How To Photograph For Better Storytelling

How to photograph for better storytelling

I want to start by saying this is my personal opinion. As a professional photographer who has been in the industry since the age of 19 and as someone who has been playing with cameras long before that my word is not the be all end all. This is a creative medium and you can interpret that in whatever way fuels your business and craft.

I’ll be talking mainly in terms of wedding photography because that’s what I know and love. But I’m also going to provide some examples of my headshot work.

With all that being said, however, I get asked a lot of questions on this subject when chatting with photographers. We need to photograph for better storytelling. Whenever I have someone new to me second shooting a wedding day alongside I make it clear I do not like vertical images.

• Why don’t you like vertical images? I shoot like that all the time, and I’ve even seen you share vertical images.

I don’t often shoot vertically,

but that’s not to say I never do. If I shoot vertically it’s typically for a very good reason, to help eliminate distractions. I’m constantly reading the room. Always on the lookout for the moments, because as photographers, it’s our jobs to capture those moments and make them shine. And depending on the situation shooting vertically helps get rid of those distractions. It’s important to assess where you’re at and what’s going to capture this moment the best.

I shoot horizontally for 95% of the wedding day and there are a few very good reasons why.

I used to make an active choice not to shoot vertically, now I no longer need to consider it. It comes second nature to me. For the first little while, it was a conscious choice. But anything worth changing requires for-thought, just be positive in knowing that soon you won’t have to think about it.  Remember back to the first time when you picked up your camera. You learned how to shoot in manual mode now you just know how to do it.

Our eyes see horizontally, they are positioned on our face that way. We watch t.v. and films horizontally allowing us to see more of a scene with multiple people.

I find it easier to crop a horizontal photograph for albums later.

Horizontal images display nicer on desktops where the majority of people are viewing websites and blogs.

And finally, here’s the big one! I feel like shooting vertically is somewhat of a “cop-out” for composition. What I mean by that is that’s it’s lazy.

Those are the words I heard from more than one photographer. Shooting vertically is lazy! These are people that I truly looked up to and respected in the industry, and let me tell you. A little light bulb moment went off for me and it clicked! I took it to heart.

Why is shooting vertical lazy?

It’s easy to fill the frame in an upright shot, not much thought has to go into it. It is arguably more difficult to fill the frame of a horizontal image.

But here’s the thing! It makes us better storytellers! Making us better photographers. That’s one of the secrets on how to photograph for better storytelling. (I have so many other secrets I can share, and I will share!)

When I eliminated the prospect of shooting vertically it truly allowed me to start fully seeing the bigger picture and really pay attention to my peripheral’s. Some might say it even enlightened my “sixth sense” as a photographer. Your ability to make your own luck greatly improves, and you’re able to see scenes with more depth. When you transition to only capturing the wedding day horizontally you now have a wider field of view to capture everything around you.

The most important take away is that it makes us better storytellers. Because after all, that’s what we are. We want to tell interesting stories about our couples and about their days. Think about layering, why? Because when we’re able to include more of what happening around us we tell the story of our couples days better. That’s a huge accomplishment and I will promise you that it’s easiest when you start shooting more horizontally.

Now before I get too ahead of myself, remember this isn’t a rule!

It’s more like guidelines (insert captain jack sparrow of the black pearl). I simply want to encourage you, if you find yourself shooting a lot of vertical images as I used too. To challenge yourself and make the active choice to see the whole scene and stop flipping that camera on its side!

Here’s the deal though, I shoot almost solely vertically for my headshot clients.

• Well, Rhiannon you just said it was lazy, what do you mean you only shoot vertically for headshots?

Remember how I talked about filling the frame? When we have one individual in front of our cameras we need to fill the frame. And a vertical image does a better job at that when you do a one on one session.

There are also a few other important reasons outside of photography as to why I tend to shoot more vertically for headshots. I have a lot of actors and corporate clients come to me for portraits and request is always for vertical. Actors print their headshots on their resumes which are more often than not upright. My corporate clients are trying to fit with a website template, pamphlet, or flyers. The industry standard for an author’s headshot on the back of a book cover is vertical. Musicians posters to promote their concerts are also more likely to be printed vertically.

So there are many good reasons to shoot portraits upright.

I DO take horizontal headshots of my clients. I always make sure I’m getting a full detailed vision of what the client is looking for prior to a session. From there were brainstorming on what’s going to work best for their image and brand. I am certainly not solely dictating what needs and what doesn’t need to be done, in terms of whether or not the photograph needs to be a certain direction based on my opinion only.

That’s one of the beauties of my job, and owning my own business we collaborate and make something that’s going to work for them!

We need to do what’s best for our clients.

And as professionals, it’s our job to help guide them. It’s our job to photograph for better storytelling. To make someone feel beautiful who may have never seen themselves that way before. To capture the groom’s father because he’s terminally ill, and won’t be here a year from now. So that we can document the in-between moments of a wedding day. Everyone has a ceremony and reception, it’s what happens throughout the day that makes it unique to the couple. Letting someone fall in love with their flaws, and all in all, simply and purely capturing the world around us through our eyes. An unbiased, and trained to notice the little things.

Book Rhiannon for your wedding or headshot session here.

How to photograph for better storytelling