in
on
under
next to
behind
in front of
between
Start with the whole photo, then the details
Move from big to small: what the photo shows, when and where, the people one by one, then why it matters. These openers do most of the work:
- “This photo shows …”
- “I took it last summer at my cousin’s wedding.”
- “The person on the left is …”
- “I like this picture because …”
There is, there are and where things are
Say what is in the picture with there is/are before any actions: “There are two chairs next to the window.” Then place each person or thing:
- in: “A woman is standing in the doorway.”
- under: “The black bag is under the chair.”
- next to: “He’s standing next to the woman in the red coat.”
- in front of: “The photographer is standing in front of the group.”
- between: “Her aunt is standing between them.”
Present continuous or present simple?
What people are doing in a photo is happening at that moment, so use am/is/are + -ing. Use the present simple for facts and habits outside it; together they show what is normal and what is special here.
- Now: “The photographer is moving the lamp.”
- Routine: “He works in a studio every weekday.”
- Temporary: “This month, he’s helping with an archive project.”
- State verbs usually stay simple: “They look tired but excited.”
A short conversation: recreating an old photo
Two people are recreating a 1986 family photo in a bakery, checking what each person held and where everyone stands. Listen for the switch from “usually works” (routine) to “is parking” (right now).
Owen Got it. What are you holding in the old photo?
Maya A tray of bread. I’m holding the menu at the moment, so let’s swap it.
Owen Your aunt usually works at the new bakery. Is she joining us?
Maya Yes. She’s parking the car, and then she can stand between us for the final picture.
Clothes: wear, carry and a pair of
Three small words cause most of the trouble with clothes:
- wear for clothes and jewellery: “She’s wearing a green jacket over a white T-shirt.”
- carry for bags and cases: “He’s carrying a case.”
- dress with no object, for style: “She’s dressing casually this week.”
- a pair of for plural clothes: “a pair of trousers”, “two pairs of socks”
- shirt and skirt take the long sound in “her”: “The woman in the purple skirt is wearing a white shirt.”
Write a 100–130 word photo description
A 100–130 word paragraph fits the place, the people and one reason, and takes about a minute to say. Build it in this order:
- What and who: “This photo shows my sister Lale and her business partner, June, outside their new café.”
- When: “I took it on the morning they opened last May.”
- Each person, left to right: place, looks and clothes.
- Routine against the moment: “Lale usually works in the kitchen … In the photo, they’re holding the first two cups of coffee.”
- Why it matters: “I like this picture because … it captures the exact moment their plan became real.”
Common mistakes
Each has an easy fix:
- “He wears a coat.” For what you see in the photo, say “He’s wearing a coat.”
- “There is two chairs.” Plural needs “there are”.
- “She’s wearing a bag.” Bags are carried: “She’s carrying a bag.”
- “a trousers”, “a jean”. Say “a pair of trousers”, “jeans”.
- Stopping after the people. Without a last sentence on why the photo matters, it reads like a list.
A 10-minute daily practice routine
Use a real photo from your phone; people you know are easier to describe.
- 2 minutes: play the conversation, pause after each line and repeat it.
- 3 minutes: say five sentences about your photo: there is/are, two place phrases, two -ing verbs.
- 3 minutes: write the paragraph in the order above: 100–130 words.
- 2 minutes: read it aloud; listen for the weak /ə/ in “photographer” and “about”.
What comes next
Once you can describe a moment, tell what happened before and after it in a short travel story. Then connect past events to now, as in a post about an experience and what it changed.