storytelling

Under an Open Sky, Nicola Tröhler

Captivating Photo Series Combines the Natural and Surreal

Photographer and filmmaker Nicola Tröhler spent time off and on over the past two years designing and shooting a high-concept photo series, Under an Open Sky. Tröhler tells PetaPixel how he developed and shot the series and more about his artistic vision for the striking images.

Photo Books Are the Cure for the Instagram Disease

Photographer and educator Ted Forbes from the Art of Photography YouTube Channel has published a nine-minute video on the subject of photo books, and how he believes that while they contain art, are also art themselves and are a cure for what many might see as the disease that is Instagram.

Different Approaches to Seeing the Grand Landscape

The development of personal vision in photography often gets mired in thoughts of what to avoid, the suppression of familiar ideas, and the desire to do something different.

Photo Series Documents the Experience of Everyday Life in Uganda

When difficulties due to local unrest as well as COVID-19 complications prevented my wife and me from being able to visit the Congo and photograph the local gorilla population, an unforeseen opportunity presented itself to go to Uganda instead, and I jumped at the chance.

What is Brand Storytelling and Why Does It Matter?

In today’s world, it is easier than ever to start a business. Explore Instagram on any given day and you will inevitably see an ad for some new online retailer. It begs the question: How, in such a saturated online marketplace, can a fledgling brand separate itself from the pack and survive?

How to Tell an Effective Brand Story With Your Photos

Any writer worth their salt knows that a good story is comprised of three primary components: Character, Setting, and Plot. The same can be said of visual storytelling, regardless of the medium.

Subjects of World Press Photo Series ‘Paradise Lost’ Critical of Project

The mountainous region of Nagorno-Karabakh, which sits between Armenia and Azerbaijan, has been rife with tension and animosity for over three decades.

The conflict was reignited in September and quickly became an outright war, with drone strikes and missile attacks. Thousands died, and more have been displaced. In November, a peace deal was brokered, Azerbaijan declared victory, and captured most of the contested region, forcing Armenians to flee.

A Profile of Photographer Keith Carter

Keith Carter is a Texas-based photographer whose ethereal style and beautiful depiction of “truth and beauty” have often led him to be referred to as a “poet with a camera”. In this moving 15-minute interview with The Art of Photography, Carter discusses his career, how his projects come together, illness, and his legacy.

This One Thing Will Make Your Photos Better: Storytelling

Here's an inspiring video by Mango Street about one of the most important things you can learn to do as a photographer, which is storytelling. In addition to organically capturing moments as they happen, you can also conceptualize and execute an idea that inspires you, and Rachel and Daniel show how it's done in the 5.5-minute video above.

Don’t Forget to Tell a Story

It’s easy to obsess over gear. We all love new toys, and it’s natural to lust over that hot new mirrorless camera or convince yourself that a lens upgrade is going to take your photos to the next level. But amid the onslaught of pretty-looking shots and gear reviews, never forget: story is king.

How to Tell a Story in Your Landscape Photos

Sometimes when I go to new locations, they can be so awe-inspiring that I feel photographically challenged. When this happens, I need to take a step back and think about the location's special traits that fill me with such awe.

Storytelling in Street Photography

Many street photography tutorials discuss the same topics over and over—focussing techniques, composition, candid shooting, etc. However, I believe that one topic is underrepresented: storytelling.

3 Simple Steps to Taking a Great Photo

Photography is a presentation medium. At its most basic, a photograph is simply a means to communicate an idea to an audience. Sometimes the idea is a memory or a moment, other times it‘s an expression of a feeling or intention.

Building a Story Through Composite Photography

The majority of the work I create is fiction. In my personal imagery, I pull from my loose short stories and abstract them down to core ideas. This is the beginning to a process that translates into a world of make believe or absurd interpretations of reality.

A Beautiful Look at a Greek Tradition Involving 100K Homemade Rockets

Here's a fantastic piece of visual storytelling: the New York-based production company Variable recently traveled to the small Greek island of Chios to document an annual tradition that involves Orthodox churches firing 100,000 homemade rockets at each other in a mock war. The resulting short film, embedded above, is titled "Rocket Wars."

The Storyteller’s Kit: The Gear You Need to Tell Stories with Your Photography

Gear does not make the photographer, allow me to state that for the record before we dive in here. A talented artist can make an image with whatever falls into their palm, but for those of us who have the luxury of choice, be it the pocket sized Ricoh dangling from Moriyama’s wrist, or Crewdson’s cherrywood 8×10, a powerful image is about the framing of a moment, the machine it is seen through when chosen properly, serves to simplify and streamline the process.

Nat Geo Photographer on Storytelling and Striving for Authenticity

National Geographic's Stephen Alvarez is part photographer, part filmmaker and part explorer. That triad makes his photography great because while some photographers take pictures, Alvarez has learned to tell stories -- and as the years have gone by and his gear has improved, his stories have continued to get more compelling.

In this short video, Alvarez talks about some of his best work, revealing little behind the scenes tidbits while simultaneously sharing his motivation and drive.

Storytelling Made Easy: How to Capture Photos that Tell a Compelling Story

Even before the digital age, National Geographic's photographers, on average, took about 1,933 photos for every one photo published. And it's this dedication to showing the world only the very best of what they manage to capture that makes these photographers some of the best in the world.

In this B&H Event Space seminar, seasoned photographer Marcus Donner explains the necessity of quantity, and shares some lessons on how to go from taking pictures, to telling stories.

Photographing a 45-Foot-Long Whale

It’s always fun listening to photographers recount once-in-a-lifetime experiences that lead to once-in-a-lifetime photographs. In this short National Geographic …