Capture it all with a captivating caption!

A picture is worth a thousand words but...:

Gaston de ROSAYRO

In a previous discussion we looked at how the print and online media can use pictures to tell the news. Today we discuss how to caption pictures. Many readers often mistakenly refer to headlines as captions. The headline of a newspaper is the first few words that tell someone what the article is about. A caption describes and explains the picture to the reader, A good caption informs the readers about what they are seeing in the photograph and it should inspire them to learn more about the subject by reading the story. Captions should be written as mini news stories.

Very few pictures used in newspapers, magazines or web pages can stand alone without at least some short description of what they are or why they are there. We call these descriptions captions.

Typically they are short pieces of text placed below or beside the picture, although in magazines where there are several pictures on a page they may all be gathered together in one block of text, which we will discuss shortly.

The art of writing captions can be elusive to many journalists simply because, for the most part, so little time is spent at it. But it is no mystery.

Adherence to a few basic rules, the mastery of simple mechanical preparations, and a touch of writing flair will result in readable, widely published captions.

The caption's job is to: Describe and explain the picture to the reader. The challenge is to do it interestingly, accurately and always in good taste. A further challenge is to write the caption, whenever appropriate, in a sprightly, lively vein.

Why have captions? We have already seen that news pictures need to be able to tell the news.

Even when they tell it well, though, there are things which no picture can do for itself. Pictures generally cannot answer all the questions Who? What? Where? When? Why? and How? Nor can they always make it clear exactly what is happening, especially if it is a photograph of a demonstration or riot, where the scene is confused. The job of the caption is to help readers to understand what they can see in front of them.

Photo captions are an integral part of newspaper storytelling, but they are often the most underdeveloped element in the mix of words, graphics, and photographs in a newspaper. A poorly executed caption can destroy the message of a photo or the story package of which it is part. The reader or viewer expects nothing less than accurate, complete, and informative information, including captions.

To understand how a caption should be written, you must first think about how people read newspaper pages.

They first look at the big headlines and the pictures, until they find something which looks interesting. Then, if it is a picture which has caught their eye, they read the caption; finally, if they are still interested, they will read the story which goes with it. Readers therefore read captions before they read stories. This means that a caption must include enough information from the story to make sense all by itself.

In the following example, the reader knows from the correct caption what the story is about and who is in the picture; the incorrect caption means nothing until the reader has first read the story: This is the right way of writing the caption: 'Merville Mallalage, president of the Chamber of Commerce, welcomes the Trade and Exports Minister, Mr Lucas Pocus Ganandoru, to the Chamber luncheon at the Lotus Lodge yesterday.' And this the wrong way: 'The president greets the Minister as he arrives at the luncheon'. Note, too, that the right caption was written in the present tense, even though the event happened yesterday: '"Mr Mallalage welcomes the Minister".

This is because the picture is there, in front of the readers, as they read the caption.

They can see it happening at that very moment. It seems strange at first to write "Mr Mallalage welcomes the Minister yesterday," but it is a convention of journalism which works well. If you are using photographs of people from your picture library (or archive), always double check they are of the right person.

It is not unknown to use the wrong picture where there are two people of the same name. For example, using a photograph of Magistrate Thomas Darlington de Gansabha above a caption: "Convicted murderer Thomas Darlington de Gansabha" will not make the Magistrate or your lawyers happy!

In English, people read from left to right and from top to bottom. We have already seen that they want to look at the picture first and then read the caption afterwards, so it is natural for the caption to be below the picture or to the right-hand side of it - that is, in a position to which the reader's eye will naturally travel next.

In practice, the best place to put a caption is below the picture, preferably the full width of the picture. It is always easy to find a caption in this position. Next to the picture is the second best position, but ideally a caption in this position should have a column of space all to itself, so that the caption can easily be seen. Space is precious in a newspaper, though, especially on the news pages.

A caption beside a picture will probably have other text above it or below it, and this will make it hard for the reader to find the caption.

It is best, therefore, to put captions beside pictures only on feature pages, or in magazines, which can better afford to use white space.

Worst of all is to bury the caption in the middle of, or at the end of, the story. This makes it almost impossible for the reader to find the caption at all.

It is usual to print a caption in a contrasting type (either bold or italics), slightly larger than the body type. If it is to go underneath the picture, it should be set a bit narrower than the picture itself, so that it fits neatly underneath the picture without looking as though it is sticking out at either end.

Occasionally when there are several pictures on a page all associated with the same story, you can use an 'island' of text for the captions.

This is most usual in feature articles where one theme connects all the pictures.

In such captions it is common to either use words like 'above', 'right', 'far right' among others to identify the specific pictures. Another method is to identify the pictures in a clockwise direction from the first picture.

So, for example, a caption for four pictures of a singer at different ages might say something like: Much of singer Geetha Sindu-Bindu's life has been spent on stage: (clockwise from top left) aged six in a talent contest; on TV Talent Time aged 12; winning Sri Lankan Idol at 18; and performing last year at the Navarangahala.

Here are a few suggestions to follow when writing captions: Avoid using terms such as "picture shows, is shown, is pictured, and looks on." If the photograph is a historic or file photo, include the date that it was taken. "Mayor Abu Abubucker, 1993. Check the facts. Be accurate! Always identify the main people in the photograph. Avoid making judgments.

"An unhappy trader watches the protest..." Can you be sure that he is unhappy? Or is he hurting. Or just not photogenic. If you must be judgmental, be sure you seek the truth. Remember a photograph captures a moment in time. Whenever possible, use present tense. This will create a sense of immediacy and impact. Conversational language works best. Don't use clichés. Write the caption as if you're telling a family member a story.

Never try to be humorous when the picture is not. Avoid stating the obvious such as, "Maruman Silva smiles as he kicks a broadcast photographer in the groin."

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