Will the photos entertain only or make a difference?

Members of Roswell Presbyterian Church pause to see the display on "Main Street."

I have to admit it is nice to have someone walk up to you and say they like your photography.  Makes me remember those days before turning pro when I got more of those comments.  Once you turn pro you just don't get those type of ego strokes.

The reason you don't get those ego strokes is people assume you are a pro and the photos will look great.

This is a photo from a local missions project in Roswell, GA

I am very similar to many photojournalists--we want our work to have impact and make a difference.  While it is nice that some people will like the photos the purpose of me taking them was not to only entertain them with pretty pictures.  I wanted the photos to motivate them to take action.

The middle school youth go each summer to Chattanooga and help widows with their homes.  Here they are replacing the roof.  This shows anyone of any age can give back.

There are three things that I wanted to happen after people saw the exhibit:

1. Pray for those ministries/missions of the church
2. Give more to the offerings this year to help missions continue and to grow
3. Go and volunteer their time and help in a project or just maybe these photos are the spark to ignite the passion for missions and they go into this as a full-time job

Roswell youth took time this past summer and did their missions trip in Roswell.  They stayed at the church like they would if they went somewhere else and every morning went out and helped the local non-profits with their needs.  Here one of the youth is working with a childcare that is for those who are typically on free lunches in the public schools.

While this list might not be the same for your organization--you do need to have a purpose for using photos.  Here are some ideas worth considering for just about any project:

1. The photos need to inform and educate your audience about a topic or subject.
2. The photos need to make people stop and want to know more.  I think this is where the visual composition, lighting and other artistic qualities help draw people to the image.
3. Elicit a response.
1. Often this response is just to read the caption
2. Maybe they will read the article because the photos did their job.  Without the photo the audience will have not even taken the time to read.
3. If the subject matter has some emotions to it--this will often move the audience to action.  They may get involved or give funds to the project

The power of the visual when it comes to you is to help you tell your story effectively. Just think today of how many times people will try to get you to hear something important to them and you are not engaged with them because you haven't had your interest stirred.  I know it would be difficult to track, but just imagine placing a check down for every time your attention shifted due to something visual.  i think you would have a lot of checks at the end of the day.

How are you telling your story today? When is the last time you used visuals to communicate to the audience you need to react to you today?

Remember photos are not being paid for by successful companies to entertain you only. They are trying to elicit a response.

Will you tell your story today using visuals? If not--why not?