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Written by IELTS Mentor

IELTS Speaking Part 2: IELTS Cue Card/ Candidate Task Card.

Describe a photograph you have taken yourself which you particularly like.

You should say:

• what the photograph/picture shows
• when you took it
• why you took it

and explain why you particularly like this photograph.

Model Answer 1:
To tell the truth, I have taken many pictures in my life, both randomly as well as on special occasions, but none of those pictures really stands out as great as the one which I took about 30 years ago as a young kid at a lake. Let me explain to you what exactly happened on that eventful day.

As a young kid, I just loved to watch my uncle fishing. In fact, I was so crazy about watching fishing that I could hardly sleep the night before my uncle used to go fishing. It was quite an excitement. My uncle also wouldn’t mind such crazy excitement of mine unless, of course, he was travelling a bit more faraway than usual in order to do fishing. But, on that day, even though, my uncle needed to travel more than the usual distance, I insisted really hard that I would also go with him since I came to know (from a very “reliable” source”) that the lake, where my uncle was going to do his fishing, had lots of big fishes.

Anyway, eventually, my uncle gave up his idea of leaving me at home and decided to take me with him instead. So naturally, my excitement knew no bounds because I was very much hoping that we were going to catch some really big fish on that day, and I was proved right. In fact, seeing me wrestling with those big fishes, caught by my uncle on that day, my uncle felt so happy that he actually decided to take a picture of me with them. I am sure that my uncle took that picture because, just like me, he also was enjoying that rare happy moment of his only nephew.

Anyway, I like this particular photograph because it managed to capture the real “happy and wild” me in a very natural manner. I like this particular picture also because it incidentally was the first picture which was gifted to me by my loving parents in a very nice looking frame.

Sample Answer 2:
I have never been a professional photographer and yet I have a great passion for photography. I know very little about the technical aspects of the camera and to be honest, I take photos of my own preference rather than maintaining aspects a professional photographer would do. The websites like Flickr, Instagram and Pinterest have made it possible to store photos easily and I upload pictures I take mostly in Flickr.

Now getting back to ‘a photograph I have taken and I really like’- is a tough call for me. In fact, there are so many of them. For this topic, I will pick a photograph that I took 4 years ago which portrays the serene nature of the rural life and ingenuine smile of a mother who was looking at her 2 years old daughter. I submitted this photo in a competition organised by a magazine and surprisingly it won the second prize.

It was 2012; probably mid-August and I went to one of my friends’ hometown with four other friends. This was actually a semester break and we wanted to enjoy our vacation in a remote and beautiful location. We stayed there for about 5 days and we had a great experience in this beautiful place. I had my camera with me and whenever I found something worth capturing, I took the photo. The photograph I am talking about shows green paddy fields and a clear blue sky in the background. The main subject of the photograph was a young mother who was looking at her daughter and was smiling. Among other things, a flying eagle, two other women and a large green tree were visible in the photograph.

When I took the photo, I knew that it was going to be a great scene and moment to capture in a frame. When I saw the digital version of this photo, I simply loved it. This particular photograph got a lot of positive reviews and comments just within few days I uploaded it to Flickr. I loved the theme of this photo and it was one of the best shots I have ever taken. After it won the second prize, I knew that it is a worth praising photograph and one of the best I have ever taken. In fact, positive reviews, appreciating the feedback, my memory relating this photograph, and its nomination for an important contest make it one of the best photographs ever taken by me.

Sample Answer 3:
Neither I am not a professional photographer, nor I do have any professional-grade camera, but often I try to capture moments. Most of the times they are self-portraits better known as 'selfie'. I am really glad to have a chance to talk about the issue and I thank you for this cue card topic.
 
The picture was taken by my smartphone a few years ago. In fact, the trend of selfie just began at that moment. I was standing on my rooftop. Suddenly the idea crossed my mind that why not I am taking a selfie. Accordingly, I took the selfie on the roof. The selfie shows that I am standing alone on the roof with a nice smile. My hairs were on the fly with the breeze. The sun was setting behind me. Besides, there was a piece of burning cigarette stick on my lips. Overall it was the environment that made the photo look beautiful.    

I took the photo in the evening. It was almost dusk. The sun was going down. Since I live in a high-rise building, I am able to see the skyline of Shanghai. Often I enjoy the sunset scenes. Though the sunset view is not too much clearer, it is quite enough to entertain me. moreover, the entire environment was sunny on that day and the sky was deep blue. It was a perfect day and environment for a photoshoot under the open sky. But I had to remain satisfied with a couple of selfies as there were none to help me.

Usually, I spend around half an hour on the roof in the evening to pass my time. In fact, it has become a routine for me to pass the evening hours on the roof. This is the time when nobody is present there and I can enjoy the loneliness. But often I meet with some kids playing there. On that day, I was all alone. All of a sudden, I decided to take a selfie. I never took photos before on this rooftop and this was the very first time for me. So, without any prior planning or thoughts, I took the photo. I had no troubles at all as this was a selfie.

Presently, a large number of people use the selfie to capture their images either individually or in a team. Besides, they also use some sort of selfie sticks to capture the image from a higher level. But this was a candid selfie for me. Of course, I have taken so many pictures in my life but I entered into a different level after having my smartphone. Earlier, I used to pose before the camera of others and now I pose in front of my own camera. It has a strong lens comes with some special features. As a result, the pictures are clear and looks nice. The front camera comes with a 5-megapixel capacity. So, when it is about the selfie, there are no issues about low resolution or similar other matters. I like this photo much for some reasons. Firstly, this was my first selfie on the rooftop with my brand new cell phone. Moreover, I enjoyed the moments. Hence, the selfie was the perfect fit for me right then. So, I like this selfie particularly.

Idea generation for this Cue Card Topic:

Cue Card Topic: Describe a photograph you have taken yourself which you particularly like.

1. I took the best picture of my life when I was a teen and the picture shows my parents are walking down on a road hand in hand. It was in the evening when I clicked the picture. I took it out of curiosity and my parents even did not know that they were being captured. I like this photograph because it was my best shot. The sun was setting in the background while a man and a woman was walking down the streets. It looks wonderful indeed.

2. My baby boy was portrayed in the picture while he was swimming in a pool. I took the picture in the afternoon. In fact, my boy went for a swim and I captured him on the camera. It was nearly the evening when I took the picture. I took it for no particular reason. I had my camera in my hand and just clicked it. But now I am in love with the photograph because it is a good one that I have ever captured. I am not a professional photographer but it appears that the photograph is a masterpiece.

3. A couple of boys were jumping into a pond in the picture that I would like to talk about. Actually, a group of boys went swimming in the local pond in the late morning and I took the picture right then with my cell phone. I took the shot to test my phone’s camera as I bought that a few days ago. And it was a nice shot indeed. The photo colour and camera performance were much better than expected. And overall, it was a symbol of my photographic sense. So, I like it more than other photographs I have taken so far.

4. The setting sun on a beach is a wonderful view and I captured such a moment using my digital camera. I took the photo when I went to Bali in Indonesia last month. I wanted to capture the moment and so I clicked the photo. The situation was so adorable that I could not resist my intention to capture the sun in photo form. I think the location was perfect for a photo shoot and I did the right thing at the right time. So, I like the photo.

5. This is hard indeed to take a selfie and take a bath at the same time. But I did so despite the setbacks. I took the photo last summer while bathing in a swimming pool here in Australia. It was almost evening when I took the photo. And I took it to make fun only. The photo contains all the favourite people of mine and we were making fun in the pool. And honestly speaking, it was a perfect photo in terms of composition, background selection, and every other thing. So, I like it very much.

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