Adding stories to your photo book

09 Mar Adding stories to your photo book

Last month Mara shared some insights as to how she takes small regular steps towards creating her annual family photo book, here is the link in case you missed it.

She also shared this image of one of her layout spreads with family and friends which generated several requests for the list of questions she uses in her kids “year in review” pages.

There is no right or wrong when it comes to adding story elements to your photo book and a list or bullet points can be a great way to summarise if the thought of writing narrative form troubles you. For her kids year in review pages, Mara includes that years school portrait, captioned with their school name, year and teacher. A small bullet point list of after school activities the kids enjoyed during the year and then the answers to her ’21 questions’ which get asked annually on their birthdays.

Mara has interviewed her kids since they were quite young and has now upgraded to some more mature questions.  Both sets of her 21 questions to ask kids on their birthday are below.

LITTLE ONES

1. What is your favourite colour?
2. What is your favourite toy?
3. What is your favourite place to go?
4. What is your favourite TV show/movie?
5. What is your favourite thing to eat?
6. What is your favourite outfit?
7. What is your favourite game/sport?
8. What is your favourite snack?
9. What is your favourite animal?
10. What is your favourite song?
11. What is your favourite book?
12. Who is your best friend?
13. What is your favourite thing to do outside?
14. What is your favourite drink?
15. What do you love about yourself?
16. What do you like to take to bed with you?
17. What is your favourite thing to do with daddy?
18. What is your favourite thing to do with mummy?
19. What do you want to be when you grow up?
20. Who do you want to marry?
21. What is the best thing about being ….?

TWEENS

1. What is your favourite colour?
2. What is your favourite place to go out to?
3. What is your favourite TV show?
4. What is your favourite food or drink?
5. Where would you love to go on a holiday to?
6. If you could be any animal, what would you like to be?
7. What is your favourite subject at school?
8. What is your favourite outside school activity?
9. What is your favourite book?
10. Who is your best friend?
11. What is your favourite thing to do outside?
12. What is your favourite thing to do inside?
13. What do you love about yourself?
14. What is something you are really good at?
15. Is there anything you are really looking forward to this year?
16. What is your favourite thing to do with daddy?
17. What is your favourite thing to do with mummy?
18. What do you want to be when you grow up?
19. What is something you are grateful for?
20. What makes you happy when you are sad?
21. What is the best thing about being ….years old?

If you are going to add captions to your photos in a book, please be sure to make them worth the effort of writing. Try to avoid what we call “Captain Obvious Captions”. A story will write itself if you ask yourself some simple questions.

• When was it?
• Where were you?
• Why were you there?
• What were you doing?
• Could you hear, touch, smell or taste anything?
• How did you feel?
• What do you want to convey about this moment to someone looking at this book in 50 years time?

Do you use captions in your photo books? Or do you go the extra mile with capturing your story and include lists? bullet points? stories?

We can help you to trouble shoot tricky page layouts or provide tips and tricks to add the designers edge to your book in a 60min online proofing session.