By Leonard Goh
28/04/2009
URL: http://asia.cnet.com/digitalliving/tips/0,3800004921,62053636,00.htm

A photo essay, as its name indicates, is telling a story with pictures. A good story has a smooth flow of words with appropriate paragraphs and breaks in between. The same rules apply for photo essays.

If you think that collating several images and putting them together constitute a photo story, think again. Recently, CNET Asia attended a workshop organized by Sony in Bali, Indonesia, where the company invited Magnum photographer Abbas to guide us on how to take pictures and string them together to tell a story.

An example of how a photo essay should look online.

We spent two days photographing the life of Balinese people, pointing our lenses at not just the sceneries, but also their culture. We visited obscure areas such as a small fishing village which was untouched by tourism, and participated in a religious ceremony that takes place once every 10 years in a temple.

Here, we're not just sharing pictures that we took while in Bali, there are also tips and tricks from Abbas on how to craft your own photo essay.

You must be interested	Catch the morning light
You can't be objective but you   can be fair	Focus on the story
Break rules with intention	Take note of minor details
Composition skills	Think about how one picture links   to the next
Editing and sequencing	Use words to give viewers right   perspective

Tip #1: You must be interested

Abbas said that in order to do any photo story, you must first have an interest in the subject. It can be a social issue that you want to address, or simply any subject you feel close to. Research follows after that. If you are thinking of documenting, say, elephant camps in Thailand, you'll need to find out where it is located and how to get there. Knowing your subjects gets half the work done.


Putting it to practice: Kusamba is a small fishing village located south-east of Bali island. Here, a woman gives thanks to the gods for the safe return of a fishing boat. To provide a good overview of the scene, I chose to stand behind the woman and show the returning fishermen in the background. Shot using the Sony Alpha DSLR-A900 with 50mm F1.4 lens. ISO 200, aperture of F10 and shutter speed of 1/160 second.

Tip #2: Catch the morning light

We woke up at 6am everyday for the workshop. The bus would leave at 7am as Abbas wanted us to catch he called the "magic hour", a period when the light is warm and gives subjects a nice glow. By afternoon, the sun would be overhead and too harsh. We could have taken a siesta then, but spent the time looking through our pictures and picking out those we felt were good.


Putting it to practice: I noticed the dog walking toward the man on the stairs and followed it. When the dog looked sideways, I took the shot. The morning light was warm and cast a nice, long shadow on the subjects. Shot using the Sony Alpha DSLR-A900 with 50mm F1.4 lens. ISO 200, aperture of F6.3 and shutter speed of 1/640 second.

Tip #3: You can't be objective, but you can be fair

Abbas said no one can be objective toward anything they feel close to, since there is already a relationship between you and the subjects or issues. However, he said that one can choose to be fair. If you see something that defies your stereotype of the subject, you should document it. At the same time, you should also check if that was a one-off event or something that is common and to report it truthfully.


Putting it to practice: At this temple near Ubud market, a Balinese man was playing a flute-like instrument to entertain the tourists who hardly noticed him. Although not all of Bali has been commercialized, it is a fact that the island's revenue comes mainly from tourists. I chose to juxtapose the islander's culture and how it is viewed through the eyes of globalization. Shot using the Sony Alpha DSLR-A900 with 50mm F1.4 lens. ISO 200, aperture of F9 and shutter speed of 1/60 second.

Tip #4: Focus on the story

An event may have several things happening going on at the same time, and much as they are interesting to photograph, you'll want to focus on your story. This is important because you'll never know if something significant will happen while you're elsewhere taking shots of non-related happenings.


Putting it to practice: Giving respect to your subjects is important. In this shot, I could have chosen to position myself in front of this man, who is praying at a temple called Tirta Empul. However, that would have disturbed his serenity. Hence, I took a shot from his back, with the morning light falling on half his head. This is another way of telling stories. Shot using the Sony Alpha DSLR-A900 with 50mm F1.4 lens. ISO 200, aperture of F5.6 and shutter speed of 1/640 second.

Tip #5: Break rules with intention

We learnt that the rules of photography, such as rules of thirds, should be followed. However, there are situations where you can break them, but only if it is intentional. If you want to give your subject additional attention, then position them in the center and fill the frame.


Putting it to practice: At Kasamba, a fisherman held up his catch for the day. The harvest that morning wasn't great. Although the fishes should be the main subjects, his hat and shirt made a good contrast, so I had him in the center of the frame to give him more attention, while the fishes were set to the side. This is an example of mixing different photography rules. Shot using the Sony Alpha DSLR-A900 with 50mm F1.4 lens. ISO 200, aperture of F10 and shutter speed of 1/250 second.

Tip #6: Take note of minor details

Keep your eyes peeled for little events that are happening around you. Sometimes, these situations may be able to express more than a shot that depicts the entire scene.


Putting it to practice: Tirta Empul is a temple with a cleansing pond that devotees can go for purification. I noticed a little girl walking around with just one slipper. By giving the photograph more space on the left end, I was attempting to direct viewers' attention to her feet. Shot using the Sony Alpha DSLR-A900 with 50mm F1.4 lens. ISO 200, aperture of F6.3 and shutter speed of 1/160 second.

Tip #7: Composition skills

Abbas explained that the composition of the picture will give meaning to the shot. The photographer must be able to recognize this meaning within a second of seeing it and snag the moment. By placing your subjects at different areas within the frame and adding other elements to the background or foreground, the context may remain the same but the meaning may be different. Use that to your advantage if you have a strong point to put across.


Putting it to practice: I was taking a short break when this couple walked in front of me. They caught my attention because unlike the others who came in casual outfits, this duo was clad in traditional costumes. The man was carrying canang, which are offerings for the deities. These comprise flowers, incense and occasionally money which is donated to the temple. Shot using the Sony Alpha DSLR-A900 with 50mm F1.4 lens. ISO 200, aperture of F6.3 and shutter speed of 1/320 second.

Tip #8: Think about how one picture leads to the next

When taking a sequence of pictures, besides considering the composition, we were told also to think about how the previous picture may lead to the one you are taking. A good photo essay has a smooth flow of passages, and that is something the photographer will want to consider while snapping shots.


Putting it to practice: This picture is actually a continuation from the previous shot. It's the same couple, but here we can see that the man has tattoos covering his arms. While he is preparing to pray, his wife waits next to him patiently. Shot using the Sony Alpha DSLR-A900 with 50mm F1.4 lens. ISO 200, aperture of F6.3 and shutter speed of 1/200 second.

Tip #9: Editing and sequencing

After you're done shooting, the next step is to edit them. Editing for a photo essay doesn't mean toning the colors or resizing them. It's an important selection process where you pick out the necessary pictures for the story. You could have shot 500 photographs, but perhaps only 15 are required to tell the story.

For Abbas, editing is done by intuition, which is fed by his experience and feelings. Usually he would also have a second opinion just in case he feels too emotionally attached to his subjects. If he can spare the time, he usually gives himself a long break between shooting and editing to get emotionally detached from the images in order to be more objective.

Besides the content of the story, you'll also need to find a strong opening shot that can lead viewers into the context. Appropriate pictures should be used as breaks to give readers a breather, while an ending shot concludes your tale.


Putting it to practice: A group of playful children were peeking underneath the altar at the Tirta Empul temple, disregarding the fact that it is a holy structure. Another girl walked by nonchalantly and joined her family for prayers. Shot using the Sony Alpha DSLR-A900 with 50mm F1.4 lens. ISO 200, aperture of F8 and shutter speed of 1/200 second.

Tip #10: Use captions to give viewers the right perspective

Although a picture speaks a thousand words, there are certain shots which require captions to give viewers the right perception. However, Abbas advised using words sparingly to leave more room for imagination in the picture. If you describe the whole scene, there is nothing left for the viewers to interpret.


Putting it to practice: At a market in Kasamba, a lady was pushing a cart full of frozen fishes. The harvest in the morning was bad and fishermen had to resort to selling their frozen stock to earn their keep for the day. Shot using the Sony Alpha DSLR-A900 with 50mm F1.4 lens. ISO 200, aperture of F5.6 and shutter speed of 1/320 second.