WRITING CAPTIONS

When you write a photo caption, there are some rules that you have to follow:

1. Supply specific information (answering 5 WH – questions)

o Who/ what is that?
o What is going on?
o When did it happen?
o Where did it happen?
o Why did it happen?
o How did it happen?
2. Use the present tense to describe action in the photo.
The first sentence is often in the present tense to give the sense of immediacy. The following
sentence is written in the past tense.
3. Captions are written in a complete sentence-mostly a declarative sentence. One or two
sentence(s) are enough to describe a photo, but if it more explanation is needed, a caption
may have 3 sentences.
4. Clearly identify the people and location that appear in the photo. Mind the correct spelling
of the names.
5. For photographs of more than one person, identify from left to right. In case of large groups,
identify only the notable people.

Never include personal feelings. Avoid descriptive terms that interpret personal feeling, such as
beautiful, scary, sad, lovely. In captions, facts without involving personal emotion are what
should be given to readers. The feelings and emotions are for readers to decide.

REMEMBER
- The first step in writing caption is to make a title of the photo. The title of the photo may
come from the main idea of the story. The title has to reflect and confirm the information in
the photo. Captions titles play an important role in drawing readers’ attention to continue
reading both caption and the story.
- The second step in photo caption writing is giving relevant information about the photo.
Remember the pattern of 5WH-questions. Use complete sentences, write 1-2 sentence(s)
only.
- The third step is to write a photo credit. Photographers should include their photo credit in
caption. Style varies by publication.
 Jill Connelly for the New York Times
 Jill Connelly/ AP
 AP Photo/Jill Connelly
Example:
Photo credits which are written based on RF Licence. Photo credits according to RF Licence
are written as follows ©(photographer’s name) / (source).
© Jill Connelly/ AP Photo

- Punctuation in Captions
 Captions normally begin with a capital letter.
 Captions should not be in italics, unless that also occurs in the main story.
 All sentences and any sentences fragments in that captions should end with a
period.
 Example of captions:

Garuda plane delayed by

London bomb threat lands
safely in Jakarta
Arif Gunawan S., The jakarta post.com, Jakarta | National | Sun, November 15 2015, 2:17 PM

Delayed: Travellers sit and wait at London's Gatwick Airport's North

Terminal, Saturday Nov. 14, 2015, after the north terminal at Gatwick
Airport was evacuated as a precaution after authorities found a
suspicious article. Police described the evacuation Saturday as a
precaution, but the incident comes at a time of heightened concern in
Britain in the aftermath of the terror attacks in Paris. (Stefan
Rousseau/PA via AP)
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Jakarta | Wed, November 11 2015, 3:38 PM

River cleanup: Residents on Jl. Tongkol Dalam in Ancol,

North Jakarta, slice tumpeng (rice cone served with various
dishes) on a raft to mark the beginning of the Ciliwung River
cleanup event on Sunday. The cleanup event was held in
anticipation of floods during the rainy season and to prepare for
the Ciliwung Day Commemoration on Wednesday.(Courtesy
of Ciliwung Children Community)
Unhappy welcome
The Jakarta Post | Archipelago | Fri, November 13 2015, 3:23 PM

Officers from the Ngurah Rai Customs and Excise Office escort
51-year-old Swiss citizen Marc Andre Wenger during a press
conference at the office’s headquarters. Bali law enforcers arrested
Wenger early on Thursday at Ngurah Rai International Airport for
allegedly carrying 3.2 grams of marijuana.(JP/Zul Trio Anggono)

120 dead in Paris attacks,

worst since WWII
Lori Hinnant and Greg Keller, The Associated Press, Paris | World | Sat, November 14 2015,
10:47 AM

Victims of a shooting attack lay on the pavement outside La Belle Equipe

restaurant in Paris Friday, Nov. 13, 2015. Well over 100 people were
killed in Paris on Friday night in a series of shooting, explosions. (Anne
Sophie Chaisemartin via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT