Picture Description

Here are some top tips for describing a photo or a picture in an exam.

Do:

 Look at your picture carefully and take a few moments to think before you start talking.
 Talk for all the time you are given. If you have one minute to do the task, use every second.
 Practise the useful language below so you can explain which part of the picture you are talking
about.

Don’t:

 Panic if you don’t know the words for all the things in the picture. You don’t need to know all the
words for everything in the picture if you know what to say when you don't know an exact word.
 Get distracted and start talking about something else. Focus on the photo or picture.
 Panic if your mind goes blank. Take a deep breath, look at the picture and start again.

If you are asked to describe a photo or a picture in the exam, here is some language you can use:

What is in the picture?

In the picture I can see ...

There’s / There are ...
There isn’t a ... / There aren’t any ...

Say what is happening with the present continuous

The man is ...ing

The people are ...ing
It’s raining.

Where in the picture?

At the top/bottom of the picture ...

In the middle of the picture ...
On the left/right of the picture ...
next to
in front of
behind
near
on top of
under

If something isn’t clear

It looks like a ...

It might be a ...
He could be ...ing
Maybe/Perhaps/Probably it’s a ...

Also you can add information about:

 the weather
 the season
 the physical appearance and/or feelings of the people involved.
 or you can even compare people and/or things in the image.

_It is a sunny day

_ It’s winter because it’s snowing.

 _ She has brown eyes and long hair. She wearing jeans and a sweater.

_She looks happy.

_ This man is taller than the rest.

_She is the youngest person in the place.

Activities

Watch a video in which two students are going to describe the following images:

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vj4e8pX9Gk8

After watching the video complete these exercises:

1. Check your understanding: gap fill – prepositions

Write the correct preposition (in, on, at) to fill the gaps.
1. ___________the top of the picture…
2. ___________the middle of the picture…
3. ___________the left of the picture…
4. ___________the bottom of the picture…
5. ___________the picture I can see…
6. ___________the top of…
2. Check your understanding: multiple choice – describing the photo
Highlight the best answer to complete these sentences.
1. There’s a man lie/lying in the middle of the road.
2. There are/have three people around him.
3. They try/are trying to save his life.
4. In the bottom right/right bottom corner of the picture there’s a man holding a camera.
5. I think he could/can be a reporter.
6. The other man looks as/like a póliceman

3. Mention some other aspects that the students describe on the video.
4. What other information can you add to the description?

Here there are other useful videos to revise some important aspects about picture description:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h76dKcjO_qk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihIQ8_-49Fo

5. Describe the following images as much as you can

7.