How to Ask Someone to Take a Photo in Portuguese — Practice

Make a polite request

Começa with com licença or desculpa to get someone’s attention, then ask whether they can take a photo. Uma foto and uma foto nossa mean a photo and a photo of us.

Wait for the person to agree before handing over your phone. Keep the request simple and say obrigado or obrigada according to the speaker’s gender.

Describe the photo you want

Use na vertical for portrait orientation and na horizontal for landscape orientation. You can also ask the person to include a landmark or to take one more photo.

A short instruction is easier to understand than several adjustments at once. Show the framing you have in mind if you can.

Thank the person or offer to help

Thank someone with obrigado or obrigada, then say ficou ótima (it turned out great) if the photo worked. You can offer to take a picture for them too.

For other sightseeing phrases, see our guides to asking for directions and using Portuguese at a museum.

Remember: Practice the request, one framing instruction, and a thank-you. Keep the interaction friendly and respect the other person’s choice.

Check your understanding

Choose the English meaning of each Portuguese example. Answer before looking back at the tables. These questions check the written examples in this guide; they are not a listening or proficiency test.

Recall the Portuguese, then say it

Read the English prompt and say a Portuguese version before opening the answer. The answer shows the example from the lesson; other natural translations may also work. Compare the meaning and the situation rather than counting a different word as automatically wrong.

1. Excuse me, could you take a photo of us?

   Show a Portuguese answer

   Com licença, você pode tirar uma foto nossa?

2. Could you take a photo, please?

   Show a Portuguese answer

   Você poderia tirar uma foto, por favor?

3. Would it be okay if I asked for a photo?

   Show a Portuguese answer

   Tudo bem se eu pedir uma foto?

4. Could you take it vertically?

   Show a Portuguese answer

   Pode tirar na vertical?

5. Could you include the building in the background?

   Show a Portuguese answer

   Pode incluir o prédio ao fundo?

6. Could you take one more?

   Show a Portuguese answer

   Pode tirar mais uma?

Make the phrase useful to you

Choose one example you could actually use. Say it once from memory, then change one detail that fits your life, such as the person, place, time, or object. Check whether your change also needs a different verb form, article, or adjective ending. If it does, compare it with the pattern in the explanation.

Practice the request, one framing instruction, and a thank-you. Keep the interaction friendly and respect the other person’s choice.

Return to two prompts tomorrow without opening the answers first. If a phrase still feels difficult, shorten it to a useful chunk and build the complete sentence again.

Sources and your next lesson

This I Speak Portuguese practice guide builds on our How to Ask Someone to Take a Photo in Portuguese lesson on Real Life Portuguese, with written recall tasks and additional speaking practice. The explanations and examples are teaching material; the practice questions are exercises, not a transcript of a recording.

To add Brazilian audio to your routine, choose a lesson in the Real Life Portuguese app. The app offers its own lessons and practice; this page does not imply that every example here has an app recording.