updated 10/8 – as I run across examples that I like, I keep adding
How-To
How To Tell a Story Through Photos (B&H Photo)
Telling Stories With Photos by Darren Rowse
The Secret of Creating a Strong Image – 5 Tips for Creating a Story in Your Image — these are tips for finding a story.
Short but especially useful for the distinction between narrative or thematic essays: How to Create an Effective Photo Essay
Examples
There are millions of examples out there. One way to classify them is between those done by professionals (more or less) and those done by individuals or private persons (more or less) that are more personal stories. There’s a lot of interest in helping people create personal stories, though we’re more interested in more public stories. Here are some that typify certain kinds of approaches and are known to me or have been designated by someone as worthy of attention.
Troll through these to get an idea of what people are doing in this domain.
More Public
Webby Awards: Online Film & Video
See in particular:
- Best Use of Interactive Video
- Documentary (Individual Episode and Series)
- Experimental and Weird
- Public Service and Activism
- Reality
- …you get the idea
Media Storm: respected company that does work for some major media outlets (uncredited) and smaller clients, plus their own publications.
StoryPortrait Media: a small company I know that does nice, sentimental work.
Will Yurman: a photojournalist I’ve met who does interesting work.
gustavo jononovich – richland [the links on this page include a large number of other photo essays]
A blog that features images that need no caption — see the blog No Caption Needed.
The Atavist — they charge for their stories — an attempt to develop tools, media, and a business model.
Fun and simple — Blurb Mobile examples – made with iPhones or iPads 8 Seconds
Watch “iPhoneographer” and bookmaker Richard Koci Hernandez in action Look at this one as an example of a multimedia story about a multi-media photographer, as well as listening to what he says about his work.
Short videos (from Blurb) about photo books people have created — also useful to look at as short multi-media pieces
- “Last Call” by Judith Stenneken Photography Book Now 2010 Grand Prize winner Judith Stenneken talks about the evocative images in her winning book “Last Call,” and tells us why…
- “Remember Me” by Lesley Graham Lesley Graham tells the story behind her Blurb book about her grandfather’s life. See how she used illustration, collage, and photography to create a memorable, beautiful tribute.
In Between Public and Private
PhotoVoice projects A combination of personal and public, this is a method used in social science research as well as journalism for getting people to create their own images. For researchers, it’s a more participatory way of telling stories with rather than about others.
More Personal:
Participatory video examples from Insight Share
Center for Digital Storytelling In Berkeley, well known for workshops helping people create personal stories. Their philosophy is oriented toward the value to the story-tellers of telling their stories.