Why David Hilliard?
David Hilliard’s work ‘The Tale is True’ holds several elements of my project’s message, showing the importance of family shaping our identities and how a certain place can impact a family’s entire perception of themselves. I love how Hilliard sets his images out in multi panel arrangements to tell a story as the observer’s gaze drifts over each photograph- I hope to mirror this technique when capturing and editing the images from this shoot. Furthermore, I am very inspired by Hilliard’s work as it tells a personal story between him and his father, something which I can reflect when photographing the personal link between me and my grandparents. Additionally, I want to mirror the way Hilliard takes many candid images because of their naturalistic atmosphere and inclusive nature. I think his use of staging images to look un-staged creates a very movie-like look in his photos, it is as if we are looking in on these people’s lives and they don’t even know we are there. Also, I aim to take inspiration from Hilliard’s intimate settings he captures his images in, I believe the use of place reflecting a person’s life/mood produces very personal link to identity.
Photoshoot Plan
Who – As they are the main focus of my identity project, I plan on photographing my grandparents in response to David Hilliard’s work. As I captured images of them in my last shoot, I believe my grandparents will be able to keep a candid nature while I photograph them.
What – My aim is to capture images of my grandparents on a normal weekend, doing the things they love to do in their safe home environment. I hope to photograph them reading and cooking while also taking photos of places in their home that are special to them.
Where – I will be conducting this photoshoot at my grandparents home in St Brelade due to its personal link to my family and our identity. I aim to capture images in different rooms around their home that have special memories linked with them.
When – I will conduct this photoshoot on Saturday 23rd January as the predicted sun will make it easier to light my images with natural sunlight coming in through the windows. I will also stay until evening to make use of the orange tinted lights around their home which will create a warmer atmosphere.
How – Similar to my last shoot, I aim to take photographs using natural lighting provided by sunlight and lamps around the house to produce images with a candid naturalistic nature. I will ask my grandparents to go about their day as if I was not taking photos of them to further this effect. Additionally, to capture multi-panel images like Hilliard, I will photograph rooms from 2 or 3 different perspectives so that I can edit them next to each other, creating a sequence.
Why – My aim in producing this photoshoot is to reflect the work of David Hilliard, creating multi-panel arrangements that tell stories about my family’s past and how they identify today. I want to show the importance of place and how someone’s home can hold so many memories.
Contact Sheets
Selected Images
I am extremely happy with how the images from this shoot turned out, I believe they successfully mirror the work of David Hilliard while also mirroring my personal photography experimentation. Firstly, I love how each sequence tells a different story, for example the multi-panel arrangements of my grandmother in the kitchen reflects her identity as an amateur cook, constantly providing meals for her family and doing what she loves. Due to the bright orange walls and colourful nature of my grandparents kitchen, the vibrancy of these photos is very high; representing the joy my grandmother gets from making up her own recipes and experimenting in the kitchen daily. The orange hue suggests the room holds a warm environment, reflecting the love that goes into everything they do. Additionally, the three arrangements depicting my grandfather on his iPad tells the story of family connecting all over the world. My grandparents spend lots of time on Facebook, checking up on and seeing what family and friends who may live far away are doing. I like how in these images the light from the screen reflects onto my grandfather’s face, connoting the idea that speaking with his loved ones holds such a prominent place inside him that when he does it he lights up a room. The multi-panel format I have used to arrange these images also suggests the people he is talking to are far away- physically in another country, but also mentally from losing connections with the people from his past. Furthermore, I have selected 2 sequences that present certain rooms in my grandparent’s home which hold personal memories. The first shows their downstairs spare room, a place that holds several photos of their younger selves, my family’s past memories and images of Jersey they remember from their childhood. The second ‘place’ based image shows my grandparents chairs, the place they can be found the most, usually reading the newspaper or calling family to say hello. These two areas of their home are very special to them and to me, the memories they hold have shaped our identities, the childhood nostalgia still influences us now. From a technical perspective, I really enjoy the use of lines in these images from the first’s green wardrobe and the second’s folded curtains. The lines represent an everlasting chain of family love, repeated throughout the home like the generations that grew up there.