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Choosing an opening photograph
Try different beginnings for a small set and discover what each invites a viewer to notice.
An opening photograph offers a first invitation into a set. It might introduce a place, bring us close to people, show an activity, or leave us curious about a detail. Trying a few beginnings can help you discover what you would like a viewer to notice first.
Begin with a place or with people.
Outdoor Wedding Celebration · Photograph: Yenra
Two people walking together outdoors · Photograph: Yenra
Chairs, pumpkins, people, and a ceremony structure give the first photograph several clues about the surroundings. As an opening, a view like this could orient a viewer before closer photographs follow.
The next photograph brings us to two people walking arm in arm, with a bouquet visible. Beginning here could introduce a connection before showing more of the setting. These are possible editorial uses of the photographs: try imagining each at the start of a small set and notice what you become curious about.
Begin with an activity or a detail.
Man Plays Guitar at Outdoor Wedding · Photograph: Yenra
Blue-lit lantern at the celebration · Photograph: Yenra
A seated person holding a black guitar, with other people and a dog nearby, offers an activity to follow. An opening like this could invite a viewer to look for other moments of participation in the photographs that come next.
The blue-lit lantern, with warm blurred lights behind it, offers a smaller detail. Starting close can leave room for the next picture to reveal more. A detail-led opening can be especially enjoyable when the following photographs help that detail find its place in the set.
These four possibilities sit alongside the archive's original sequence. When arranging your own small selection, let the opening support the photographs that follow. You can change the beginning several times before choosing the invitation that feels right for this set.
Look back with curiosity.
- What does each possible opening introduce first?
- What does it make you curious to see next?
- Which beginning feels most connected to the rest of this set?
Continue with Choosing photographs for a small set, Building a small photo story, or Writing captions that invite a closer look.
Browse all 156 photographs in October Wedding → · Take the opening experiment with you →