support the story you’re trying to tell. As you edit, also be sure to crop and resize your images as needed.

For the text, you’ll want to write a brief introduction and conclusion, as well as captions for each of your images. The goal is to provide just enough context and information to help viewers understand what they’re seeing.

6. Design your essay

Now it’s time to start putting your photo essay together. If you’re using a linear format, begin by arranging your images in the order you want them to appear. Then, add the accompanying text.

If you’re using a more creative format, start by playing around with different ways to arrange your images. Then, add the text once you’ve settled on a design you like.

7. Finalize and Hand it in

Once you’ve designed your photo essay, it’s time to finalize it and hand it in. Be sure to proofread the text for any errors and check the images to ensure they’re properly captioned. It is highly recommended to use a professional printing service to print your photo essay to ensure the best possible quality.

Understanding how to create a photo essay is only half the battle. The other half is finding a topic that you’re passionate about that will also interest your audience. To help get you started, here are 45 ideas for photo essay topics:

Photo Essay Topics About Places

• Your hometown
• A nearby city or town
• A favorite vacation spot
• An interesting landmark
• A place from your childhood
• A hidden gem in your town
• The most beautiful place you’ve ever been
• The most interesting place you’ve ever been
• The strangest place you’ve ever been
• A place that is significant to you for personal reasons
• A place that is significant to your family
• A place with a lot of history
• A place that is in danger of disappearing

Photo Essay Topics About Events

• A sporting event
• A music festival
• A parade or procession
• A protest or demonstration
• An annual celebration in your town
• A once-in-a-lifetime event that you witnessed
• An event that had a significant impact on you
• An event that had a significant impact on your community
• An event that is widely considered to be positive
• An event that is widely considered to be negative
• A controversial event
• A natural disaster
• A man-made disaster

Photo Essay Topics About People

• The people in your neighborhood
• The people at your job
• Your family
• Your friends
• The elderly
• A group of people with a common interest or hobby
• A group of people from a different culture than your own
• A group of people who are disadvantaged or marginalized in some way
• A group of people who are often misunderstood
• Celebrities
• Politicians
• Everyday people

Photo Essay Topics About Concepts

A photo essay is an interesting assignment that can help you express your creativity while also teaching you how to pay attention to detail, tell a story, and edit images. If you follow the steps outlined in this article, you’ll be well on your way to creating a successful photo essay.

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Photography Essay Examples That Will Boost Your Knowledge

After composing various essays for learners across the globe, we have come to realize that students taking a photography course can have excellent practical skills but have a hard time communicating their ideas through the text. And that is where our writing service comes in. As our customer, you access photography essay examples based on different topics. As a result, you can read various samples that will inspire or give you an idea on how to draft your next piece.

It becomes easier to write an effective piece after reading through the samples available on our site. Thanks to our collection containing various academic tasks, students interested in knowing more about their subject can practice, gain more knowledge, and improve their skills. Besides, each assignment is worked on by a professional with extensive experience in that specific photography field of study. Therefore, you will learn more about the proper structure, format, and the correct way to add references to your content.

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What an Essay About Photography Should Include

Assignments about photography are great for gauging your writing skills and for the professor to see whether or not you have understood the material taught in class. Unlike other academic projects such as a thesis or dissertation that requires extensive research, an essay about photography involves analyzing a specific image or a collection of photos and coming up with meaningful content. However, just like any other homework, your task must follow the standard structure containing an introduction, body, and conclusion. Remember, a single image can evoke emotion and create a meaningful narrative.

A well-written photo essay will contain the following crucial details:

• A topic or a theme

Many types of photography can motivate scholars to enroll in such a course. You can be passionate about fashion, street, portrait, or fine art photography. Regardless of where your interest is when it comes to composing top-notch content that will improve your academic performance, you need to base your composition on a specific topic. You can opt to go with a narrative perspective as it helps the writer to focus on storytelling. On the other hand, you can choose a thematic essay that centers on a specific theme or subject.

• Discern what the artist is conveying

What is great about the power of photography essay is that just like any other form of art, photos are subjective which means, there are so many different angles you can choose to use to defend your argument. By observing the photograph, you can be able to get a lot of information. The trick is to look at compositions, emotions, use of light, angles, and colors used to gather data points that will defend your claims.

• Support your main points

Use the information you have gathered from the photo as well as visual evidence to prove to your professor why the specific interpretation you have chosen is the correct one. The introduction should capture attention by providing a brief background story of the photographs from which your essay is based on. The body of your paper should defend your main points by pointing out to the specifics of the pictures such as movement, amount of light or lack of it, the use of color, and how the photographer frames the image. The conclusion should reiterate the key issues and summarize the way they prove your claims.

Photography Essay Ideas That Evoke Emotion or Tell a Story

When it comes to composing a photography paper worthy of praise, your images must tell a story and evoke emotion. Pictures that raise awareness on an important cause or documenting someone you believe has an interesting career are some of the great ideas that can make your essay unique.

Shots from a local event, a protest, weather, climate change, wildlife, native culture, mouthwatering cuisine, subcultures, life-changing moments, and sports can be great sources of photography essay ideas.

When you have a series of images or a specific picture that interests you and is also related, then it becomes easier to craft a composition that appeals to your professor. While such projects can be a lot of fun, there are times when doing assignments is burdensome.

Maybe you have various commitments like two jobs, a lack of exceptional writing skills, or no motivation to compose a lengthy project. Whatever the reasons that are causing you not to work on your project, none of them should result in a poor score. Our vetted experts are ready to give you academic assistance at an affordable rate. So when you do not feel inspired to write an essay on photography in 300 words or any other task, hire our specialists, and you will receive plagiarism free content.

Good Photography Essay Topics That You Can Use

Everyone has a specific topic that they are interested in. The best way to get good ideas is to focus on what you are passionate about. Amazing things about your favorite pet, how cameras have evolved over the years, interesting things about a unique landscape, unsung heroes, and underwater life are some of the photography essay topics that you can write about.

The trick to composing excellent work is to ensure that the snapshots you are incorporating augments with the issue you are discussing. Sometimes the topics available online do not stimulate your creativity. In such cases, you can ask a professional to give you unique issues. However, not every online writer is an expert in photography.

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• Freedom to choose any of our top native English speaker specialists for free.
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• Money-back guarantee whenever you find that your paper did not meet your instructions.

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By opting for our company, you will never incur such issues as our channel of communication is open 24/7. Use the live chat to ask our customer representatives any questions, and you will get prompt answers. Furthermore, as our client, you have the opportunity to ask for the progress of your photography essay and even give additional instructions that will ensure the essayist crafts a custom piece.

The price of your order is inclusive of the unlimited revisions which you can request when you want the professional to make specific amendments. For such a small amount, you can prevent your documents from having careless mistakes that can hinder you from graduating with your classmates and friends.

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90 Good Photography Essay Topics To Assist You

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Do you struggle to choose a subject for your Photography essay? If so, you will find this blog post to be a huge assistance. Here, we have provided excellent Photography essay topics and ideas on numerous issues for your convenience. In addition, we have covered how to choose a solid subject and write an effective piece that will get you high marks. To learn more about how to write a Photography essay, keep reading this site.

List of Photography Essay Topics For You

Photography as a career.

It is crucial to be aware that there are several variances in the world of photography; for instance, self-employment and commercial photography are simply a few of the effective means of supporting oneself […]

Evolution of Photography: Trying to Seize the Moment

Helmut Gernsheim transports the reader back in time while describing the history of photography and the potential it presents in his book A Concise History of Photography.

The Exhibit Twilight Visions at the International Centre of Photography

For certain supporters of the Dadaist and Surrealist movements, photography served as an almost wonderfully handy vehicle after World War I.

Social Uses of Photography: Post-Mortem Photographs

In the 18th century, Louis Daguerre created the art of photography, giving members of middle-class families the chance to preserve memories of people and events rather than just […]

Photographer – Robert Frank

Rodeo, a photograph shot in 1954 in New York City, serves as proof for this point since it is impossible to tell who is the man resting on the trash can from his face, yet because Robert’s photographs, […]

Photography: Jimmy Nelson’s Piece of Art

Nelson claims that the Maasai are one of the few tribes in the world that are rapidly disappearing as a result of civilisation and the growing need for a global society.

Also read: 98 Socialism Essay Topics To Score the Perfect Grade

Gordon Parks, an American Photographer

Parks was compelled to relocate to Minneapolis after the passing of his mother in 1926. There, he scraped a livelihood by doing a variety of odd jobs, including that of a […]

Concept of Documentary Photography

The goal of composition in this instance is to highlight differences among the many components of a work that is being depicted such that the components of the work that […]

Photography Art in 20th Century

This in turn reflected the fact that the Theory of Relativity’s appearance during the first half of the 20th century led to a major revision of the classical physics standards.

Photographer Jeff Wall and His Paintings

The dishes and a number of other items in the room are visibly ignored, indicating that the space is in a state of chaos.

Exhibitions at the International Center of Photography

By concentrating on Chim’s images, one may experience what it was like to live in European society during the 1930s and 1950s.

Critique of a Photographer, Tom Williams

The key point is that Tom Williams’ paintings may be found in both public and private collections, which is why his fame is growing steadily, and it is fairly […]

Aslo read: 140 Unique Abortion Essay Topics and Ideas

The Art of Photography: Seizing the Moment Flying

Due to the new concepts of the gender gap and the gender biases that the bravest photographers ventured to record, the vividness of the gender preconceptions that the art of photography revealed was amazing.

Impacts of Photography on Advertising

The purpose of this article is to explore this subject by tracing the evolution of photography in advertising, discussing the advantages and disadvantages of photography in advertising, and discussing both.

Surrealism in Photography

One of the most significant revolutions in photographic history—the surrealist movement, which emerged after World War I—can be traced back to this period.

“Escaping to Reality: Fashion Photography in the 1990s” by Elliot Smedley

In contrast to the ideal styles that had previously dominated art and photography, Elliot Smedley’s “Escaping to Reality: Fashion Photography in the 1990s” examines how modern fashion photography is embracing realistic styles by employing actual activities.

The development of lithography and photography in the nineteenth century

Because of this, the majority of artists at the time saw the development of the reproduction techniques of lithography and photography as a gold mine. To what extent lithography and photography produced a […]

Critical analysis of Barthes’s Camera Lucida-Reflections on Photography

In the dream of “what is,” where the depiction of “what was” is so precise, he claimed, a picture has the ability to generate deceit.

History of Photography Culture

The growth of photography was therefore strongly tied to the industrial revolution, the scientific revolution, and the advancement of philosophy because of the legitimacy, dependability, and realism of photography.

Mads Nissen, a Danish Documentary Photographer

He has contributed to raising awareness of the struggles faced by marginalised groups in society and promoting human rights for everyone.

Also read: 215 Intriguing Philosophy Essay Topics and Ideas

Interesting Photography Essay Topics To Get An A+ Grade

• Weegee and Goldin’s Photography
• The Impact of Nineteenth Century Photography on Visual Representation and the Development of Visual Culture
• Eastman Kodak and Photographic Film Industry Major Changes
• Photography’s Impact on Society
• Jack Dykinga’s Outdoor Photography
• The Description of Nature in Jack Dykinga’ Photographs
• Photography of High-End Art
• A Comparison of Photographic Approaches Towards American Culture
• Photographic Approaches Towards Landscapes: Peter Henry Emerson
• Araki Nobuyoshi and Photography
• Privacy and Photography in Public Places
• Photography and Beauty Perception
• Surrealist Photography and Experimental Photography
• Reflection of Photographic Arts
• Photographic Approaches for Manuel Alvarez Bravo and Ann Parker
• The Photographic Approaches Towards American Culture of Robert Frank and Gary Winogrand
• Melancholy Objects in Photography
• Photography: Finding Beauty in the Ordinary
• Photograph Discussion: Physical Elements and Content
• The Photography of the Arctic Ice Panoramic View

Outstanding Photography Essay Topics

• The Pool’ Pictures Balance in Photography
• Photography in Arabic Countries
• Photographic Representation of War
• Technologies: Amateur Film vs Cell Phone Photography
• Lewis Hine’s Photography Art
• Photography as a Mass Medium
• Andy Goldsworthy: Sculptor and Photographer
• The Basic Critical Theory for Photography
• Melbourne’ Keith Gallery: Photography Analysis
• The Photography Gallery in Melbourne

Also read: 143 Democracy Essay Topics and Ideas to Consider

Photography Essay Topics For You

• Photography: the Art of Seeing
• Fascination With Crime Through the Art of Photography
• The History of War Photography
• “Film und Foto” Exhibition and Surrealism in Photography
• Perspectives on Photography
• Photographs in a Written Society
• Modern Art: Painting, Sculpture, Architecture, Photography
• Michael Lesy’s Wisconsin Death Trip: Photograph Analysis
• Photography and Its History
• Photography and Society Through History: Political and Ideological Functions
• Hine’s Indianapolis and Kruger’s Help! Photography
• Social Documentary Photography Then and Now
• Child Labor, Great Depression and World War II in Photographs
• Steve McCurry’s Photographs
• Photography Company’s Public Relations Campaign
• The Photograph Description and Criticism
• The “We Are All Equal” Photography by Haley Bell
• Photography Ethics, Reliability, and Principles
• Pathos, Ethos, and Logos in Photography
• Timothy Hogan’s Photography

Top-Notch Photography Essay Topics We Can Assist With

• Anthony Suau’s “Memorial Day”: A Photographic Analysis
• Photographic Series by Hector Mediavilla, “The Congolese Sape”
• Photography by Richard Drew: Imagining September 11
• A Photographer’s Work is Criticised: Thomas Abbott
• Taking Pictures: A Cultural History
• Photography is a hobby of mine
• Is It Possible to Capture the Past Through Photography?
• Pictures of the Natural World and Animals
• Photography by Andreas Gursky, “The Rhine II”
• “Laci and Lucia” photography by Moholy Nagy
• A Distinct Camera Vision in Jacques-Henri Lartigue’s Photograph
• Photography Changes Who We Think We Might Be
• “The Valley of the Shadow of Death” the Photography by Roger Fenton
• Robinson, Emerson, and Photography as an Art
• Photographs and Danto`s View on Art
• Philosophy of Photography as an Art
• “Preferences for Photographic Art Among Hospitalized Patients With Cancer” by Hanson ET Al.
• Photography & Folk Art: America in the 1930s Exhibition
• Edward Weston’s Modernist Photographs
• Imogen Cunningham, an American Female Photographer\

If you are here, it’s possible that this blog has piqued your curiosity and given you ideas for articles. If you still don’t have your subjects, though, think about calling our assignment writing help professionals, who could be able to advise you on the matter. Additionally, you may ask our specialists to adjust topics at your desire. You can also speak with your professor, who can make suggestions based on your knowledge and ability level.

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122 Photography Essay Topics

🏆 best essay topics on photography, 👍 good photography research topics & essay examples, 🎓 most interesting photography research titles, 💡 simple photography essay ideas, ❓ photography essay questions.

• Photography as a Cultural History The photographer considered, that the main aim of a photographer is to demonstrate how our eyes percept world.
• Public Relations and Photography Public relations are usually related to broadcasting, publicizing, photography, and promoting. The experts require time and talent to advance relations with mass media.
• Photography Exhibition “Charles Harbutt, Departures and Arrivals” The exhibition “Charles Harbutt, Departures and Arrivals” reexamines photographic work and encourages the audience to appreciate photography and relate it to modern printing.
• Hines and Riis’ Photographs Analysis The photographs by Riis and Hine present the poor working conditions, including child labor cases during the late 1800’s and early 1900’s.
• Antikythera Mechanism: Photography and Radiography This paper studies the Antikythera mechanism. It uses recent evidence obtained from photography and radiography assessment of the device.
• “Humans of New York” Photographs by Brandon Stanton In his work “Humans of New York”, Brandon Stanton presented the public with the collection of photographs depicting New Yorkers telling their elaborate stories.
• Africa’s Visual Representation in Photography The article, written by Landau, discusses photography as a source that provides the visual representation of Africa and explains its connection with the colonial administration.

• Art: “Attitudes Towards Photography” by Gisele Freund The massive social and cultural changes of the previous century challenged many of the established traditions, including the perception of art.
• “Pepper No. 30” Photograph by Edward Weston Pepper No. 30 by Edward Weston is a black and white photograph that depicts a close-up of a “bell pepper on the concave surface” against a dark background.
• Photography and Paintings: Depicting the Truth Photography captures the beautiful moments of our lives that can be cherished by us and our children for years to come.
• Photography as Kind of Art Photography is an art and a science. Reflectively, the process is more than just capturing images. Proportionality, and introduction of effects determine the quality of an outcome.
• Photography: Hobby of Millions Unique for Everyone Millions of people take photos on a daily basis in all parts of the world. However, probably only thousands of them manage to capture something purely touching the soul.
• “Close” the Photography by Martin Stranka The present works of well-known photographers inspire other people to create pieces of art to show their perception of the original idea.
• Art Appreciation: Alfred Stieglitz’s Photography Alfred Stieglitz tried to explain the relationship between photography and art by a movement known as Pictorialism.
• Steve McCurry’s Photography “Afghanistan Girl” The Photography “Afghanistan Girl” reveals Steve Mc Curry’s perception of the world through the special inimitable and unguarded moments, which he captured.
• Annie Lebovitz – Famous Photographer Annie Leibovitz is one of the best portrait photographers in today’s era. She focuses her works on a variety of subjects but mostly among celebrity portraits.
• Paul Politis’ Black and White Photography This paper shall be discussing the works and the inspirations of renowned photographer Paul Politis who specializes in black and white photography.
• Photography’s Effects on Modern Art Photography has been hailed by the masses as one of the best means of bringing the rest of the world to the public, affording them views of far-away places and peoples.
• Procurement Management: Selecting Your Wedding Photographer This paper will provide a briefing of the factors that should be taken care of in the process of soliciting, selecting, negotiating with, and launching the wedding photographer.
• San Francisco Photograph by George R. Lawrence The discussed photograph is a daguerreotype of San Francisco taken right after the 1906 earthquake and fire. George R. Lawrence used kites to get photos of San Francisco.
• The Power of Photography: Photography’s Reality Effect The photograph’s evidential worth is held through a transformative method that is being put into play by a dynamic engagement, a stride into the image, on the reader’s part.
• Analysis of Lee Friedlander’s Photographs Friedlander is famous primarily for his street photography – raw, real, brazen. Lee Friedlander’s photos are like music, and that music is jazz.
• Reflection on Photography: An Art Piece or Mass Entertainment? It is important to define whether sphere of photography is only for professionals or, on the contrary, for the users of Instagram, travelers, and amateurs.
• The Birth of Photography: Early Artists and Their Works The popularization of photography coincided with a revolution in art as such. An illustrative example can be found in the works of Alexander Rodchenko.
• The Works of Photographer Steve McCurry: Consequences of the War In his works Steve McCurry aims at portraying the imprudent moment, experiences imprinted on people’s faces, and a soul escaping.
• Photography Impacts on Cultural Identity of Native Americans in America The photos of Native Americans often turn out to be disadvantageous to the appearance of the indigenous Americans, especially in this era of photography.
• The Role of Photography and Views on War Photography changed the attitude to war by demonstrating its horrors, and it triggered public debates about the value of human life and the need to stop military conflicts.
• Photography Art: A Girl on a Bridge on Lake Garda Photographs give information on what real-life scenarios look like away from human influence. A photo of a girl on a bridge on Lake Garda is compared to that taken in real life.
• Attitude to Photography. Art and Design It is paramount noting that art and design are all about the artist’s perspective and what they intend to impart to the audience’s mind.
• Who Should Be Given Credit for Inventing Photography? As a valuable method of visual communication and expression, photography has a broad spectrum of aesthetic capabilities.
• The Influence of Henri Cartier-Bresson on Street Photography Cartier-Bresson aimed for capturing a decisive moment as it was in real life, with no staging and no interference on the photographers part whatsoever.
• Painting as a Translation of Photography in Two Ivans and Oksana The painting uses line, pattern, texture, depth, shortening, cropping, and light to relate more to photography than painting, thus making the picture a photograph translation.
• “The Starving Boy in Uganda” Photograph by Mike Wells The current essay attempts to analyze the context of the picture, details of the image, and the message that the photograph “the Starving boy in Uganda” conveys.
• The Photographs “Untitled Film Stills” by Sherman and “Early Colors Interiors” by Simmons The photos “Untitled Film Stills” by Sherman and “Early Colors Interiors” by Simmons belong to the wave of feminist art of the 70-80s, representing the deconstructionist approach.
• The Photography Atelier 21 Exhibition The photographs presented at Atelier 21 are truly outstanding, and the mixed styles and types add to the uniqueness of the exhibition.
• Cultural Expressions: Photography, Religion, Films The selected cultural expressions reflect my values, which prioritize wellness and mental health, avoidance of excessive consumption, and focus on the joy of experience.
• Henri Cartier-Bresson’s and Martine Franck’s Photography of Each Other Photography as an art has generated many masters who have revolutionized this sphere and contributed their passion and talent to its development.
• Violence in Joseph Rodriguez’s Photographs Joseph Rodriguez’s photography is considered a meditation on the different types of violence in poor communities in East Los Angeles.
• Henri Cartier-Bresson’s and Martine Franck’s Photography The expertise, originality, and professionalism of the author of the book serve as the basis for the reference’s credibility.
• Pornography vs. Artistic Nude Photographs This essay compares pornography and artistic nude photographs, given the thin line which exists between the two.
• Writing and Photography Overview The two different fields, photography and writing, adopt similar elements vital for their interpretation by the audience.
• Homai Vyarawalla’s Photography Career Homai Vyarawalla had a unique talent for penetrating the fabric of time with her camera. One looks at the photos, and the long-gone days magically return to life.
• Henri Cartier-Bresson: Seville Photograph The image of Seville, Spain, 1933, is linked to the Cartier-Bresson work of photography, particularly those connected to war.
• Photographic Essay: The Key Advantages A photographic essay is a powerful tool to deliver information in a succinct and comprehensive manner without any loss of depth of the context or narrative.
• The Brook Ship Photograph Analysis In 1781, the English Brook was launched for the first time. The first diagram of the ship did not appear until a few years later and was written by William Elford.
• Photography as a Contemporary Art Form In this era, photography, in addition to establishing itself as an art form, and developing its own aesthetic value, has turned into a full-fledged material for other art forms.
• The Photographic Industry: Historical Background The photographic industry has grown and changed at a breakneck pace. There is an interaction with high-resolution paintings, 3D animations, and videos.
• Digital and Film Photography at a Glance in the 21st Century
• Are Photography and Printmaking Art?
• Crime Scene Photography: Importance and Strategies
• Alfred Stieglitz Revolutionizing the Art of Photography
• Communication, Photography and Social Media Class
• Fashion Photography and the Effects of New Image Technology
• Photography Boundaries and Uses
• Diane Arbus and the Revolutionary Arena of Artistic Photography
• Photography: Society’s Views Through the Ages
• Capturing Great Landscape Photography
• How Has Photography Changed Our View of the World?
• Barbara Rowe and the Art of Photography
• The Recent and Current Trends and Influences in Portrait Photography
• Photography Through the Modernist Movements
• Comparing Traditional Photography and Digital Imaging
• Photography Laws Surrounding Images of Children
• Color Photography and Its History
• ‘War Photography’ Carol Ann Duffy
• Darkroom vs. Digital Photography
• Aerial Photography: Capturing Spectacular Images up in the Air
• Photography and Its Omnipresent Nature in the World
• Calotype Negative and Early Photography
• Artistic and Creative Uses of Photography
• Civil War Life Captured in the Photography of Mathew Brady
• Brand New Images? Implications of Instagram Photography for Place Branding
• 20th Century Photography: Documentary Art
• Photography Books and the Photographers Who Created Them
• How Photography Helped Change People’s Opinions of the Civil War?
• Photography During Colonial Afric an Indispensable Tool
• Capturing the Personal Aspect of Portrait Photography
• Photography Limits Our Understanding of the World
• Black and White Photography in Australia
• Did Photography Destroy Painting Practice?
• World View and the Changes Brought About by Photography
• Photography and Graphic Design at Rinko Kawauchi
• Cultural Understanding and the Reflections of Photography
• Alfred Stieglitz and His Influence on Photography
• The Relationship Between Painting and Photography in the Work of David Hockney
• Beginners Digital Photography Equipment Tips
• How Photography Has Changed Our Lives?
• Ansel Adams: Discovering His Life and Photography
• Trevor Paglen’s Photography Work as a Bridge to Discovery About the Hidden World
• Wildlife Photography Catching the Animals by Surprise
• Photography Doesn’t Always Show the Reality of a Painter’s View
• Cecil Beaton’s Surprising Photography Experiences
• The Reasons for Preference of Photography Over Paintings in Occasions
• Photography: Impact Upon Western Civilization Over the Past Fifty Years
• Will Camera Phones Destroy Photography?
• Camera Technology and How It Changed Photography
• Understanding Water Through Photography: Edward Burtynsky
• Are Photography and Printmaking Really Art?
• Does Photography Have Significant Political Impact?
• Has Television Taken Over Photography?
• How Did Photography Shape Public Reactions to the American Civil War?
• How Did Photography Influenced the History and the Politics?
• How Does Sebastiao Salgardo’s Activist Photography Reflect Against Media Journalism?
• How Joseph Nicephore Contributed to the Early Development of Photography?
• How Photography Affects the Social and Political Arena?
• What Factors Determine the Popularity of Photography in KSA?
• What Are the Historical and Cultural Differences in Photography in the East and West?
• What Are the Seven Elements of Photography?
• How Moholy-Nagy Made Photography Manifestly Modern?
• How Photography and Photojournalism Has Been Transformed?
• Why Photography Matters as Art as Never Before?
• What Are the Paradoxes of Digital Photography?
• What Is the Evaluation of Image Appeal in Consumer Photography?
• What Are the Pitfalls of Nonstandardized Photography?
• What Is a Computational Approach for Obstruction-Free Photography?
• What Is the Performative Force of Photography?
• What Is the Use of Photography as a Qualitative Research Tool?
• Who Are Three Most Famous Inventors and What Are Their Contributions to Photography?
• What Are the Parallels Between Photography and New Media?
• What Is Paparazzi Photography and Why It’s So Exciting?
• What Is Mathew Brady’s Photography Role in Creating the American Empire?
• How Did Louis Daguerre Make First Practical Process of Photography?
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220+ Photography Essay Topics + [2 Best Photography Essay Examples]

Looking for photography essay topics? You’re not alone! It can be a daunting task to come up with ideas for photo essays, especially if you’re not familiar with the photography process. Luckily, we’ve got you covered!

So whether you’re looking to showcase your work in a creative way or simply teach a topic you know well, our recommendations will help you get started.

What is Photography?

Photography is the process of capturing an image with a camera. Images can be captured in still or moving form and can be used for documentation, art, or communication.

How does a camera capture an image?

A camera captures an image by capturing light that has passed through the lens and entered the camera. This light is then turned into digital form and stored on the camera’s memory card.

What are some common types of cameras?

Common types of cameras include digital point and shoot cameras, digital SLRs (single lens reflex) , and film SLRs (single lens reflex).

What are some common lenses used in cameras?

Common lenses used in cameras include zoom lenses, prime lenses, and apertures. Zoom lenses allow for a wide range of focal lengths while prime lenses have fixed focal lengths.

The aperture is the size of the opening inside a camera lens that controls how much light enters the camera.

What is a digital image?

A digital image is an image that has been captured and stored as digital data. Digital images can be manipulated in a variety of ways, including through the use of photo editing software.

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Photography Essay Topics

Argumentative photography essay topics.

• Evolution of the Camera
• Architecture in Photography
• Evolution of Photography
• Digital Image Manipulation
• Photo Enforcement
• Photojournalist Ethics in the USA
• Digital Image Alteration
• Cinema and Anthropology Description
• Photo Manipulation in Advertising
• Optimum location for photo-radar
• Photo Impact Evaluation
• Harmful Effects of Photoshop
• Paparazzi: A Unique Photo
• Photo Identification Legislation
• Photo-shopped Lies
• Photo Sales and Copyright Law
• Physics of Image Processing
• The Black And White Photo
• The Photo Booth
• Photo Reflections
• Image Depictions on Social Network
• Personal Reflective on a Photo
• Protein Imaging
• 59. The Disadvantages Of Digital Photography
• 60. 20th Century Photography vs. 21st-century photography
• 61. The Dichotomy of Photojournalism
• 62. Is Photoshop Ruining Photography In Some Ways?
• 63. The Development of Photography
• 64. Civil War Photography
• 65. Digital Image Alteration
• 66. Film in a Digital Era
• 67. Harmful Effects of Photoshop
• 68. Photography Is A Matter Of Life
• 69. Photography As A Tool For War Propaganda
• 70. The Contribution Of Technology To Photography
• 71. Architectural Decay Photography
• 72. Photography Reflects The Beauty Of Nature
• 73. How Advancement In Technology Has Shaped The Art Of Photography
• 74. Features of a Great Camera
• 75. The Effects Of Photography on the World
• 76. The Impact Of Photography On Education
• 77. Special Techniques Of Macro Photography
• 78. The Elements Of Photography
• 79. Photo Enforcement
• 80. Body Preparation for Photo Shoot
• 81. The Impact Of Photography On The World Economy
• 82. The Purpose Of Photography
• 83. Styles Of Taking A Photograph
• 84. The Power Of Photography
• 85. Evolution of Photography
• 86. Digital Image Manipulation
• 87. The Essence Of Light In Photography
• 88. Modern Day Photography
• 89. Implication of Photography
• Photography During the Civil War
• The Dichotomy of Photojournalism
• How Solar Radiation Affects Photography
• History of the Photo Studios
• Photo-Activated Localization Microscopy
• 20th Century Photography vs. 21st-century photography
• Cameras and Photography
• The Impact Of Photography On The World Economy
• Civil War Photography
• Commercial Food Photography
• Darkroom vs. Digital Photography
• Film in a Digital Era
• Digital vs. Analog Photography
• Evolution of Digital Photography
• The Impact Of Photography On Education
• The Impact Of Photography On Media
• History of Photography
• Architectural Decay Photography
• Consumer Market Photography
• Photography & Folk Art: America in the 1930s Exhibition
• Photography Analysis Year
• Photography and Arts
• Photography and beauty Exploratory
• Photography and Its History
• Photography and Pinhole Camera
• Photography and Society through History
• Photography Art in 20th Century
• Photography as a career Research
• Photography as a Mass Medium
• Photography as an Outlet: College Admission Essay Sample
• Photography Career of Rodney Torres
• Photography Changes Who We Think We Might Be
• Photography Company’s Public Relations Campaign Research
• Photography Essay Examples and Topics
• Photography Ethics, Reliability, and Principles
• Photography Exhibition “Threads” in Melbourne Report (Assessment)

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Persuasive Photography Essay Topics

• The Influence of Photography in The Works of Edgar Degas
• The Life and Photography of Eli Reed
• The Photography Gallery in Melbourne
• The Photography of the Arctic Ice Panoramic View
• The Pool’ Pictures Balance in Photography
• The Significance Of Photography In The Revolution
• The skill in street photography is not only the ability of thinking
• The Wizard of Oz: Formal Success Through Movement and Photography
• Three Questions About Photography
• Timothy Hogan’s Photography Research
• Views on Photography
• Why Photography is a Great Hobby?
• Will Camera Phones Destroy Photography
• Without Sanctuary: Lynching Photography
• Year One Ba-Hons Photography Image Analysis
• Yosemite National Park and Connecting With the History of Photography Research

Compare and Contrast Photography Essay Topics

• Fascination With Crime Through the Art of Photography
• Garry Winogrand’s Centennial Ball: a Study of The Usual Feminist Norms as Depicted in The Photography Work
• HDRI and Tonal Mapping in Photography
• Hine’s Indianapolis and Kruger’s Help! Photography
• History of Photography Culture Report
• Horst Wackerbath and His Great Photography
• How Romanticism and Photography Shaped Western Modernitymodern
• How to Turn Your Photography Hobby Into a Career?
• Humanities – Photography
• Hunger Crisis in Sudan Photography
• Impacts of Photography on Advertising
• Importance of Forensic Photography in a Crime Scene Investigation
• Interest in Photography
• Invention of Photography and its Social Impact Research
• Knowing Andy Warhol’s Photography
• Lewis Hine’s Photography Art
• Making Memories Count: Kids Photography
• Melancholy Objects in Photography
• Melbourne’ Keith Gallery: Photography Analysis
• Modern Art: Painting, Sculpture, Architecture, Photography
• Module 11 text questions-Creative photography
• Moholy Nagy’s “Laci and Lucia” Photography
• Nicole Sarah Calgary Wedding Photography
• Nikki S. Lee and Photography
• Pathos, Ethos, and Logos in Photography

Most Interesting Photography Essay Topics

• Portraying the Past Through Photography in Walker Evans’ Allie Mae Burroughs and Dorothea Lange’s Migrant Mother
• Privacy and Photography in Public Places Analytical
• Recent Technological Invention: Photography
• Robinson, Emerson, and Photography as an Art
• Senior Project proposal – Photography
• Snapshot vs. Fine-Art Photography in Digital Age Proposal
• Social Documentary Photography Then and Now
• Sports Photography and Its Evolution
• Surrealism in Photography Case Study
• Surrealist Photography and Experimental Photography Compare and Contrast
• Alfred Stieglitz Revolutionizing the Art of Photography
• Communication, Photography and Social Media Class
• Fashion Photography and the Effects of New Image Technology
• Photography Boundaries and Uses
• Diane Arbus and the Revolutionary Arena of Artistic Photography
• Photography: Society’s Views Through the Ages
• Capturing Great Landscape Photography
• How Has Photography Changed Our View of the World?
• Barbara Rowe and the Art of Photography
• The Recent and Current Trends and Influences in Portrait Photography
• Photography Through the Modernist Movements
• Comparing Traditional Photography and Digital Imaging
• Photography Laws Surrounding Images of Children
• Color Photography and Its History
• ‘War Photography’ Carol Ann Duffy
• Aerial Photography: Capturing Spectacular Images up in the Air
• Photography and Its Omnipresent Nature in the World
• Calotype Negative and Early Photography
• Artistic and Creative Uses of Photography
• Civil War Life Captured in the Photography of Mathew Brady
• Brand New Images? Implications of Instagram Photography for Place Branding
• 20th Century Photography: Documentary Art
• Photography Books and the Photographers Who Created Them
• How Photography Helped Change People’s Opinions of the Civil War?
• Photography During Colonial African Indispensable Tool
• Capturing the Personal Aspect of Portrait Photography
• Photography Limits Our Understanding of the World
• Black and White Photography in Australia
• Did Photography Destroy Painting Practice ?
• World View and the Changes Brought About by Photography
• Photography and Graphic Design at Rinko Kawauchi
• Cultural Understanding and the Reflections of Photography
• Alfred Stieglitz and His Influence on Photography
• The Relationship Between Painting and Photography in the Work of David Hockney
• Beginners Digital Photography Equipment Tips
• How Photography Has Changed Our Lives?
• Ansel Adams: Discovering His Life and Photography
• Trevor Paglen’s Photography Work as a Bridge to Discovery About the Hidden World
• Wildlife Photography Catching the Animals by Surprise
• Photography Doesn’t Always Show the Reality of a Painter’s View
• Cecil Beaton’s Surprising Photography Experiences
• Technologies: Amateur Film vs Cell Phone Photography
• The “We Are All Equal” Photography by Haley Bell
• The Basic Critical Theory for Photography Essay (Book Review)
• The development of lithography and photography in the nineteenth century
• The Drivers of the Photography Equipment Industry
• The Enfreakment of Photography
• The Evolution of Photography
• The Exhibit Twilight Visions at the International Center of Photography

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General Photography Essay Topics

• Progression of Photography
• Why Photography Is Necessary For Journalism
• Fashion Photography vs. Glamour Photography
• Should Analog Photography Go Into Extinction?
• Time-Lapse Photography
• Type of Photography
• Skateboarding Photography
• Photography Is An Art
• The Importance Of Retouching Photographs
• Timeline of Photography
• Photography Is The Primary Source Of Communication
• The Dilemma in Photo Journalism
• The Film Industries Today
• The Practice of Photography
• The Art Of Timelapse Photography
• The Birth of Photography
• Photography As A Creative Form Of Expression
• Photography in the World of Technology
• Modern Techniques for Photography
• The era of the selfie. How important is the selfie to identity and culture?
• What factors are important to the individual when identifying photography as a hobby?
• What improvements can be made to modern photography?
• What has changed since the conception of the first camera?
• How has the portrayal of war impacted on modern photography?
• What is the role of photojournalism in modern society?
• Can photography fully document the Covid-19 pandemic?
• Photography During The Industrial Revolution
• Photography Of The Modern World
• A Photo Can Be Misleading
• Career Opportunities In Photography

Photography Essay Examples

Photography essay example 1.

Photography is one of the ways to show their creative skills and life from a different outlook.   There are several factors that determines the value of any image such as its color, lighting, creativity, its distinctiveness, background, charm, shooting time, shooting location, and the meaning that hides behind it. These are also the factors that differentiates an ordinary image from an impactful one. It is an art that helps in capturing beautiful moments in life, and cherish for future. It can be a natural scenery, a painting, an expression, a building, etc.

Photography is a hobby for several people. By using this skill, a photographer depicts the emotions, and experiences they see on a canvas. They take pictures that represents the best moments of the life. These photographs help them recollect the past events. They see the world full of interesting events, adventures, games of light, and colors, and stories. It has always been an exciting, and interesting forms of art that greatly impacts the human life.

The art of photography helps people to record reality. Being a science, and art, it has constantly improved by several inventors, artists, engineers, and scientists. Photography is an art that is referred to as “drawing with light”. There are several sorts of photography that includes satellite, monochrome, panoramic, and underwater.

Photographers are needed everywhere. In television and film industry, photographers take stationary photos of specific scenes for the marketing of new films, and television shows in the media. The type of camera used for capturing still images is different than the camera used for capturing movie images or a movie. It takes a quick series of photos on varying strips of film. Each of these sequences of images develops a frame. These frames are played on a film projector. Such type of photoshoots is very commonly seen in the marketing industry.

Photography is very significant in modeling. Where photography companies charge hefty charges to aspiring models, talented photographers can help them make a flourishing career in modeling. Professional courses aspire people to become successful photographers. News industry also hire photographers who help journalists to cover events. Another important area where Photographers are important are in shooting for birthdays, engagement, weddings, baby warming and other auspicious and personal occasions.

More than representing reality, this art is also beneficial in various other spheres of life. A well clicked photograph has the potential to influence people, or making an impressive reputation of a specific firm, or brand. Photographs also have a big impact on emotions of people. The images they click helps in connecting people to each other. Where some photographers click it for casual purpose, others want to reveal deep hidden meaning behind their creations.

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Photography Essay Example 2

Related FAQs

1. what are the best photo essay topics for college students.

These photo essay topics show other people that it is okay to go out of the comfort zone and run against the wind. 17. A Day in the Life Check out the “A Day in the Life of a Fashion Week Model” photo essay by Joseph Chi Li. One of the best photo essays concepts is related to a day in the life.

2. What is a photo essay and how to write one?

A single, strong photograph can convey a lot of information about its subject – but sometimes we have topics that require more than one image to do the job. That’s when it’s time to make a photo essay: a collection of pictures that together tell the bigger story of a chosen theme.

3. Are You struggling to come up with photo essay ideas?

Visual storytelling is a normal part of our everyday lives, but coming up with good photo essay ideas can be challenging. So in this article, I want to share some topics you can use to create interesting, compelling photo essays.

4. What is a good photo essay topic for old buildings?

Abandoned Building View the “Lost Collective” photo essay by Bret Pattman. Old buildings are excellent photo essay topics since you can capture a large number of elements. Get approval before going in but mind that such places are far from being totally safe.

5. What is a photo essay?

A photo essay is a series of images that share an overarching theme as well as a visual and technical coherence to tell a story. Some people refer to a photo essay as a photo series or a photo story – this often happens in photography competitions. Photographic history is full of famous photo essays .

6. What is the length of the first essay on photography?

The first essay is a long essay on the Photography of 400-500 words. This long essay about Photography is suitable for students of class 7, 8, 9 and 10, and also for competitive exam aspirants.

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Photography Essay Example

Photographs are a form of living art that could be interpreted in different ways. A good photograph can tell a number of things to the viewer. The digital age has changed the way we look at art. With new technologies, photography is used for more than capturing memories; it can be used to convey a message or share an idea. That is the reason why many people are plunging into this field in modern times. Sample essay about photography is given here which is going to help you out in the successful completion of the assignments of writing essay on photography.

• Essay Sample on Photography
• Thesis Statement of Photography Essay
• Introduction of Photography Essay
• What are the Different arenas in which Photography is playing a significant role?
• How to become a quality Photographer?
• What is the difference between a professional photographer and a normal photographer?
• What changes are needed in Photography in the modern scenario?

Essay Sample on Photography 

Thesis Statement of Photography Essay Photography is becoming a unique discipline for expressing views and ideas in a hidden way. Today we can experience the importance of photography in every arena of life be that human life or animal life as well. Introduction of Photography Essay From ancient times photographs plays a significant role to conserve history in live form. Earlier when technology was not developed at that time oil painting used to take the place of photography but with the advancement in technology now we can capture every moment of our life, cultural glimpses, and other such life processes as well. Visual history through photographs gives a unique way of looking at the old things and we can make out our own perspective on history through photographs as books are written by the interpretation of a single person. Here in this essay, we are going to through lights up on the different areas where photography plays a crucial role and how to become a good photographer. Main Body of Photography Essay Here is a deep sense of photography given in the essay from where you can get the best idea about the importance of it. Professional photographers get involved in all the pursuit that is given in the following points. So have a look at the following essay carefully. What are the Different arenas in which Photography is playing a significant role? The significance of Photography cannot be ignored definitely owing to its applications in a diverse range of fields. For example, it is helpful to preserve our culture, ancients medieval and modern architecture of the world, history could also be understood through the photographs in a better way. So if you are a photographer it is your responsibility to show all these things in your work so that a live form of the literature could be preserved. Get Non-Plagiarized Custom Essay on Photography in USA Order Now How to become a quality Photographer? In order to attain that height of good photography, you must have to learn about the basic techniques that are used in photography by professionals. Various courses are being offered by the renowned universities of the world which focus on training the students towards this passion. A good photographer always captures those photographs which pass the theme of universality and everyone can empathize with them in their life as well. If this feature is lacking in your work then you need to put some extra effort to move towards professionalism. What is the difference between a professional photographer and a normal photographer? A professional photographer is someone who is very careful about the fact that which photos to be clicked and in which technique. But a layman does not have these ideas and he does not follow any technique of taking the photographs. It is just like the paintings which are made by a common man and professional painter. In order to become a good photographer, you must get some basic education on the subject to know the fundamentals. View: Free Essay Sample on “Are Law Enforcement Cameras An Invasion of Privacy” What changes are needed in Photography in the modern scenario? The modern scenario needs certain improvements in photography so that it could give its role in the welfare of humankind and animals’ lives as well. For this reason, the plights of animals that are being tortured by the human and domination of the strong class of human over weaker section could be shown through the photographs. That can give an idea to the politician and high authorities to take certain rigid action to save the marginal sections. Buy Customized Essay on Photography At Cheapest Price Order Now Conclusion A discourse of the essay topic shows that certain important changes are must be required to bring dynamic improvement in photography. A good photographer can carry out this task by putting his efforts towards the welfare of mankind.

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• #Luxury travel
• #Unusual Moscow
• #Jewish Heritage
• #Russian traditions

Best spots in Moscow for photo maniacs

• #Special Interest
• #Photospots
• Capturing the Kremlin and central Moscow: the higher, the better

Of course, pictures of the Kremlin shot from the Red Square are no doubt iconic and must-have, but they are taken by thousands of tourists every day and can hardly make a wow-effect on your friends on Instagram and other social networks.

Another problem with shooting from Red Square is that the photos do not fully represent the scale of the medieval fortress of Kremlin. So, you need to make some steps further and higher to catch the right shot. You’ll be surprised by the fact that the panoramic views of the Kremlin are pretty easy to get. We have four hints for you: Zaryadie, Ritz Carlton, Patriarch bridge, and Radisson riverboat.

If you want to not only make beautiful photos but also to learn something interesting about the history of Russia, we recommend an individual tour of the Kremlin. You can order it online here .

First, go to Zaryadye, which is located right next to the Red Square, behind the St Basil’s Cathedral, on the closest Moscow river bank. The most impressive views over the Kremlin are unfolded from the so-called Flying bridge of Zaryadye and Glass Dome building in the back part of the park.

Zaryadye is the new place of attraction in Moscow. It’s a landscape park, opened in September 2017 by the Moscow government on the hill where the giant soviet hotel ‘Rossiya’ located before its demolition in the early 2000-s. As a bonus, you’ll get an incredible view over one of Stalin’s skyscrapers, located on the opposite bank of Moscow river — the so-called Vysotka at Kotelnicheskaya, used as a residence of many Russian famous people and officials.

• The roof of the Ritz Carlton Hotel

This option is ok only in case if you’re ready to pay the average bar bill of over 2500 rubles (about $40). Visit the O2 Lounge Bar on the roof of the Ritz Carlton Hotel, where all the global celebrities take their Moscow pictures, from Angelina Jolie to Robert Downey Jr.

But such photo investments seem to pay off immediately. The deck of the bar makes an excellent panorama point for the Kremlin walls and towers, the Historical Museum, the Great Kremlin Palace, and the Kremlin cathedrals. All these landmarks are not too far away, which makes them perfectly recognizable, even in the background.

• The Radisson riverboat

This hint will be useful in case you’re traveling to Moscow in the cold season. River transportation in Moscow doesn't stop in winter. Many enclosed and heated tourist yachts with panoramic windows and ice-breaking equipment can be found in the Moscow River. For instance, one of the most recognizable is the flotilla Radisson.

Their route goes past all the main sights of pre-revolutionary and Soviet Moscow – from Stalin's skyscrapers (Ukraina hotel and Vysotka at Kotelnicheskaya) to the Kremlin and the Novodevichy Convent. It is possible to go out to the open deck and take photos of you and your family or friends against a backdrop of the city’s lights and their reflection in the river. The cruise lasts 2.5 hours. You can book a tour with a car roundtrip transfer from your hotel to the pier and back: book online here

• Patriarch bridge

The bridge is located further from the Kremlin, than Zaryadye or Ritz Carlton, so the Kremlin walls on your photos will look smaller. The brighter side of walking through the bridge is that you can do more fabulous pics of the Moscow river and city center landscapes. The Moscow river and the pretty recognizable giant statue of Peter the Great are ideally viewed from the bridge. Be prepared that it’s a famous and popular pedestrian area for tourists all over the world so the bridge may be crowded.

Also, the bridge is a part of a long promenade which leads from the Christ the Saviour Cathedral through the Balchug island to the opposite bank of the Moscow River, where another pedestrian area — Museon embankment — is ready to joy you with its cafes, cozy lawns and impressive views over the river flow, ducks and boats.

• Moscow City

The best spot to shoot the famous Moscow business downtown is located on the Taras Shevchenko embankment. To get there you need to come to the metro stations Vystavochnaya or Delovoi Tsentr, then go to the Bagration bridge (use the metro navigation, the path is tricky), cross the bridge — and voilà! You’ve reached the best spot for shooting, posing, sending selfies, and Instagramming.

• Ponds and orangeries

There are two ponds in Moscow, that deserve your attention in summer: the Chistye ponds (actually there is only one pond, but it’s worth it) and the pond in Gorky Park, which is full of small boats and catamarans. Both lakes are lost between the green alleys and are drowning in all the shades of green. Those are the perfect spots to catch the moment of peace amid the madness of big city life.

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Columbia University in the City of New York

Miriam and ira d. wallach art gallery.

• Visitor Information
• Exhibitions
• Publications

Moscow: City, Spectacle, Capital of Photography

April 30–june 21, 2003.

Moscow: City, Spectacle, Capital of Photography , an exhibition of 20th-century photographs of Moscow, opens at Columbia University's Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Art Gallery on Wednesday, April 30, 2003 and remains on display through Saturday, June 21, 2003.

Moscow has been a powerful magnet for many Russian photographers of the 20th century. Moscow: City, Spectacle, Capital of Photography presents the work of 31 photographers, whose images have defined the visual experience of Moscow from the 1920s to the present. Diverse in form and strategy, the 90 photographs chosen for the exhibition trace the history of Russian documentary photography and offer insight into individual practices. From Aleksandr Rodchenko's constructivist visions and Evgenii Khaldei's humanist landscapes to Igor Moukhin's scenes of urban spectacle and alienation in the works of Russia's key 20th-century photographers, Moscow ventures beyond the expected image as a site of famous landmarks, architectural treasures and dramatic lifestyles.

Early 20th-century photographers Boris Ignatovich and Arkadii Shaikhet saw themselves in the vanguard of an emerging mass-media culture, defining with their cameras the visual experience of Soviet modernity. For nearly 70 years, Soviet photography was assigned the duty of maintaining the ideological rigidity of the Soviet State. Yet, as examples of the work of Iakov Khalip, Anatolii Egorov, Mikhail Savin, and Mark Markov-Grinberg show, Soviet photographic practices were much more complex than has been previously acknowledged. The works of these photographers remain intensely compelling to a modernist eye.

Contemporary Russian photographers, such as Lev Melikhov, Valerii Stigneev and Sergei Leontiev, engage with the legacy of the Soviet documentary photography. But for them the documentary is a complex and multivalent genre, which incorporates subjectivity, ambiguity and reflexivity and comments on social and cultural issues without losing sight of the position from which that commentary is made. In the recent photographs by Vladimir Kupriyanov, Igor Moukhin, Anna Gorunova and Pakito Infante, the "real" space of Moscow is replaced by an imaginary and optical spaces of virtuality.

The works in the exhibition are on loan from Moscow's Cultural Center Dom, and many are being shown outside Russia for the first time. In conjunction with the exhibition, the Wallach Art Gallery is publishing an illustrated catalogue with a scholarly essay by the exhibition curator, Nadia Michoustina, a Ph.D. candidate in Columbia University's Department of Slavic Languages. The essay presents a nuanced history of Russian photography of the 20th century, and contributes to an interpretation of extraordinary images.

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