Material : Writing
Grade : for Twelve grade students (XII)
Aspect : Creating Caption
Definition Of Caption
A caption, also referred to as a cutline, is a line of text that follows a picture. Most captions
highlight a less evident aspect of the image, like how it relates to the text. Captions can
consist of a few words of description, or several sentences. Along with the title, lead, and
section headings, captions are the most commonly read words in an article, so they should be
succinct and informative. Captions also include a short title or heading of an article in a
magazine or newspaper. Words shown on a cinema or television screen to establish the scene
of a story are also called captions. Captions can also be inserted below/above charts, figures,
graphics and tables. For a good caption. A good caption clearly identifies the subject of the
picture without detailing the obvious. It is succinct. It establishes the picture’s relevance to
the article, provides context for the picture, and draws the reader into the article.
Generic Structure of Caption
The title
The lead
Section Heading
Language Features Of Caption
prepositional phrases
infinitive -phrases
participial phrases
adjective phrases
questions
exclamations
How to Write Caption?
1. Observe the selected photo or video (Observasi foto atau video yang telah dipilih)
2. Find out the message from the picture (Cari pesan yang ingin disampaikan dari
gambar)
3. Write concise phrase or sentence under the picture (Tulis frasa atau kalimat di bawah
gambar)
A Note to Remember
1. Avoid using articles: a, an, or the.
2. Use the present tense.
3. Caption provides an explanation that is not found in the image
4. The caption completes the image, not a substitute for the image
5. No need to start with name No need to add something obvious, like: pictured here,
above.
6. You can mention the name if it's really necessary.
Types of Captions
1. Identification bar
This type of caption only explains who the person in the picture is
2. Cutline
This type of caption only explains who the person in the picture is and what they do.
3. Summary
This type of caption provides a complete explanation of who is in the picture, what
was done, when it happened, where it happened, and why it happened.
4. Expanded
This is more complete than a summary, sometimes it also includes how it happened
and there are quotes.
5. Group identification
Almost the same as the identification bar caption, usually used for images that contain
more than 1 person.
6. Quote
Contains a quote from someone related to the image.
Example :
There is one picture that is the same, but the caption is different.
From the picture above, you can create different kinds of caption. You can write “Poor boy!”
to show your sympathy to the boy. You can also write down, “Show me your driving
license.” To create a satire commenting on the police officer. You might want to write, “Oh,
my goodness!” to echo the boy’s mind why the police should stop him while he is only
riding his bicycle or the police is thinking why the boy wears a safety helmet for a motor
rider. Many other expressions are possible. You can also put the words in different positions
to create the best layout.
From the example above, we can see that even one image can give different messages
depending on the caption given.
