How to Ask Someone to Take Your Photo in Korean
To ask someone to take your photo in Korean, hand over your phone and say 사진 찍어 주세요 (sajin jjigeo juseyo), "Please take a photo." It is polite 해요체 (haeyoche) and works with any stranger at a palace, a street market, or a rooftop cafe. Pattern 23 in the SULSUL workbook — verb stem plus the polite request ending 주세요 (juseyo) — covers exactly this kind of ask.
- 사진 찍어 주세요 (sajin jjigeo juseyo) — "Please take a photo."
- 같이 찍어 주세요 (gachi jjigeo juseyo) — "Please take one with us in it."
- 한 번 더 찍어 주세요 (han beon deo jjigeo juseyo) — "Please take one more."
- 여기서 찍어 주세요 (yeogiseo jjigeo juseyo) — "Please take it here."
How do you start the request politely?
Pick someone who is not rushing. Open with 실례합니다 (sillyehamnida), "Excuse me," then extend your phone.
You: 실례합니다. 사진 찍어 주시겠어요? — sillyehamnida. sajin jjigeo jusigesseoyo? — "Excuse me. Could you take a photo, please?"
Them: 네, 알겠어요. — ne, algesseoyo. — "Sure, got it."
You: 감사합니다! — gamsahamnida! — "Thank you!"
주시겠어요? (jusigesseoyo?) is slightly softer than 주세요 (juseyo). Both are fine with strangers.
Practice this out loud with SULSUL — the app says it, you repeat it →
What do you say after they hand the phone back?
Check the photo before you walk away. If the angle is wrong or someone blinked, one more sentence fixes it.
| Need | Say this |
|---|---|
| Take a photo | 사진 찍어 주세요 (sajin jjigeo juseyo) |
| Include us both | 같이 찍어 주세요 (gachi jjigeo juseyo) |
| One more try | 한 번 더 찍어 주세요 (han beon deo jjigeo juseyo) |
| From this spot | 여기서 찍어 주세요 (yeogiseo jjigeo juseyo) |
| Vertical shot | 세로로 찍어 주세요 (seroro jjigeo juseyo) |
What usually goes wrong?
The most common mistake is pointing at the camera and saying photo in English. People help anyway, but you miss a chance to practice. Another slip is forgetting to unlock the phone first — tap your passcode, open the camera app, then hand it over so they are not standing there waiting.
If the first shot cuts off your head, say 한 번 더 찍어 주세요 (han beon deo jjigeo juseyo) instead of trying to explain in English. Koreans retake tourist photos without thinking twice.
A quick script at a busy spot
- Choose someone who looks available — not someone sprinting for a train.
- Say 실례합니다 and show your phone with the camera open.
- Ask 사진 찍어 주세요 while pointing at the background you want.
- Step into frame if you asked 같이 찍어 주세요 (gachi jjigeo juseyo).
- Thank them with 감사합니다 (gamsahamnida) before you leave.
Say it out loud, not just in your head
You will not have time to scroll this page when a kind stranger is already holding your phone at Gyeongbokgung.
SULSUL is a speaking gym for exactly that moment: pick a survival pattern, say it out loud, get an instant fix from the AI pronunciation coach, then run the real situation as a mission. The 100-pattern PDF workbook comes along as a bonus.
