How to take Pictures That Tell A Story it’s not always about the best time of day to take pictures outside or the perfect moments. Learn to document life with your camera.
Hello! My name is Kristi and I am a photographer located in Ottawa, Canada. I photograph both documentary and wedding however, my passion is with documentary. Erin has asked me to be a guest on her blog and talk about how pictures that tell a story. Before I continue, I must apologize to the reader. I’m not usually someone who writes (it has been YEARS!).
First, life isn’t a fairytale. There is no “Once upon a time…”. And neither is documentary photography. Its purpose is to refer to historical events, but also everyday life. That is the main reason I fell in love with this style. It shows real life. Messy, dirty, fun, creative, beautiful and so much more. Every photo you see will tell you a story. And every viewer will see a different part of the story.
I was also asked recently if I had any storytelling tips or constructive criticism for another documentary photographer. The only advice I was able to give her was she should “keep her photos true to life. It’s essential to be real and honest with your photos.” I don’t stage my photos. And for every photo I post, I have about 20 that I threw out because of something that wasn’t “perfect”. But really, life is perfectly imperfect and so should our photos.
My photos, specifically, tell stories of childhood. As I am a mother of two and my boys are the main focus of the majority of my photos. I like to show what our life is like and this includes our everyday moments.
My first photo is my youngest son, Will, going down a slide that had a puddle of water at the bottom. According to him, he “likes water!” He went down the slide a few times and was completely soaking wet at the end. But neither of us minded because he had a lot of fun and I was able to capture that fun moment.
As many people know, having children requires answering many, many questions. Sometimes it’s the same question over and over again. But they are curios. And nothing is more amazing than bubbles! Running around to pop them or figuring out how to use a bubble wand. Here we set up our bubble machine just before it started to snow (again!).
Lastly, our everyday life changed in September 2017 when my oldest, Jack, started school. Waiting at the bus stop at the end of the day is one of my favorite things to do. I get to see his smile when he gets off the bus and he tells me a few stories. Remember, everyday life is amazing and so important to document!
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