If a picture is running with a story, a lengthy cutline is usually not needed. Sometimes a single line is sufficient to identify the people or situation shown in the picture and to make clear their relationship to the story. Remember that most cutline readers have not yet read the story. Many of them will read nothing but the cutline and the headline. So the cutline must strike a delicate balance between telling enough information for the reader to understand the photo and its context while being as crisp and brief as possible.