Crafting a storytelling through multiple exposure
- scapuzzimati77
- Jan 12
- 4 min read
(I know: the image above is not a multiple exposure, but read the article and you'll understand why I put it there ;)
This time I want to explore how multiple exposure can become a way of telling stories. When one image settles over another, the frame turns into a small stage where different moments speak together.
Creating a narrative often begins with a feeling: it might be calmness, sometimes chaos, noise, or a sense of mystery. Sometimes a theme guides me but more often it is a tiny detail that catches my eye and everything else grows around it. The magic of this technique is that you do not need to explain much, you can simply suggest and let the viewer’s imagination complete the story you suggest.
Before shooting I choose an emotional palette, thinking in tones rather than ideas: soft blue for quiet moods, warm orange if I want to recall memories, etc. Once the mood is clear the images fall into place almost naturally.
From a luxury pool to the "Dark Side"
I think the best way to explain what I mean is by sharing a shooting story.Some stories begin in very ordinary places while others start where you would never expec. This one began beside the pool of a 5-star hotel in Central, on the island side of Hong Kong. Yes a real 5-star place. The kind of places where everything is spotless, shiny and smelling good (…even in Hong Kong!). One of those hotels where the staff bows at you every step you take.
Well, if you know me you already know how I feel in places like this: a fish out of water. I’m the guy who checks hundreds of guesthouses before traveling to a new place just to save 2$ (…and yes, I have slept in really horrible places because of that!). So, fancy lobbies, formal smiles perfect uniforms…all this it’s on the opposite side of who I am, but yeah, I’m there now. My presence was the result of circumstances that cannot be explained in a public blog (if you really want to know why I ended there you can ask me privately, just be ready for a plot twist).
Normally these places always come with a fancy pool and this story happened exactly there. The pool was quiet, it was dark already and not many people swimming at that time.
After a short swim I took my camera: the harbour was glowing at its best and across the water the lights of Kowloon looked like they were begging to be captured. It always makes me smile how Hongkongers call Kowloon “the Dark Side” not because it’s dangerous but because years ago it was the less polished sister of the island side. Of course today it’s just as bright and full of skyscrapers as everything else in the city, but the nickname survived and honestly it adds a bit of charm to the whole scene.
Standing there I felt suspended between two worlds. And this feeling was both strange and inspiring.
Building the story
The first image came easily. A clean capture of the skyline with the huge screen of the M+ museum glowing.
Then I saw a girl sitting just at the edge of the pool. She looked like she belonged to that night. Not in a dramatic way but in a thoughtful almost poetic manner. She was simply looking at the “Dark Side” thinking who knows what, but that’s exactly when the storytelling begins: I imagined her dreaming of something, maybe waiting for good news about her future, or maybe just hoping her boyfriend would finally ask her to marry him. Who knows. So I photographed her silhouette twice with the second shot deliberately blurred to give it a more dreamy feeling.
Keeping my multiple exposure selected in my camera, I took a few more photos of her because in that moment she was framed in a perfectly cinematic way and I couldn’t let the chance slip away.
I’m honest: it was only when I checked my shots on my pc that the idea of creating a triptych came to me, (yeah, that wasn’t planned). As I looked through the photos I took that night, I realized that 2 multiple exposure images of the girl could match perfectly with the one showing the Kowloon skyline and the M+ museum.
The silhouette of the girl, her figure, her posture, the thoughts I imagined she was having in that moment…all looked to me like she was part of a dream, so I imagined her drifting somewhere between the city and her thoughts.
When I put the 3 images side by side the story became clear: the skyline shot is the first one, then the two images of the girl built the narrative. She was facing the same direction as the skyline which created a silent visual link and the colors matched so everything moved with the same rhythm.
I decided to title this triptych Darkside Dreams.
To me the most important part of building a story is leaving the viewer involved and free to imagine, explore and give their own interpretation. Try to leave the ending open and don’t shout: try to suggest instead. Let the viewer navigate into the story on his own.
How to create your own visual storytelling
To build a compelling visual story, start by finding a location that inspires you: it doesn’t have to be a fancy place, often the most inspiring stories come from ordinary, anonymous places where everyday life happens. Once you have the place, try to set the mood you want to convey. Then, look for the protagonists of the scene (it can be a person, a gesture or simply an object) and pay attention to the relationships between your elements, letting shapes, colors, lines, movements echo or contrast across frames.
When shooting, let the meaning of your story guide every choice, so pay attention on what happens within your frame, the dynamics…and don’t be afraid to add a plot twist if you’re lucky enough to assist to it.
I always think that a story is strongest when it suggests rather than explains, so invite the viewer to step inside and interpret it for themselves.
Here the "Darkside" tryptich in sequence:
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