Even if your photos are worth a thousand words, they still need captions and cutlines to provide context for your reader. Photo captions and cutlines are some of the most highly read text, so it’s key that they follow the same standards of accuracy, clarity, and completeness as any other writing in your publication.
In This Lesson
Writing Captions and Cutlines
- The difference between a caption and a cutline
- The importance of captions and cutlines
- The basics of a cutline
- Collecting information for a cutline
- Tips for cutline writing
- What not to do when writing a cutline
[Click here to view and use the Google Slide Presentation “Writing Captions and Cutlines”]
Activity
Craft the Cutline
It’s time for your students to put the cutline writing tips they’ve learned to work. In this activity, students will be given four photos, along with relevant information to compose a cutline from. For each photo, students must write a captivating caption and cutline that would draw a reader in, all in three sentences or less.
[Click here to view and print the Google Doc handout “Craft the Cutline”]