Lesson 106 · German A1-2

Describing a Picture

Ein Bild beschreiben

Some exam formats (and general conversation practice) ask you to describe what's happening in a photo - a genuinely good way to combine location prepositions (Lesson 34), furniture/room vocabulary (Lesson 35), and simple present-tense description into one fluent task.

Today's win: describe a picture systematically - what you see, where things are, and what's happening.

Starting: what kind of picture is it?

Auf dem Bild sehe ich ... (In the picture I see ...)
Das Bild zeigt ... (The picture shows ...)

Describing location (two-way prepositions, Lesson 34)

Ein Mann sitzt auf dem Stuhl. (A man is sitting on the chair.)
Die Frau steht neben dem Tisch. (The woman is standing next to the table.)
Im Hintergrund sieht man einen Park. (In the background you can see a park.)

Describing what's happening (present tense)

Die Kinder spielen im Garten. (The children are playing in the garden.)
Es scheint, als ob es regnet. (It looks like it's raining.)

Giving your impression

Die Situation sieht entspannt aus. (The situation looks relaxed.)
Ich glaube, dass die Personen sich gut verstehen. (I think the people get along well. - dass, Lesson 26)
Try it out loud: pick any photo nearby (or imagine one) and describe it in 4-5 sentences: what you see, where things are, and what's happening.

Quick recall check

1. "In the picture I see ..." - Auf dem Bild ______ ich ...

Show answer
sehe

2. "A man is sitting on the chair." - Ein Mann sitzt ______ dem Stuhl.

Show answer
auf

3. What does "im Hintergrund" mean?

Show answer
in the background

4. "The children are playing in the garden." - Die Kinder ______ im Garten.

Show answer
spielen

5. What does "entspannt" mean?

Show answer
relaxed

Primary source

Cross-checked against the Sprechen section style of the official Goethe A1 Modellsatz.

Have a specific photo you'd like to practice describing? Ask your teaching agent to check your description.

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