A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words (Or Likes/Shares/Comments)

Although the exact origin of the ubiquitous phrase "a picture is worth a thousand words" is not completely clear, its meaning today might be more valuable than ever.

The quote is possibly an early 20th-century modernization of an old Chinese proverb, "hearing something a hundred times isn't better than seeing it once."

These days you'd be hard-pressed to get an audience to listen to or read something twice, much less a hundred or thousand times. But, like it or not, it's often just our goal to get somebody to stop and hover for a second while absentmindedly whipping through their Facebook, Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter feeds. A strong image that tells a quick-read story helps to achieve this.

While hashtags, algorithms, and SEOs get all the attention these days, we often fail at the basics when sharing information online. We don't tell a compelling story. Sometimes we don't tell a story at all. Our photos aren't interesting. And if we can't take one exciting picture at a time, how will we make videos that people care about when taking 30 images every second?

So let's start by discussing what exactly a photograph is. The oldest known surviving picture of a natural scene was made in the 1820s by French inventor Joseph Nicéphore Niépce. Using a primitive camera, Niépce captured a scene from a window in his house in Le Gras, France - the roof of a building lit by the sun.

It's fitting that Niépce captured an instance of natural light with this early photograph because that is the essence of photography - capturing light to create a permanent image.

So how do we use these images to tell a story?

Digital photography - even just using our phones as our cameras - allows us to take MANY pictures easily. So this is a great way to start. In addition to us upping the chance of us getting useful and compelling images just by the sheer number of pictures we take, this helps with our storytelling process. Variety is the spice of life, which also goes with storytelling!

We want wide shots and close-ups. We want to see people's expressions. The spaces they are in. The behind-the-scenes.

Climb the stairs or a ladder and get high-up angles. Lay on the floor and get a low-angles. Get creative! Zoom in. Widen out. Get it all.

Now, do we want to SHARE all of those pictures? Probably not! If we take 100 photos at an event, how many do we really need to tell the story of that event? Maybe 10? 5? 3? Instagram only lets you add up to 10 images to a post. Facebook's templates only show 3-6 pictures without clicking to see more. Use that as a guide. How do I tell my story succinctly and in a way that flows from one image to another?

Use images that show your setting - where you are at. Or if something happens throughout a period of time, show pictures of different times of the day or different seasons. Small close-up details make huge differences. Facial expressions or reactions. Specific items or unique perspectives.

These details make things relatable and exciting. They allow you to follow along and give you an intimate glimpse into another world.

Hopefully, they get you to stop and hover and make you want to see more.

‍Also, checkout Michael Walker's piece "The Power of Pictures: Using Compelling Images to Enhance your Social Media Content."

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Below are some photos from NEP's March 2022 Adapt or Die conference. Although not the most compelling images I've ever taken, this is an example on how to tell a story about an event through a series of photos that would fit a social media type post.

Jim Aleski is a nearly 30-year fire service veteran and career Lieutenant in the Cherry Hill (NJ) Fire Department outside of Philadelphia. Jim serves as a Branding and Content Specialist at NEP Services and formerly served as the Communications/Social Media Director for the Professional Firefighters Association of New Jersey (PFANJ), the state affiliate of the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF). Prior to becoming a career firefighter, Jim responded as a volunteer while working for more than a decade as a media producer. Jim was involved in the production of hundreds of national TV commercials, network branding campaigns, music videos, and corporate communication projects. Jim holds a BS in Mass Communications from Emerson College and earned a MS in Fire and Emergency Management Administration from Oklahoma State University.