How Telling Stories Will Change Your Photography For The Better

For the longest time, I couldn’t figure out why my images just weren’t as captivating as I wanted them to be. I knew that there was a piece missing, but I just could not for the life of me figure out what it was. I was shooting all the time, gathering together great teams, shooting really lovely images… but they just weren’t living up to my expectations.

It wasn’t until last summer, when I had a consultation session with an incredible mentor, Zoe Whishaw, that it clicked. She pointed out to me that my images didn’t really tell a story; they were just “pretty photos.” And sadly, pretty photos just doesn’t cut it.

She explained to me that in order to take my work to the next level, I needed to focus on storytelling. I needed to take the viewer of the images on a journey.

At first this was really confusing to me: “How on earth do you do that?!” I didn’t really know what I was doing.

I went home that evening with a head completely full of overwhelm (in a good way). I had a mission: I needed to figure out how to add story to my editorial work.

I’m happy to say that I think I’ve cracked it, and these days, telling a story is an essential part of my photoshoot planning process.

Why is Storytelling so important?

When someone looks at an image, it needs to transport them somewhere. They need to be able to look at an image, or a series of images, and feel something - some kind of emotion. It’s incredibly difficult to do that if the image has no real purpose to it. If it’s just a pretty girl, wearing an outfit, in a road or a field… cool, but why?

Storytelling is what builds connection. It’s what allows someone to put themselves in the shoes of the character that they’re witnessing in the image. And when someone feels connected to an image, they’re more likely to remember it.

I’m sure you can guess what remembering an image would be important with fashion photography, right?

If someone remembers a fashion image, they’re more likely to remember the clothes in it, and eventually, buy that item. Remember that fashion photography at it’s core is about selling clothes. That is the whole point of it. If you can help a brand or magazine sell more clothes through your images, I guarantee that they’ll love you forever (and hire you again and again).

How can you add a element of storytelling to your images?

It’s easier than you think, and it doesn’t need to be complicated.

Whenever I’m planning a shoot for a client or for my own portfolio, I ask myself:

“What is the story I want to tell with these images?”

Some examples of stories I’ve told in my own editorial work:

“A female painter heads out to paint the landscapes which inspire her.”

“A woman went on a walk on Bodmin moor, only to lose her way. She wonders on the moors lost, alone, looking to find her way to the nearest town. “

“A chic London woman, wonders around Notting Hill, her favourite second hand shopping location, scouring the streets for her next vintage find.”

“A local surfer rebels against the traditional laid back surfer girl look and goes full glamour.”

“A bride getting ready for her big day. She’s eloping with her husband to be in a manor house in Cornwall. She’s rebelling against tradition - the tradition that her wealthy, aristocratic family would expect her to follow. She’s a wealthy girl, living in Knightsbridge in London, has a decent Instagram following of 50K, just for posting cool photos of her daily life. She’s an influencer, but hates the word influencer. She’s hired a photographer to follow her getting ready for her wedding day, but she’ll only post the photos “after the fact” because there’s nothing cooler than surprising everyone with the wedding photos of the century.” 

As you can see, most of the time I keep my stories to one liners. They can be really simple, but they allow me structure, and give me a plan to follow when I’m imagining the images before the shoot takes place. Other times, if the need is there, I write a longer story and really paint the picture of who that person is.

Creating a story also allows you to remain consistent. For example, if I’m shooting a story about a surf girl, it would make very little sense to suddenly have her in a forest. The image would be totally out of place. Giving yourself some kind of structure and limitation will actually make for stronger images.

Helps brands/magazines visualise your idea

Coming up with a storyline for your shoot also really, really helps when it comes to pitching to brands and magazines. Sure, you could just send a brand a moodboard and hope that they like the images they’re seeing enough. But wouldn’t it be so much more effective to paint a picture to them of what the story is about? They’ll be able to visualise the shots in their mind, contribute ideas themselves, and send you relevant clothing to suit the shoot.

So, next time you start to plan your new editorial project, work on the next brand campaign, or want to create an effective pitch, make sure that you’re spending time thinking about what the story behind the images is. I promise it will elevate your work and make it stand out from the crowd!