1. Writing Captions

2. A Thousand Words... A photograph does have great communication value; a photograph with accompanying text has more. By placing the image within a factual context, giving names to people and places, the text accompanying the photograph can greatly enhance the picture’s value.

3. Captions: Pictures with Text. The caption (also called the “cutline”) is an important component of visual communication. –The caption should provide information to the reader that is not available by looking at the image. –Especially when the picture stands alone and is not accompanied by a story, the caption must answer the questions which the picture raises in the mind of the reader.

4. Facts in the Caption The caption information should include (but is not limited to) the following: –Who Full names for adults; first name only for kids (unless you have parental consent). Correct spelling is essential. Names may be optional when there is a group of four or more persons. After the first mention of a person, subsequent references should be by pronoun or by last name. –Age (usually only for the children and the very old). –City of residence.

5. More Caption Facts –Occupation (or “major” for a student). –WHAT is going on? What activity are the people engaged in? –WHEN did this activity take place? Watch for consistency of tense: if it was a one-time activity then using the past tense is best. For continuing situations, the present tense makes more sense. –WHERE was this happening? –WHY did this occur? Depending on the needs of the publication, the caption information can be as in-depth as required.

6. Captions Do’s and Don’ts Do use a quote where appropriate. –A quote may add a significant dimension to the portrait of a person It can also improve the credibility of the photograph by tying it to the actual words of the person pictured. Be sure your quote is given attribution (“...,” said Jones.) and is correctly punctuated. Don't use phrases such as “In this picture, you can see...” or “This photograph shows...”. –The reader knows it’s a photograph; no need to draw attention to that fact.

7. Even More Caption Do’s and Don’ts Do use the caption to tell the reader interesting facts about the subject even if those aspects of the subject are not evident in the photograph. –e.g. “Jones, who was an Olympic silver medalist in 1938,....” Don't put yourself into the caption. –Never use phrases such as “When I took this picture...” or “When asked about his army days, Jones said...”

8. Parts of a Typical Caption A typical format for a caption will often have three parts: –The “caption head.” Similar to a newspaper headline. –The “body” of the caption. Answers all the important questions; may contain a quote from the subject; 3-5 sentences. –The credit. When needed, it tells who shot the picture.

9. A Typical Caption Fierce Competition. Myrna Collins, 86, of Delavan, is deep in concentration as she waits for the next ball to be drawn in her daily Bingo game yesterday. “I haven’t won in two weeks,” she said, “but today I feel lucky.” Collins is a retired Bradley University groundskeeper. Photo by F. Stop Fitzgerald