Menu

Menu
Prompts
Contests
Stories
Blog
Directory
Contests
Magazine
FAQ

Center your story around two strangers who bond over their shared love of photography.

Posted in Character on Jul 5, 2024

Submissions are closed

Make sure you don't miss our next contest by creating your free Reedsy account.

Sign in with Google
Sign in with Facebook

Or use an email address:

Why not check out our active contest?

✍️ 28 stories

The way rain changes the color of the sidewalk

Submitted to Contest #258

I was in the park taking a picture of an oak tree from a bench. I had my elbow firmly planted on my thigh; the heavy lens cupped in the palm of my hand and trying to wait for the wind to blow the leaves and branches in just the right way. I wasn’t paying attention to anything else. I snapped the shot. It wasn’t until afterwards that I noticed the woman in the yellow dress that was just on the edge of my shot taking a picture of the exact same tree. At first, I was irritated. Then I looked up from my camera and watched her. I decided to walk ...

47 likes 39 comments 39
Read story

A Winter Bridge

Submitted to Contest #258

It was after nine when I arrived. He left the door open for me, but all the lights were off. A bag of the coffee I like was on the counter. The apartment used to be a boathouse, and it maintains its shape. Inside, there’s a living room with an open kitchen. That’s where the coffee waits. Two sliding doors separate the bedroom from the rest of the residence. I find the bathroom to be especially spacious considering how small the rest of the place is. Its shining gem is the window looking out on the bay. When he’s here in the summer, we never ...

31 likes 15 comments 15
Read story

Puzzles

Submitted to Contest #258

I stared at the marble walls of the building I was about to enter. Ivory stone, complemented by dark wood elements - window frames, an arch above the tall doors with contrasting gold handles. Carefully trimmed bushes on both sides of it - roses, some light blue flowers, and other unfamiliar vegetation. There was total silence, interrupted only by the tree leaves dancing in the wind. Then the buzzing sound. A bee flew in my direction and stopped right in front of my face. I was allergic, yet I hoped that it would sting me in the eyeball. A sc...

24 likes 6 comments 6
Read story

See What Develops

Shortlisted for Contest #258 ⭐️

The camera was as much his companion as it was his tool. He might only take three or four pictures in an hour. Sometimes less. So, he used a tripod these days, one almost as tall as him, and also a long snap cable that enabled him to move about.‘What do you reckon?’ he’d murmur, pacing slowly back and forth, hands clasped behind his back, clutching the snap. ‘Shall we wait a bit longer? Might the light change? Will a bird fly in do you think?’ Until eventually a calm silence descended, punctuated by a soft click when he squeezed the shutter ...

17 likes 11 comments 11
Read story

Ashes in Paris

Submitted to Contest #258

For years, Holly dreamed of visiting Paris, the backdrop of her grandparent’s love story, but the timing was never right. Now, she stood in the City of Lights, not as a tourist, but to fulfill her grandfather’s dying wish.Before her, across the Seine River, the graceful Eiffel Tower swarmed with tourists; no one noticed the American middle-aged woman in jeans and a tank top, holding a battered old black-and-white photograph at eye level.Holly stared down at her wrist as the second hand of her grandfather’s watch counted the minutes. The inst...

15 likes 4 comments 4
Read story

Snap Shot

Submitted to Contest #258

There was a well-known, famous and very funny comedian who was always destined for the stage and fame. His energy told you all you had to know about what he was and what he was for. The man was made to grab a crowd by the scruff of the neck and drag them to a better place. A place where people laughed at themselves, and each other, and in so doing exorcised the demons who’d hitched a ride inside them on their rollercoaster ride through life. This man had his own demons. Everybody does, but comedians don’t have the luxury of laugh t...

14 likes 10 comments 10
Read story

The Last Page

Submitted to Contest #258

Margot Anne Marie Cromwell sat heavily in her favorite floral-print winged chair, running her knobby, crooked fingers over a hardback book. She knew that was her name on the cover, and the weight of this book had something comforting about it. There was a sense of familiarity that she just couldn't place. Many things were slipping through Margot’s metaphorical fingers these days. She knew the book was hers. It was her handwriting scrawled on the inside cover. Wasn’t it? How could she have forgotten signing this book, which sits on a shelf in...

13 likes 5 comments 5
Read story

Finding Focus

Submitted to Contest #258

 *** CW: contains a description of a panic attack***They were making their way down the steps at the back of frozen food store, Haid’s (the acronym derived from the company slogan ‘Have an Ice Day’) when Louise stopped and pulled out her phone.‘Hold on, a minute, Ree. Just got to get a picture of this.’‘What now?’ Ria turned as Louise held the phone askew, photo taken at an angle to include her own foot.Ria was as many steps ahead of her as there were years between them, but in spite of her being the younger sibling – sixteen to Louise'...

13 likes 6 comments 6
Read story

Hunting Grounds

Submitted to Contest #258

The wind became stagnant under its wings as the keen sight of a hunter watched in anticipation for the flight pattern to conclude. A gentle breeze exits the hunter’s lips as he prepares his trap. The target then unknowingly plants itself right where the hunter desires. Everything in the universe freezes as the hunter launches his net to capture not the perceived visual target, but to capture the once uncatchable target, time. The wind returns as the wings flutter away, not knowing that a piece of her was caught in the hunter’s trap. The hunt...

12 likes 3 comments 3
Read story

Alfonso’s Portrait

Submitted to Contest #258

Alfonso’s Portrait                                                     Al GriffinAt 4:00AM Tom parked the car in the pre-dawn glow of mercury vapor streetlights and gaudy neon signs.“Early-morning sidewalks are always cold and empty,” he thought as he listened to his shoe heels thu...

8 likes 0 comments 0
Read story

Shutters of War

Submitted to Contest #258

Perched atop the scarred husk of a military vehicle, I squinted against the glare of the relentless Central African sun. Its scorching fingers pried into every crevice of the desolate village below—a place once teeming with life, now just a skeleton of smoldering ruins. Through my lens, the silence was haunting and stood in contrast to the chaos of war that had engulfed this place just hours earlier. Clicking my camera methodically, I aimed to capture the ghostly stillness. From my vantage point, I caught sight of Andie, her silhouette barel...

7 likes 3 comments 3
Read story

"Need A Picture"

Submitted to Contest #258

It's another day at Snap First Bugle, and the boss calls his two newbies. Carla and Molly, intern photographers at a famous magazine, competed for the same job. The renowned and brilliant editor Rachel gave them the task of capturing the ideal image of the bustling city streets. Delivering guarantees a job. In confusion, the two looked at each other and asked, "Why do I have to do it with her?" Miss Rachel told them to ask one question at a time. Carla says, "Miss Rachel, I already have my own group with Bob and Harry." Molly replies, "Exact...

7 likes 0 comments 0
Read story

Through the Lens of Genevieve

Submitted to Contest #258

Genevieve had always seen the world through a different lens. Growing up in the quaint town of Abilene, she found solace and wonder in capturing moments with her camera. To her, every click was a poem, every frame a story. The rolling hills, the cobblestone streets, and the faces of the townsfolk were her canvas. Her passion for photography was a sanctuary, a place where she could lose herself and discover the world anew. It was on one of those serene autumn afternoons, while she was photographing the vibrant foliage at Willow Park, that she...

6 likes 1 comment 1
Read story

The Daguerreotype

Submitted to Contest #258

Louis Daguerre started as a painter who was capable of making portraits, as real as a mirror’s reflection. He wasn’t very successful though, because at his time nobody wanted mirror-like representation of themselves. People wanted portraits made by creative artists who could make them look younger, happier and just a little bit more handsome. So, the successful portrait makers were the ones who could do just that- not showing the reality as it was but concealing it. Knowing that wasn’t enough for Louis to do as the others. His intention for ...

5 likes 2 comments 2
Read story

An Unexpected Friend

Submitted to Contest #258

It’s my first time in Chicago, and like every other tourist, I end up at The Bean. Inspecting the sculpture, I think it may be the most fascinating thing in all of existence. The way the light plays off the metallic surface, how the images morph depending on where I stand... It’s beyond fascinating. So me being me, I pull out my professional-grade camera and start shooting some pictures. I take photographs up close, far away, and at weird angles just to see what will come out. I play around with different exposures, too. I even think about s...

5 likes 0 comments 0
Read story

🌟 Similar prompts

A forgotten photograph tucked away somewhere is the catalyst for an unexpected journey.

Adventure – 85 stories

Write a story where a photograph could change the course of history if it’s delivered to the right (or wrong!) person.

Short Story – 31 stories

Start your story with someone who has lost everything but finds solace in photography.

Dramatic – 63 stories

A photographer captures an image of something unexplainable. What happens next?

Mystery – 74 stories

How to Write a Novel

Join Tom Bromley for a writing master class and finish your first draft in 3 months. Learn more →

How to Write a Novel