Narrative photography appears everywhere from newspapers to magazines. Most articles come with at least a few pictures. The better those pictures, the more compelling the story. Using a single photo, or collection of connected photos, is about more than technical skill. Knowing how to focus and expose your photographs well is only the beginning. Photographs have a unique ability to convey a message and tell a story, whether that be something obvious, such as the beauty of a flower or the celebration of a holiday, or something more complex and abstract. At first glance, the photograph is merely a way to document a single moment in time. First glances can be deceptive, however, as how a photograph is crafted has a significant impact on how a viewer interprets it. The way a photographer chooses to use the tools in his or her camera and creative “toolbox” can dictate whether an image effectively tells a story and leaves the viewer with impression beyond the obvious.

Narrative photography is the idea that an image or a series of images can be used to tell a story or create a narrative. A narrative is an account of an event or a moment in time, which makes photography the perfect medium for constructing narratives. 

As the acclaimed documentary photographer David Campbell once wrote, “In photography, narrative is related to the idea of context. No matter how complete or comprehensive a narrative appears, it will always be the product of including some elements and excluding others. Inclusion/exclusion is part of what construction is all about, but knowing what is best included or excluded requires an understanding of context. And an understanding of context requires visual storytellers to be highly proficient researchers.”