I believe the images highlighted in red are my least successful images as they don’t capture the blurry movement that Francesca Woodman displays in her work. Also, the rain on the lens covers the majority of the model in these images, which makes them more difficult to comprehend in terms of the idea that I wanted to achieve.
The photographs highlighted in green are my most successful images, in my opinion, because they share the similar ominous affect that in common in Woodman’s work. Although the raindrops on the lens were not intentional, I think in these images they add to the hazy aesthetic of which Woodman achieves in her work.
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.
David Hilliard is an American fine arts photographer who studied at the Yale School Of Art in 1994. Hilliard’s work is heavily inspired by the people around him and his personal life, his images document the simple aspects of life and the normality seen everyday inside someone’s home. This successfully links to my interpretation of this identity project as I also plan on photographing my grandparents during their generic day, showing how even the smallest things can make you happy and form who you are. Nevertheless, many of Hilliard’s photographs are staged to seem naturalistic, evoking a performative quality and a middle ground between fact and fiction. His work consists of panoramic style images which he forms out of various single photos, Hilliard explains here http://davidhilliard.com/info_pages/about.html how his images allow him to guide the observer’s focus through each photo, I really love the storytelling created in his work.
From the images above, it is clear Hilliard focuses on capturing very personal photographs that guide the observer through a private moment in his/someone else’s life. He not only photographs scenes dedicated to a specific subject, but also captures areas around their homes in rooms that may hold a special memory, or have a certain link to their lives. In Hilliard’s project ‘The Tale is True’, a series of images unfolding the story of father and son struggling to maintain their relationship, Hilliard wrote ‘it’s my intention that the photographs serve as a testament to perseverance; within even the bleakest of histories there exists threads of enduring hope, reminding us that even in the face of great adversity, we adapt and endure.’ I love the message behind Hilliard’s images and hope to take inspiration when furthering my identity project.
Image Analysis
David Hilliard | The Tale Is True | Smoke | 2012
David Hilliard’s project ‘The Tale Is True’ deconstructs issues surrounding familial relationships and the struggle to secure a sense of self and place in a chaotic world. Over 20 years, Hilliard documented images of him and his father, exploring their relationship and the process of aging. Most images in this series were taken at their Cape Cod family home, a place of legacy and tradition, serving as a symbol of identity and history. I love the use of perspective and distance in this image’s composition, alike Hilliard’s iconic work, the use of this panoramic style editing creates a fluidity and link between the images, when put together tells a personal story. In the left image, Hilliard has captured a self portrait sat at his dining room table and in the right he has photographed an empty chair at the end of this table. The distance between himself and this empty chair could symbolise his relationship with his father has deteriorated, possibly showing how he feels more alone as his father ages. Additionally, I really like the use of shadows in this image, especially the one that falls on the wall behind the chair. The shadow clearly shows that the image was taken during daylight, I love how Hilliard uses natural lighting from inside and outside his home to light his images. However, I think this shadow also tells the story of Hilliard’s father’s life- perhaps this was his chair, maybe it still is but as he has aged he may not be comfortable on it anymore? This shadow creates repetition of shape in the image, symbolising echoes of the past, present and future all being the same; it gives the impression that his father’s days may be or seem repetitive as he gets older. Furthermore, Hilliard’s capturing of lines in this image, for example the lines created by the torn plaster on the right wall, connote the idea that him and his father may be trying desperately to get things back to how they used to be. The tearing wall creates jagged lines which may represent his father’s health and the conflict in patterns with the table cloth and carpet may show Hilliard’s overwhelmed mind at a time when his family relationships may be crumbling.
Julian Germain’s project ‘for every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness’ has immensely inspired me, I really love the way he takes such naturalistic images in an environment his subject is clearly familiar and comfortable in. Many of the photographs in this project have a candid nature, as if Germain has just asked his subject to carry on with his day like he was not being photographed. I think this adds to the warm atmosphere created in the images as it gives the impression the subject is at ease, letting us look into his life as if we were family or friends. I have also chosen to study this work of Germain’s because of it’s connection to family identity, and identity changing over time. Many of Germain’s images depict his subject as reminiscing through photo albums of his past- I think this really symbolizes the importance of how we’ve grown up with family and how it can mould and form our identity throughout our life. Furthermore, I aim to capture images similarly to Germain in the sense of photographing my subjects in an environment close and personal to them. I think this will successfully show how our identity is connected to the places we feel most like ourselves, places we feel safe and comfortable in.
Photoshoot Plan
Who – I plan on photographing my grandparents throughout this identity project as I strongly associate them with influencing my identity throughout my life. My grandparents are very special to me, my closeness to my family stems a lot from their efforts to bring us together regularly and their constant positive view on life inspires me daily.
What – I am going to capture images of my grandparents going through their day as normal, looking at the camera when they want to and also capturing candid shots of them around their house. I plan on photographing them doing tasks such as cooking, gardening, reading and doing crosswords.
Where – I will be conducting this photoshoot at my grandparents house in St Brelade because it is the place they feel most comfortable and secure. I will move around the house with them, taking some shots in the garden, kitchen, lounge and any other rooms they go into.
When – I plan on taking these images on Sunday 17th January as the weather is meant to be sunny which will be perfect for any outdoor shots I may take. I aim to spend the day at their house and take photos into the evening to get a different lighting perspective, hopefully reflecting the orange hue seen in Germain’s images.
How – I will attempt to capture images using the natural lighting provided around their home, such as ceiling lamps and sunlight from windows. If any problems occur with lighting being too dim, I plan on bringing my standing light from home to add any more highlights if needed.
Why – My aim in producing this photoshoot is to capture images that reflect the work of Julian Germain, while also providing an insight into me and my family’s personal identity. I want to take images that show the importance of place linking with identity, connoting the idea that a certain home or room can impact our identity over time.
Contact Sheets
Selected Group Images
During this photoshoot, I decided to take the approach of capturing images that linked to each other in trios. I wanted to reflect the warm cosy atmosphere created in Germain’s images while also adding a element of my ideas to set out these images in storytelling sequences. I really love how the photographs from this shoot turned out, I did minimal editing on them, only touching up brightness here and there which I believe adds to the naturalistic mood of these pieces. Additionally, I love how each sequence tells a different story about my grandparents and family’s life. The first set of images depicts my grandmother doing what she loves the most, gardening. Whenever I arrive at my grandparents home you can bet my nan will be ‘pottering in the garden’ as she calls it. I like the contrasting compositions of these images as I believe the differing camera angles create an inclusive atmosphere, as if the observer is stood in the garden with her. Furthermore, in my second sequence I really enjoy the way the images tell the story of family and identity over time- similar to Julian Germain’s study. I captured these images of my grandparents reminiscing through old photographs with a focus on their hands, I believe hands are like windows into somebody’s past; they tell a story through marks and lines that can embody someone’s identity entirely. I like how these images have a strong contrast of dark and light tones and a subtle orange hue throughout.
My third sequence shows my grandparents admiring their garden and bringing elements of nature inside their home- my family identify greatly with nature and there are always flowers displayed in my grandparents house. I love the vibrant colours of blue from the window, red from the flowers and peach from the wall which form a fun playful atmosphere, giving the impression my grandparents find joy in the beauty of the environment- furthering Germain’s ideas on finding happiness in the small things. My forth group of images show my grandparents doing what they usually do before bed- they love to read or fill out crosswords together. I really like how the main colours in these images, orange, pink and purple, create a comfortable mood reflecting their love for their home and each other. I also love the strong contrast between highlight and shadow in this sequence and also the repetition of the shade lilac. My final set of photos displays the moments before and during dinner time- it tells the story of my grandmother’s love of cooking and providing for her loved ones. The tangerine hue and high saturation of these images gives a welcoming impression and connotes the feeling of happiness and warmth, I think this really shows how my family identify with our care for each other. I really like the darker tones in these photos, it presents the evening in a calm way and reflects Germain’s naturalistic personal work.
