You have gone to a fancy restaurant, and clicked tons of photos; even some photos turned out aesthetic and perfect.
But it took a while to upload because you could not think of an appropriate caption for those photos. Sounds relatable, right?
It is a relatable struggle for most social media users. People now hesitate to upload any photo without a caption. Often they find it difficult to choose appropriate captions for that specific photo.
Writing captions
Writing captions weren’t given that much importance even a few years ago. People used to upload photos without captions mostly.
However today, netizens are willing to delay uploading their photos but they are not ready to upload without captions.
Most people try to find a caption which goes with the photo, explain it, some savage quote to show confidence or some motivational words to inspire others. Another reason behind giving captions is to get an appreciation for the captions. Sometimes, the captions are more appreciated than the photo.
The ultimate struggle
“I sometimes find it difficult to find a caption for my photos, sometimes I can’t relate the caption I thought with the adjacent photo. Sometimes I choose a caption and find it similar with others too which is awkward to me personally,” said Maliha Kabir, a 2nd-year student of Applied Chemistry and Chemical Engineering at Dhaka University (DU).
As everybody on social media tries to provide captions, she struggles to find a unique one. However, she is not the only one who seeks uniqueness.
Sive Saqline Ornab is a Computer Science Engineering student at Ahsanullah University of Science and Technology. He becomes confused regarding what type of caption he should write and fails to give them proper words.
“I can’t understand what type of caption I should write and face difficulties finding unique or proper captions. Confusion among several things - should I write the caption which is related to the expression of mine in the photo or location related or just share my random thoughts,” said Ornab.
Mashiat Monjur, on the other hand, knows what to write but struggles to arrange her words.
“I get confused as to how to arrange the words so that my thoughts can be expressed properly. There is a thing with me - either the caption pops out instantly or I cannot think of anything at all.”
“I get completely blank. I don’t know how some people write long-long captions. Even some people are too creative to write self-made poems in their captions. Whereas I can’t even write a short one,” sighed the 3rd year student of Khulna Medical College.
Mission Finding Caption
Interestingly, when people fail to find a caption, they insist their friends suggest some good captions. Even if they don't like those, they just put some lyrics of songs, emojis even write ‘Couldn’t find any caption’ or ‘Some pictures don't need a caption’ and many more clichéd sentences.
Ornab, who invests a lot of time finding captions, has an easy alternative when he fails to find a caption and is failed by his friends as well.
“Rarely if I don't like their suggestions too, I just keep some emoji as a caption.”
Mashiat, on the other hand, has command in her voice as gets her photo selection done by her friends.
“I have a group (messenger) of five. Whenever I intend to upload a picture, I text in our messenger group saying ‘caption de’ (give caption). As being a confused one, they help me to choose the photo as well as my captions.”
It is true that friends help us to find the caption and the fun fact is, those friends most of the time fail when it comes to finding captions for their own photos.
On the other hand, Maliha Kabir does a little research to find her captions. She shared, “I take help from the internet most of the time to find a caption and then I try to rephrase it in my own words. In addition, I sometimes use quotes or lines from a movie, song or a book.”
Is it always necessary?
“I think giving captions is mandatory. It represents the story or behind the story of the photo and the reason for my post. It also portrays my personality. Without a caption, a picture or video remains incomplete,” Ornab remarked.
As per Maliha’s opinion, it is not necessary, although she prefers to give a good caption.
“I do believe that a good caption can enhance the quality of a picture with a real feeling of a person. Some words that can’t be said directly can also be expressed with a picture having a proper caption. So I personally prefer to use a caption with each of my pictures.”
Actually, whether it is necessary or not, depends on the person. A caption is more like self-satisfaction. Because nobody is going to judge you for not giving captions.
Captions sometimes provide important information and insight about the photos. There are such positive captions which can inspire and motivate people. But you are not always bound to give captions. It is important but not mandatory.
Social media is a place to refresh your mind. So try not to stress about what to write as a caption, rather upload photos spontaneously.
