The World Bank The Government of Japan

TELLING YOUR STORY WITH

IMAGES

Photo ShootingBest Practices

Quick Tips for task teamS

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Introd

uctionIntroduction

We know the phrase, “a picture is worth a thousand words” is true - a powerful image can tell a story without explanation. It can provide immediate insights into culture and physical environment and place people and activities in context. In terms of our work, an image can give the viewer an immediate sense of the challenges faced by our clients and how they are being overcome - and the role that JSDF is playing. Look at the image to the right - what story does it tell?

While the Bank remains predominantly a text-based institution, our clients, partners and the general public are increasingly getting information from diverse media. Many will never visit the countries we work in, or see our work in action. Communicating our results increasingly requires that we use a variety of media.

This brief guide aims at helping you capture images that can be used to tell the story of your project. They can be used to illustrate articles, websites, reports and presentations. They can help you - and the Bank - communicate effectively about your Project.

The key to capturing a good image is thinking about composition and the message your image will convey. We hope that on your next mission you will take your camera along and give it your best shot.

JSDF TeamApril 2012

Photo credit: Michael Foley

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Quick Photo Tips1. Set the scene

Make an effort to keep the elements balanced and strive to lead the eye along an interesting path through the photo, with the use of strong lines or patterns. Remember that the eye tends to move to the center of the frame.

2. Get closer

As well as wide shots that give context, take shots that fill the frame with your subject, this will add details and can give emotional connection.

3. Focus on your subject

Give your subject the main role, try different angles and take different perspectives.

Try this: • In a consultation or meeting, rather than

taking a picture of a large static group, wait until someone is talking and make them the subject. This shows active participation.

• Try and avoid photos where most people have their backs to the photographer (see below).

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Photo Credit: Edwin Huffman

Photo Credit: Kemal Cakici

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4. Story telling imagesLet your photo speak on its own by including activity. If your project is about income generating opportunities, capture your subjects doing a craft or interacting with each other. In a consultation meeting, shoot your subjects speaking. In a food emergency program, capture the children eating. Decide what you are interested in communicating and center your efforts on getting the best photo of this subject.

5. Let there be light.Determine the kind of light you are working with. How is the light affecting your subject? Do you have shadows? Do you have indirect light? Take good care of the balance between light, shadows and the surroundings. What would you like to highlight?

Try this:• Generally the best shoot has the sun (or light) behind you, and facing the subject.• Never shoot your subject in front of a window or bright light - they will be “backlit”

and appear as a silhouette. Learn how to use your flash in “fill-in” mode to brighten the foreground. This is undoubtedly the most common error made by non-professional photographers and the reason so many images fail to do justice to their subjects.

Photo Credit: Kemal Cakici

Photo Credit: Curt Carnemark

Photo Credit: Julio Pantoja

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Quick Tips

6. Shooting PlacesWhile the focus of your photographs will usually be the beneficiaries and their activities, it is important to capture images of their environment and how they live. In most cases, make sure that there are people or activities in these shots. Context is important.

7. Keep your camera settings simple Instead of relying on a fully automatic program, pick a simple, semi-automatic program such as aperture-priority (AP) and shoot in that mode.

Try this:If you want to carry one accessory, bring a monopod or lightweight tripod. This one item can solve camera shake issues and help you get beautiful shots even when light is low or participants are in motion.

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Photo Credit:MIchael Foley

Photo Credit:Arne Hoel

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8. Dare to try different approaches.Practice shooting with different aperture settings. Check out your camera manual regarding the ‘depth-of-field’ (DOF), experiment and monitor the results afterwards. Note that smaller DOF focuses all the attention upon your subject. A greater DOF will make everything appear in focus and your landscapes will pop. Use perspective to lead the eye to your subject. Avoid shooting most

subjects head-on as this will deaden the shot.

9. It’s free! In this digital world experimenting with images is free - but quantity rarely substitutes for quality - try and make almost every shot count. Imagine every shot in a frame on your wall.

Try this:Be considerate to the different cultures and traditions of your project’s country. If you are afraid of upsetting someone by taking their picture, ask them before shooting.

Photo Credit: Michael Foley

Photo Credit: Makoto Nakagawa

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Quick Tips

10. Follow the “rule of thirds”The rule of thirds is a compositional rule of thumb in visual arts such as painting, photography and design. The rule states that an image should be imagined as divided into nine equal parts by two equally-spaced horizontal lines and two equally-spaced vertical lines, and that important compositional elements should be placed along these lines or their intersections. Proponents of the technique claim that aligning a subject with these points creates more tension, energy and interest in the composition than simply centering the subject would. (See Wikipedia entry)

The rule of thirds is applied by aligning a subject with the guide lines and their intersection points, placing the horizon on the top or bottom line, or allowing linear features in the image to flow from section to section. The main reason for observing the rule of thirds is to discourage placement of the subject at the center, or prevent a horizon from appearing to divide the picture in half.

When photographing or filming people, it is common to line the body up with a vertical line, and having the person’s eyes in line with a horizontal one. If filming a moving subject, the same pattern is often followed, with the majority of the extra room being in front of the person (the way they are moving). Likewise, when photographing a still subject who is not directly facing the camera, the majority of the extra room should be in front of the subject with the vertical line running through their perceived center of mass.

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Photo Credit:MIchael Foley

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Quick Tips

Sharing your photosThere are a growing number of ways that you can store your photos and make them available. The obvious first step is to get them off your camera onto a computer.

A useful next step is to upload them to one of many online services, where you can selectively share them with colleagues and others who you might invite to use them.

One such service is PICASA, Google’s free photo-sharing site (see http://www.picasa.com). This provides space for free or you can pay a minimal amount for more.

Picasa (and most other similar services) lets you set up albums and then decide who can see them. You can even send links to specific photos.

Take a look at some Picasa libraries below.

IDA beneficiarieshttps://picasaweb.google.com/103554583858896670379/IDABeneficiaries?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCMG3vt_bzdHh2QE&feat=directlink

JSDFhttps://picasaweb.google.com/103554583858896670379/JSDF?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCIaYqO2n-tCy1AE&feat=directlink

For your image to be useful, to you, or others, it is important that you take the time to add “metadata” to it. This should include location, data taken, content and photographer. You can add these as a caption in Picasa and there are also options to add location.

Note that it’s very important that - if you want to be given photo credit - that you indicate this and record your name in the caption.

Sharing

Caption: The Lethaba Power Station outside Sasolburg in the Free State - South Africa relies heavily on coal for its energy needs. Photo Credit: John Smith