Earlier this week I posted a photo and asked what people thought the story was. I wasn't feeling well, the result of an "airliner cold," but I thought some banter about a light-hearted photo might perk me up. Well, let me tell you, in short order someone posted a rather splenetic response, informing me that photos don't tell stories. Not wanting to throw cold water on the conversation, I responded that I didn't agree but the person was entitled to his opinion.

Not good enough! The writer wrote back, citing sources and broadening his argument in an attempt to completely discredit the notion that a photo could tell a story. As I said, I wasn't feeling well, so I wrote it off as the rantings of some sparrow-fart (a nod to Kurt Vonnegut for that descriptor) and tried to put it behind me.

But it nagged at me. I thought of the photo of the sailor kissing the nurse in Times Square at the end of WWII, the Vietnamese girl running naked with festering burns caused by napalm, the recent photo of the Syrian child sitting bloodied and dazed in an ambulance. (I'm betting that every one of you knows exactly what photos I've just listed.) And I asked myself, "If those images aren't telling a story, then why have they become iconic?"

Then, on Tuesday evening, I attended my camera club meeting, and half of the meeting was dedicated to a "member critique," in which a panel of three of our better photographers sat and commented on images that members had submitted for evaluation. It's a really nice event, and everyone learns from it, whether they agree or disagree with the comments. And it happened: over and over, the panel members included an assessment of the photos' story-telling quality. Over and over, I heard, "This image tells a (You insert the adjective) story." Over and over, the panel members alluded to story telling as a normal and crucial element of their evaluation.

So here's my question--I know, I know, it's about time I got to my question--Do you think photos tell stories? Obviously, I do. Obviously, at least one person doesn't. What do you think?

Absolutely! I use the term often, and if you need more validation beyond your club experiences, just check articles in magazines like Outdoor Photographer, or websites and books of successful pro's.

But is the point really whether one (or many) people dismiss the term? I've been ridiculed for using "thinking in black & white," yet that is another much used and proven concept.

What matters is if you are happy with your own images and if they are telling the stories you want them to. Or perhaps you enjoy a variety of responses and find it interesting or educational to learn what others connect with (or don't) in your work.

Regarding definition: story is also often used to just mean what the image depicts: a dead sunflower in snow is a story very different from a vibrant bloom in summer. One image presented in both b&w and color can be a story of shapes, shadows, textures vs. a story of an ephemeral moment of light and weather or nature.

Earlier this week I posted a photo and asked what people thought the story was. I wasn't feeling well, the result of an "airliner cold," but I thought some banter about a light-hearted photo might perk me up. Well, let me tell you, in short order someone posted a rather splenetic response, informing me that photos don't tell stories. Not wanting to throw cold water on the conversation, I responded that I didn't agree but the person was entitled to his opinion.

Not good enough! The writer wrote back, citing sources and broadening his argument in an attempt to completely discredit the notion that a photo could tell a story. As I said, I wasn't feeling well, so I wrote it off as the rantings of some sparrow-fart (a nod to Kurt Vonnegut for that descriptor) and tried to put it behind me.

But it nagged at me. I thought of the photo of the sailor kissing the nurse in Times Square at the end of WWII, the Vietnamese girl running naked with festering burns caused by napalm, the recent photo of the Syrian child sitting bloodied and dazed in an ambulance. (I'm betting that every one of you knows exactly what photos I've just listed.) And I asked myself, "If those images aren't telling a story, then why have they become iconic?"

Then, on Tuesday evening, I attended my camera club meeting, and half of the meeting was dedicated to a "member critique," in which a panel of three of our better photographers sat and commented on images that members had submitted for evaluation. It's a really nice event, and everyone learns from it, whether they agree or disagree with the comments. And it happened: over and over, the panel members included an assessment of the photos' story-telling quality. Over and over, I heard, "This image tells a (You insert the adjective) story." Over and over, the panel members alluded to story telling as a normal and crucial element of their evaluation.

So here's my question--I know, I know, it's about time I got to my question--Do you think photos tell stories? Obviously, I do. Obviously, at least one person doesn't. What do you think?