JOUR342-6

Photo Essay
• Types of Photos
• By including a variety of types of photos in your essay, you will ensure
that it is both interesting and informative.
• The following types of photos, presented together, can create a
successful photo essay.
• Not only is it important to choose powerful photos, but also to present
them in an effective order.
• While the order of some photos (e.g. the lead photo, and the clincher)
is set, the order of most types of photos in your essay is your
preference.
Photo Essay
• The Lead Photo: Similar to the first two sentences of a newspaper
article, your lead photo should effectively draw in your audience.
• This is usually the most difficult photo to choose and should follow
the theme of your essay.
• It could be an emotional portrait or an action shot, but ultimately it
should provoke the curiosity of the viewer.
Photo Essay
• The Scene:
• Your second photo should set the stage and describe the scene of
your story.
• An overarching photo taken with a wide angle lens is often effective.
Photo Essay
• The Portraits:
• Your photo essay should include at least one portrait.
• Capturing an emotional expression or telling action shot can
effectively humanize your story.
• These photos often evoke strong emotions and empathy in the viewer
(whether it is a positive and enthusiastic emotion, or a sympathetic
and concerned emotion.)
Photo Essay
• The Detail Photos:
• Detail photos focus in on one element, be it a building, a face, or a
relevant object.
• These photos are your best opportunity to capture specific objects.
• The captions of these photos should be informative and educational
Photo Essay
• The Close-up Photos:
• Similarly, close-up photos provide an opportunity to focus in on
specific objects.
• These photos are tightly cropped, simple shots that present a specific
element of your story.
• Again, this is an excellent opportunity to present information in the
caption.
Photo Essay
• The Signature Photo:
• The signature photo summarizes the situation and captures the key
elements of your story in a telling moment.
Photo Essay
• The Clincher Photo:
• The final photo, the clincher, should evoke the emotion you want the
viewer to walk away with, be it a feeling of hope, inspiration, or
sadness.
• Decide on this mood before you select this photo.

(These suggestions are only guidelines. Photo essays are a form of art,
and like any artistic creation, breaking the rules can sometimes create
the most powerful result. Don’t be afraid to try something different.)
PHOTO ESSAY
STARBUCKS
The morning crew at Starbucks arrives half an hour before opening time to set up.
The shift supervisor and a barista, or coffee server, have to do relatively little work to
open the store compared to the amount of work that went into closing the store the
night before. Although on this particular morning, the closing shift has hidden the
pastries around the store to make the morning crew's job a bit more challenging.
• One challenge for the morning crew is keeping the customers out of the store until it
opens. Some mornings, customers go as far as to limbo under the gate to try to get in
before the store opens.
• Once the pastries are placed in the case, the coffee started, the money placed in the tills,
and condiment bars filled, the store opens.
• he early morning customers are usually alone. They come in,
order a tall coffee, grab a newspaper and relax. The morning is
slow and peaceful.
• By 9am most of the commuters have come and gone. This fellow, on the
other hand, arrives in the morning to begin his work. He is a laptop repair
man and appears to do a lot of his business in the store. He is constantly
on the phone to his clients and spreads out his laptops over the bar.
• Other customers have no work.
• George is another regular at Starbucks. "He takes a bath in our bathrooms
some mornings," an employee said. George poses what he considers to be
deep, philosophical questions to unsuspecting customers and hooks them
into conversations.
• Although Starbucks does sell traditional brewed
coffee, the espresso bar gets most of the action.
When it is really busy, cups will be lined up along
the wall of the bar, waiting to be filled.
• The amount of espresso used in a day can
fluctuate enormously. Some days it seems that
everyone orders frappuccino and the store will
use only a couple pounds of espresso.
Otherdays, everyone seems to order latte, and
they will consume 15 lbs of regular and decaf
espresso.
• When the bar is especially busy, two people are needed to make the drinks. Watching two
people handle the bar is a sight. The process is supposed to function as an assembly line;
one person heats the milk and adds the syrup, the other adds the espresso.
• The layout of this bar is not standard and it requires that the Baristas weave around each
other to grab cups and espresso, add syrup, heat milk, clean off the machine and, after all
of that, serve the drink to the customer.
• The number of people in the store varies. There will be stretches when only one or two
customers come in every few minutes. But at a moment when business couldn't get any
slower, a rush of customers will come in. Sometimes this is predictable: weekdays at
10:30am a flux of ESL students come in from the English school; Friday and Saturday
evenings patrons waiting for a table at the Vietnamese restaurant across the way come
in to get a drink. Other times, a long line forms for no discernible reason.
• Not all customers in Starbucks order drinks. There are always a couple people
at any one time that come to get work done or to socialize. Although one
might think that this would be against policy, it isn't. Starbucks is supposed to
be about the freedom to come in and hang out. They don't want to make it
into a McDonald's were you have to come in and then get out.
• "It's about being the third place: home, work, and Starbucks--the place in
between," said an employee. Although this is not an official motto for
Starbucks, it is part of the employee indoctrination. "They try to teach us
about creating the third place. Starbucks is somewhere where people can be
just as comfortable as at home or work--this is a transition place to relax in."
• Some customers not only sit in the store for long stretches of time
without buying a drink, they even bring food and beverages bought
elsewhere. Even though these people aren't spending money in the
store, an employee remains positive, "We should probably be happy that
they chose Starbucks."
• Sometimes, customers strike up a conversation. Other times, they are clearly
worlds apart. Often the store will be filled with twenty individuals each inside
his or her own head. They will have their chairs turned away from each other
and engage themselves in their reading or writing. Some people listen to
music while they drink their coffee. Some people just sit and rest and think.
• On the other side of the
spectrum, there are customers
who try to strike up a
conversation with everyone
they meet. Isidore is of that
type. He sits at the bar with
his rainbow suspenders and
fanny pack and tries to start a
conversation with anyone.
• Not all of the regular customers fit the Starbucks image.
• Starbucks attracts a very diverse group
of customers from a wide variety of
socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds.
Families come in with children, and
children come in without parents.
• In fact, one of the employees said she
expects an increase in young teenaged
girls this summer: "Cosmo Girl says that
one of the cool sweet drinks of the
summer is our Chocolate Brownie
Frapeccino," she said. "I almost shot
myself in the head when I saw that.
Every little girl that read that is going to
come in and order a Chocolate Brownie
Frap."
• The Starbucks corporation tries to control nearly every detail of the store. For
instance, the store consulted with an "international pastry case expert" last
summer. At one point, the expert showed the store's manager how to tilt the
evening pastry baskets at just the right angle. For the remainder of the summer,
the tilting of the basket was a running joke among the employees.
• As the manager of the store, Steve Jones has to deal with some unusual
complaints. While I was there, Steve, among other things, had to politely
listen to a lady complain about the size and location of the "Starbucks"
sign outside of the store. Although Steve is quite serious at times, he
manages a fun, relaxed atmosphere that that makes the staff enjoy
working with him.
• Steve's 'leadership by example' style coupled with an easygoing attitude creates a
productive environment that includes lighthearted moments. At one point during the
evening, Steve put on a U2 CD for Sarah Laszlo. Sarah is an obsessive Bono fan and lost
control when she heard U2's Where the Streets Have No Name. Caught up in the moment,
she lost track of the milk that she was steaming and it started to boil. "It's awesome that I
can have a boss that will let me have so much fun that I'd screw up," said Sarah.
• Kendra, the former assistant manager of the store, has moved up the ranks in
Starbucks quickly because of her enthusiasm to improve the store. The simple
changes that she's made have led the store from losing money every quarter
to being in the black. She is no longer the assistant manager at the Starbucks
in the Garage; instead she now manages her own Starbucks in the Back Bay.
• However hard they try, employees cannot prevent customers from taking the wrong drink at the bar. This
annoys a lot of the employees because the lost drink needs to be immediately remade. When there is a long
queue of drinks to be made, this can make things even more hectic.
• Customers end up taking the wrong drinks far more often than Baristas make mistakes on orders. A
customer will see two tall drinks on the bar and take the wrong one. Sometimes, it appears that a customer
will feel as though he was been waiting long enough and simply takes whatever drink is on the bar.
• The employees start preparing for closing the store well before the evening is over.
As soon as the last shift arrives, sometime around 2:00pm, they start going through
the pre-close routine. They move the syrup off the counter, take away the grates and
begin sanitizing everything with a dishwasher behind the counter. They start pre-
close early because they never know what the evening crowd is going to be like.
• Every item you can see behind the counter--every container of lids,
every grate, every filter, every pitcher, everything has to be put
through the sanitizer. The job is made worse because the employees
are still expected to wait on customers while they are cleaning up.
• The cleaning continues past the time
when the last customer leaves and
the gates are closed. By then the
employees are tired and their feet
hurt. They are covered in syrup and
the area behind the counter is hot
and humid because the sanitizer has
been running non-stop.
• Now that the customers are gone, the
employees are able to mop the floors
and pick up any remaining trash. Also,
anything that wasn't cleaned during
the pre-close has to be sanitized
before the employees are done
• The employees finish up by locking up the gate and taking out the trash. On their
way out of the Garage, they scream with joy and bother the people working at the
Vietnamese restaurant. They make their way outside with the bags over their
shoulders and throw the sacks into the compactor. It's cold outside and after being
on their feet for 8 to 10 hours, all they can think about is the shower they are about
to take and the water they are about to drink.
…. And one another example from one of us…


The Walled City: Place
Of Refuge
Wabwila Musongole 20143437
Department: Journalism
 This is the Kyrenia Gate – the
only gate of the walled city on the
North side of Nicosia. The walls
that surround Nicosia were built
to protect its inhabitants. Cyprus
is a place of refuge for people
escaping torture in Europe.
 Today, the only difference in the
city is the renovation and the new
roads. Otherwise, the Walled City
is still the same. It is still a safe
haven with open doors.
To be a place of refuge, there are some requirements. The first technical requirement is that
there needs to be a fresh supply of air. Where one can breathe freely, there he or she can be
free.
Another requirement of a place of refuge is freedom. Many believe birds in flight are the
symbol of the spirit of freedom. However, for some reason, I cannot get these birds to fly,
so them sitting will have to do.
Enjoyment should be an obvious
element that makes a place of
refuge comfortable. People find
joy in plenty of things. Quite a
few people, like me, find it in
food.
 Others find pleasure in
surrounding beauty. Beautiful
atmospheres have the power to
calm a troubled soul.
Others find joy in the living creatures that inhabit the city
as well.
A safe haven should be peaceful. Peace can be found in the simple things. This old man has
found it in solitude.
Pretty little corners can also be the
perfect peaceful get away
The same goes for a public place
of comfort and refreshment
 For many, the ultimate place of solace in a place of refuge is a place of religious meeting. It gives them
peace of mind and soul. This old mosque has been here since before many of the residents here. It’s firm
foundation is reassuring to some.
Sometimes, what is most needed
in a place of refuge is
companionship. Being with
people can ease fears and lift
spirits. Often, a good chat with
friends is good for the soul.
Even just a walk with a special
someone could do the trick.
 Most importantly, a place of
refuge should be welcoming. The
Walled City has the most
welcoming people, like my new
friend here!
New Friend (which is what we shall
call him because I don’t remember
his name) led me to “Buyuk Han”
which is an enclosed market. The
most beautiful souvenirs and
trinkets can be found here.
 The things sold here also add to
the aura of the market place. They
make the Walled City even more
magical.
New Friend has become my personal guide. It doesn’t get
any better than this, ladies! However, he will have to leave
me soon.
 Among the shops, I meet Miss
Sevil Emirzade. As soon as I asked
her if she would mind having her
picture taken, she exclaimed, “Of
course not! Take one while I’m
working as well.” She is a beacon
of warmth and hospitality.
 Miss Sevil shows me how her
crafts can be used as anything
from a coaster to an egg holder.
She never stops smiling, and
speaking to her cheers me up. I
will definitely return to her store.
Before I leave the city entirely, I come across
three very friendly men. One points to his
friend on the far left, saying he was very
important and I need his picture! This
amuses me, so I go ahead and take his
picture.
They explain to me that he is a former captain of the
Turkish army and retired many years ago. While his
friends and I speak and laugh some more, the former
Captain enjoys his moment of relived fame. I think he
handles it quite well.
The Walled City of Nicosia will always be a place of wonder, beauty, peace and good vibes. As the
Ottomans wrote on the tablet on the Kyrenia Gate,
“…O, the opener of the gates, open gates that lead to good.”