AD4802 The Photostory
Research
Research for the photostory
Citizens of War: On the Frontlines of Ukraine
Tim Eastman
Tim Eastman travelled to Ukraine to photograph people's lives during the war. In many ways, this photo series is compelling due to the topic it relates to - war. It carries value in both the current events regarding the Russian-Ukrainian war and it will also hold importance after the war. This photo series has captured a piece of history and it can be labelled as a piece of war photography in general. However, when looking at these photos, we can say that the images can at times be too generic and there is a lack of connection to the Ukrainian war which could suggest the photo story will have more worth in the long run as opposed to in the current time.
China’s “Bold, Wild and True” Youth
Luo Yang
This photo story by Luo Yang is about the lives of young people in China, this photo series is very impactful and expressive since it is not only about the current affairs in the modern day. It will live on for a long time and its value will gradually grow. The photo story is general and can be used in many different themes such as despair and individualism but it holds itself together by maintaining certain characteristics throughout such as common subjects, for example, young women.
Acid House As It Happened
Dave Swindells
In the photo story and the book called 'Acid House As It Happened', containing the theme 'club night, 1988', Dave Swindells manages to capture the club life of the people at the time, specifically through their use of drugs and the sensations they experienced. This work is unique because of the use of vibrant colours and progressive themes. By capturing the clubbers of the time, Swindells managed to create a specific photo story capturing a scene that is no longer as present or socially acceptable as it once was. It may have been expected that this sort of photo story would lose its value over time but this was not the case with 'Acid House As It Happened' since it is to be published by IDEA and launched on 12 May 2022.
There is wisdom here: Romania’s last peasant women
Judy Ford
In this photo story, Judy Ford photographed the culture of some rural women living a traditional lifestyle in Romania. This is a notable photo story with a topic that is rare when topics such as war are more likely to be discussed. However, looking at this photo story we can see that magazines not only feature photo stories about large current affairs but also portray stories about the lives of people who may be completely unrelated to the current, relevant news. This photo story was published by the Guardian on the ninth of May 2022.
The other wild west in the Spanish desert
Matilde Gattoni
Some photo stories follow a distinct theme as they as created for the purpose of publishing. These photo series do not belong to any certain time frame which means they can be used for a long period of time and there is a high chance of them being used in different issues by different magazines and publications. 'The other wild west in the Spanish desert' is one of these photo stories with a distinct theme. It consists of photos taken in a small town in Almería province where a lot of western and cowboy movies have been shot, including my personal favorite 'The good, the bad and the ugly'. This photo story was published by the Guardian on 14th March 2022.
Initial planning
Planning for the photo story
The plan for this assignment is to capture a series of a photo, videos, and audio files of a journalist who lives in London and use these to create a photo story, a short video, and a magazine story.
In order to do these, I will be living in London for 5 days and will capture the journalist's life and create a story.
Contact sheet
Contact sheet of all the photos taken
Selecting photos
Making a selection
When choosing the images, I decided to go with a range of different types of photos. I was mainly looking for portraits, photos of reading and writing, photos that capture the mood, and photos that capture the location.
Another photo that I decided to choose was a photo of a scene that I made using the objects that would help tell the story on their own and capture the personality and the characteristics of my subject.
An important thing I was focusing on when it came to which photos were the best was the lighting and the focus point since the room I was taking photos in happened to be poorly lit and I did not have access to many alternative light sources.
Photo selection
The photos used in the magazine and the video
Magazine researh
Research for creating the magazine
I decided to create the magazine following an example from a Guardian magazine.
Magazine
My version of the magazine.
Video
Final video was made using images and audio of an interview, audio of poems and images os the subject
Evaluation
Final evaluation
I can confidently say that the photostory went better than I originally expected in the short time that I had.
The biggest problem I faced was getting so close to the deadline and having to do all the work in a span of two weeks. However, I was able to finish in time and produce the pieces I needed. Another problem I faced was the lighting within my surroundings and the minimal amount of space available to me. I could have fixed this if I had been able to use a flash or studio light as well as a wide lens but since I was staying in London I did not have access to such equipment. If I were to do the shoot again, I would definitely travel to my shoots more well prepared but for now, I was able to overcome the issue by using multiple small light sources and the flash of my camera.
I was also trying to capture the small room where the photos were taken in my photos but since I did not have a wide lens and the room did not have enough space for me to move back, I was not able to. Hopefully, I have managed to capture the mood and the spirit of the location using the other images.
When it came to the video, I decided to go with a mixture of an interview, photo selection and some audio files from Amir (the journalist) reading some of the poems that he wrote.
I am satisfied with how the magazine turned out since I managed to make it appear visually similar to the source material.
There are ways I can improve this assignment but considering the time frame I had and the fact that I only had access to one camera and a phone I am happy with how it turned out.