Since the September 11^th terrorist attacks on New York and Washington and the focus on the people of Afghanistan, newspapers around the world have been full of dramatic pictures. Those photos have made us feel shock, pain, anger, sympathy – a whole range of emotions.

How does a good news photo work to generate those feelings in us? There is both skill and art in taking, choosing and cropping photos. Photographers and photo editors like to see action; they look for expressions of emotion; they try to compose a picture to emphasise the drama of a situation; they use lighting and shadows to increase the impact of a photograph.

You can review the criteria of action, expression, composition and lighting in past post tips lesson by clicking here. Those lessons are full of examples of effective news photos.

Below are some new examples of pictures that work. As you look at them, decide which of the criteria – action, expression, composition or lighting – is what makes the photo work.

A young Afghan refugee, covered with mud, cries in a makeshift settlement on the outskirts of Islamabad, Pakistan. — AP We can't see the settlement or anyone else in this picture. How has cropping (cutting only a part of the picture) helped this picture? Buddhist monks recite prayers during a ceremony at Sanam Luang for victims of the September 11th terrorist attacks in the United States. — SAROT MEKSOPHAWANNAKUL Notice the lines in this picture: the banner, the street beyond and the chairs of the monks. Seen from Bayonne, New Jersey, the Statue of Liberty is lit against smoke rising from the wreckage of the World Trade Center in downtown New York in the early morning. — AP How does the time of day contribute to the drama of this photo? National Services Scheme members hold Indian flags during a peace procession in Amritsar, India. The event was held after the recent attack on the Jammu-Kashmir legislative assembly. — AP Can you imagine how the photographer worked to get the marchers framed by the two flags? Palestinian schoolgirls, leaving after a school day, walk hand-in-hand as they pass Israeli soldiers during clashes with stone-throwing Palestinians in the West Bank town of Hebron. — AP Do you think the photographer planned to be at this place at a certain time to get this shot? Lotus flowers pile up on a Buddha statue being paraded on a boat in Bangkaphli, Samutprakan, as part of the annual merit-making ceremony marking the end of Buddhist Lent. — JETJARAS NA RANONG Notice the relative size of the pile of flowers and the crowd of people in this photo. China’s Rui Zhao (8) and team-mates jump to block the ball against South Koreans in the final match of the 11th Asian women’s Volleyball Championships in Nakhon Ratchasima. — SOMCHAI POOMLARD Timing is important in so many sports shots. What if the photographer had missed the ball? An elderly man warms up for his morning exercise at Wang Saranrom park in front of Saranrom Palace, the old home of the Foreign Ministry, which is to be developed into a museum of diplomatic history. — APICHART JINAKUL The news item concerns the historic building in the background being converted to a museum. What if the photographer had simply taken a picture of the building? Or, what if he had not crouched down like the elderly man? Farmers race their buffalos during a festival in Chon Buri. The event marks the end of the rice planting season and celebrates the buffalo which are important livestock as they are used to plough the fields. — JETJARAS NA RANONG This picture was probably taken with a zoom lens. How does that increase the sense of speed in the picture?

TEACHER'S NOTE This is another lesson you can put together very quickly. The photo editor’s guidelines become a set of criteria students have to think about as they look at the pictures. Students then have to think for themselves to decide which criteria are most important for each picture. Because this is a subjective exercise, there are no absolutely right or wrong answers. Students are simply required to give reasons for their choices and listen to what others think if they disagree. Go back to the top