IELTS Speaking Part 2: Describe a Photo You Like (Band 9 Sample)
This Part 2 cue card asks you to describe a photograph you particularly like and to explain why. A band-9 answer paints the scene so the examiner can almost see it, covers who took it and when, and lands one heartfelt reason it matters to you. Below is a model long-turn of about 230 words in a natural spoken register, followed by a breakdown of why it earns a 9 on all four speaking criteria and the collocations worth stealing.
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01 · The cue card
- what the photo shows
- who took it
- when it was taken
- and explain why you like it so much
02 · Band 9 sample answer
The photo I want to talk about is one of my favourites — it shows my whole family gathered on the beach at sunset, and it's been the wallpaper on my phone for the best part of a year now.
It was taken about two summers ago, during a trip we'd planned for ages to celebrate my parents' anniversary. My younger brother actually took it; he's the keen photographer in the family and he'd been waiting patiently for exactly that golden light you get in the last half-hour before the sun goes down. In the shot, we're all squeezed together, slightly windswept, laughing at something my dad had just said — nobody's posing, which is precisely what I love about it.
The reason it means so much to me is that it captures us completely off guard, being genuinely ourselves. So many photos these days are stiff and staged, but this one froze a real, spontaneous moment of pure happiness. Whenever I glance at it during a stressful day, it instantly transports me back to that warm evening and the sound of everyone giggling, and it reminds me what actually matters. In a funny way, it's worth more to me than any professional portrait ever could be.
03 · Why this scores Band 9
The answer moves smoothly through every cue-card point — what, who, when, and why — with natural linking ("It was taken about two summers ago...", "The reason it means so much...") and builds to a warm closing reflection, sustaining a full two-minute turn without hesitation.
Vivid, idiomatic vocabulary paints the scene — "golden light", "squeezed together", "slightly windswept", "off guard", "stiff and staged", "transports me back" — well beyond the flat "it is a nice photo" a weaker answer would give.
A wide range is controlled accurately: past perfect for background ("a trip we'd planned for ages"), a relative clause ("which is precisely what I love about it"), and a "Whenever" clause ("Whenever I glance at it..., it instantly transports me back"). Tenses stay consistent throughout.
The script is built from speakable, stress-timed phrases with natural chunking, and the fond content invites genuine intonation, so the recording lands clear sentence stress without tongue-twisting clusters.
04 · Useful phrases for this topic
Tap a phrase to see what it means and how to use it. Natural phrases like these lift your Lexical Resource score.
05 · Frequently asked questions
Can I describe a photo on my phone rather than a printed one?
Absolutely — most candidates do. What matters is that you describe the image vividly and explain why you like it, not whether it is printed or digital.
How do I fill two minutes describing one photo?
Describe the scene in detail — who is in it, the setting, the light, the moment — then say who took it and when, and spend the most time on why you like it. The story and your feelings fill the time naturally.
What tense should I use?
A mix: past for taking it ("my brother took it"), past perfect for background ("we'd planned for ages"), and present for how you feel now ("whenever I glance at it, it transports me back"). Accurate mixing lifts the grammar score.
Do I need photography vocabulary?
A little helps — "golden light", "in the shot", "posing" — but you do not need technical terms. Describing the moment and your feelings clearly matters far more than camera jargon.
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