What Are The Popular Synonyms For A Photograph?

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Photography is a universally understood word that means many things to different people, bringing up thoughts of everything from a family photo album to a professional exhibition that you’ll never forget, poignant war images to fun snaps of the pets on Instagram!

Such is the power of the art form of photography and so, around it have grown up many synonyms for the word photography, each with slightly different connotations and meaning, although all referring to essentially the same thing.

Photograph and Photography – Synonyms.

The word photography itself refers to the general art or practice of taking photos. The word is a broad umbrella term that has developed many synonyms during its history. The word ‘photography’ has a slightly formal tone and is usually used in professional catalogs and settings.

The word ‘photograph’ can be used as a noun or a verb. As a noun it refers to an image or picture made using a camera and as a verb it refers to the act of taking a picture using a camera.

List of Synonyms.

• Image – this is a broadly used term that can refer to any type of representation of an object using any medium. The word is commonly used as a synonym for photograph, especially since the birth of the digital age. Example of ‘image’ in use: That image really struck me as powerful.

• Snap – To ‘snap’ a picture is a synonym for ‘photograph’. The word ‘snap’ has a light heart, relaxed connotation that gives it an amateur feeling, something that would be done on holiday with a disposable wind up camera for instance! Example of ‘snap’ in use: Mary was snapping away on the beach.

• Shot – shot is a synonym for a photograph and is a slang word that is used by professionals and amateurs alike. Example of ‘shot’ in use: I managed to get some great shots last night at the harbor.

• Still Picture – A still picture is a synonym for a photograph and although the terminology has become somewhat dated it is still used in more formal settings such as a museum or a traditional photography gallery. Example of ‘still picture’ in use: The still picture of the early 20th Century French village shows how the farmers lived their daily lives.

• Mugshot – A ‘mugshot’ is a word that is used in slang to refer to a portrait photo, particularly if the photograph is not an entirely flattering portrayal of the subject! The word originated from the prison photograph that would be taken of an arrested suspect. In the earlier days of this practice the arrested suspect would deliberately screw up their faces to make it difficult to recognize them later from the ‘mugshot’, and due to the expense of early photography that one photo had to be used by the police! Example of ‘mugshot’ in use: That’s not the best mugshot on your passport!

• Footage – Footage is a synonym for a photo and tends to be used in the context of war photography, documentary photography and also in reference to video film. Example of ‘footage’ in use: That’s some fantastic footage you got there from the photoshoot last week.

• Headshot – A headshot is a synonym for a portrait photo of a subject’s face. A headshot can be used to describe a passport photo, an office portrait or other formal identification photo. Example of ‘headshot’ in use: I need to get a headshot done for my office ID card.

• Portrait – a portrait refers to an image that has a longer height that width and is traditionally reserved for describing a photo of a subject although technically the image can contain any subject as long as its ratio aspect is taller than it is wide. Example of ‘portrait’ in use: That is a lovely portrait of your family in the park.

• Landscape – a landscape is an image that uses an aspect ratio that is wider than it is tall. Commonly used for natural photography or scenes that have strong horizontal lines the landscape photograph has a long history of being used to explore the world around us. Example of ‘landscape’ in use: I was trying to take that landscape but I was struggling to capture the essence of the scenery.

• Print – a print is a synonym for photograph that applies to the finished product of using a camera to capture an image. The word print is often used in professional circles of photographers to refer to the images they produce. Example of ‘print’ in use: Those were some amazing prints at the exhibition last week.

Photography and its Synonyms.

Photography has developed massively over the last 150 years and as the medium has evolved and changed new words have come into use to describe the same thing. It’s interesting to note these various words and how their meanings are slightly different from one another although they ultimately describe the same thing.

I tend to use the word picture a lot when referring to photos. Which is the synonym that you use?

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