How to write a good photo caption

Cutlines get 16% more readership than text

Too often, communicators crank out captions (aka cutlines) in the 15 minutes before happy hour on a Friday night.

Their loss.

“Too often, [captions] are the first thing the reader reads (sometimes even before the headlines),”  writes the late communication trainer Steve Buttry, “and the last thing [news organizations] slap together.”

Handled well, captions can be workhorses of communication. That’s because:

• Images get the most viewership on a page. That makes the caption, or caption under the image, a power point for communication. (And no, you don’t need to be National Geographic or offer time-lapse photography for this to be true!)
• Captions get 16% more readership than text.
• Telling people what to look for in a picture increased comprehension, according to research by W.H. Levie and R. Lentz.
• Adding captions to a series of cartoons increased recall by 81%, according to a study by Richard E. Mayer, et al. And it reduced problem solving, or the ability to apply the information, by 66%.
• Text that’s larger or bolder than body copy gets more readership. Caption style stands out from the text.

As a result, captions offer an opportunity to draw the reader in and communicate to flippers and skimmers.

Captions “can be to stories what trailers are to movies — intriguing, compelling previews,” says Monica L. Moses, deputy managing editor/visuals for the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

So don’t slap yours together at the last minute.

Catch readers with captions

Here are 12 ways to make the most of social media and other captions:

1. Include a caption with every image.

Yep, every image. Even if:

• It’s a small image.
• The reader can easily tell what the image is.
• It’s a conceptual illustration.

Why?

Because you’re not writing captions to explain what’s in the picture. You’re writing captions to draw readers in and communicate to flippers and skimmers.

2. Write subject, verb, object.

Call them “action captions.” The way to capture the action is with a simple sentence and active verb. Which means you need to …

3. Avoid label captions.

That’s where you simply describe what’s in the photo, such as “Bill, 42, holds a fish.” Even worse: “Loring Leifer, president, WordsWorth Communications.”

“Don’t insult your readers,” writes Gregg McLachlan, associate managing editor of the Simcoe Reformer. “If you have a photo of an environmentalist standing next to a fence at a toxic dump site, don’t write, ‘John Johnson is standing next to the fence …’”

Instead, use the photo as a jumping-off point to …

4. Deliver a key message.

Go beyond just identifying the people in the picture. Skip, “Bill, 42, holds a fish.” Readers know what they’re seeing — you don’t need to tell them.

Instead, encapsulate one of your key ideas into the caption. More people will get it than if you just run it in the body copy.

5. Add a catchline.

A catchline is a mini “headline” for your caption. Adding one increases caption readership. The catchline on here is “Reach ‘em where their eyes are”:

Reach ’em where their eyes are Captions can be workhorses of communications — but only if you use them and use them well.

6. Compliment the other display copy.

Captions work as a package with headlines, subheads, callouts and the other display copy on the page. Don’t repeat or contradict what you say in the other display elements.

7. Answer reader questions.

If the CEO is wearing a cast, explain why. Otherwise, readers will be distracted by wondering.

8. Use a special typeface.

Make the caption larger or bolder than the text. That will increase readership.

9. Use the present tense.

Give a sense of immediacy. Write your caption as if it’s happening now. (No need to include the date.)

“Your caption represents a specific moment in time captured by a photograph,” McLachlan says. “The photo is the window that takes readers to the scene and captures ‘live’ action.”

10. Keep it short.

Limit the length to 14 to 21 words. If your caption doesn’t look brief and scannable, it will lose its ability to attract.

11. Avoid awkward navigation.

If you’re writing “Bottom photo, clockwise from top left,” there’s too much going on.

“Don’t write, ‘John Johnson, second from left in the middle row starting next to the boiler room door opposite the men’s washroom,’” McLachlan counsels. “Don’t turn your cutline into a maze.”

12. Expand the caption into a mini-story.

Given the power of images and captions, why not run an entire super-short story under the photo? Cover the 5 W’s, or at least the who, what, when and where. That will transform your photos and captions into little information modules.
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Sources: Steve Buttry, “Writing Alluring Cutlines,” NoTrain-NoGain.org

Mario R. Garcia and Pegie Stark, Eyes On the News: The Poynter Institute Color Research, The Poynter Institute for Media Studies, 1991

Peter S. Houts, Cecilia C. Doak, Leonard G. Doak,  Matthew J. Loscalzo, “The Role of Pictures in Improving Health Communication: A Review of Research on Attention, Comprehension, Recall, and Adherence” (PDF), Patient Education and Counseling, vol. 61, 2006, p.173-190.

W.H. Levie, R. Lentz, “Effects of text illustrations: a review of research,” ECTJ1982, vol. 30, pp. 195-232

Richard E. Mayer, William Bove, Alexandra Bryman, Rebecca Mars, and Lene Tapangco, “When Less is More: Meaningful Learning From Visual and Verbal Summaries of Science Textbook Lessons,” Journal of Educational Psychology, Vol. 88, No. 1, 1996, pp. 64-73.

Gregg McLachlan, “10 Tips for Better Cutlines: Improve Your Captions Today,” NoTrain-NoGain.org

Monica L. Moses, “Sell Stories! Write Great Captions,” More Eyes on the News, The Poynter Institute, Jan. 10, 2002