In part one of your IELTS Speaking test, you might be asked, “Do you like to take photos?”
Read on to learn how to answer this question. Below, you can also read 10 great example answers (go straight to the answers here).
If You Like Taking Photos
You can talk about:
- Why you like taking photos
- What you like taking photos of
- How often you take photos
- When and where you like taking photos
- What you do with your photos (save them, edit them, post them online…)
- If you like taking selfies (photos of yourself)
- How seriously you take photography
- Some interesting things you’ve taken photos of
- Some places where you’ve taken great photos
- Any photos you have that remind you of nice experiences
- Any cameras you own
- Anything else you can think of
If You Don’t Like Taking Photos
You can talk about:
- Why you don’t like taking photos
- If you’ve ever liked taking photos in the past
- If you’d like to do it more in the future
- What you prefer instead (making videos, writing a journal, nothing much…)
- Someone you know who likes taking photos
- Why you think other people like taking photos so much
- Any really good photos you’ve seen
- Anything else that comes to mind
Taking a Photo ‘Of’ vs ‘With’ Someone
A common mistake in English is to mix up ‘of’ and ‘with’ when talking about taking photos.
Taking a photo ‘of’ someone means you are taking the photo and that person is in the photo.
I took a photo of my friend for her social media profile. She looks great in it.
I like taking photos of myself.
Taking a photo ‘with’ someone means you are both in the photo together.
I took a photo with my friend. We both look very happy in it.
Keep It Short and Simple
For part-one questions, you should keep your answer short (10 to 20 seconds) and simple (no need for advanced vocabulary and grammar).
Part one is only to warm you up. So focus on fluency in part one: speak quickly, without hesitation.
The three-step YES Method can help you give a good part-one answer each time. Just say:
- Your answer (say ‘yes, I do’ or ‘no, I don’t’)
- Explain your answer (say why you like or dislike taking photos) or add more details
- Stop talking (let the examiner know you’re ready for the next question)
Now let’s look at 10 great answers to this question.
‘Yes, I Do’ Answers
1. Yes, I do. I love taking photos because it’s a lot of fun and it helps me remember special moments. I take photos of myself and my friends every day.
2. Yes, I really enjoy taking photos, even though I’m not very good at it. I especially like taking pictures of beautiful places and scenery when I travel.
3. Yes, I do. To be honest, I take a lot of selfies for my online social media accounts, like Instagram and Facebook. Nowadays, it’s really important to have great photos on all of your profiles.
4. Yes, I love using my camera. I actually took a few classes in photography at university. I enjoy trying to capture the moment in a stunning photo.
5. Yes, I suppose I do like taking photos. I travel a lot and if I don’t take lots of photos, I’ll forget many of the adventures I have. I still have photos today of memories from ten years ago, and I’m so happy that I have them.
‘No, I Don’t’ Answers
6. No, I don’t. I rarely take photos because I prefer to just experience the moment and not think about how I look all the time. To be honest, I find taking photos quite boring.
7. No, to be frank, I don’t really like taking photos. I’m just not very photogenic and when I take pictures, they usually look quite bad. Maybe I should try to take better pictures in future.
8. No, I prefer to make videos. I’m a big fan of TikTok. It’s so much more fun to make short, clever videos to share with others. You can express so much more with a video than with a photo.
‘Kind Of’ Answers
9. Well, I’m not a big photo person myself, but my good friend loves taking photos. And I’m grateful that she does because now we have so many great pictures to share online.
10. I kind of like taking photos, when I’m in the mood for it. But most of the time I just want to relax without thinking about taking pictures and things like that.
Your Turn To Try
Okay, now it’s your turn to answer.
Turn on your voice recorder and ask yourself, “Do you like to take photos?”
Afterward, listen to your answer and think about one or two ways you could improve it.
Keep repeating this process to prepare for part one of your IELTS Speaking test. It’s a great way to achieve a good band-seven score.