Please watch the below slideshow before continuing on to read the "behind the scenes" of this assignment. Thank you and enjoy the story!
This assignment required a minimum of fifteen raw photos that together told a story. The story could be anything from fantasy to non-fiction, but the photos had to visually and present a clear theme. The theme I chose is “Princess to Warrior”.
My daughter assisted me with this essay as my model. She really enjoyed it and we both shared a lot of laughs. In total, I took 118 photos, that I then narrowed down to the best 15 that fit my storyboard sketches. I adjusted the levels of each photo in Photoshop, as well as editing out some unsightly light switches, camera reflections, and the words “Happy Birthday” off the crown. I’m really happy with how each photo turned out and the story they tell.
After each photo below, a journal entry will be found containing all the meta data from the camera at the time of the photograph, as well as any comments or concerns I had.
Comments and Concerns: As this is the introduction image, or the lead photo, I wanted it to set the tone for the essay. Here I have the princess crown just out of focus as the camera catches the detailing on the sword. This sets the scene for the story to come.
Comments and Concerns: The Princess sits in a chair overlooking the view outside. I wanted to get the lighting just right, so I was lucky to catch clouds instead of sun. I had to focus my camera on the chairs so it wouldn’t adjust to the outside light and take the focus away from the Princess and the throne chairs.
Comments and Concerns: Something is happening outside. I wanted this to focus on the Princess and her anxious expression. The viewer doesn’t need to know what is happening, just simply feel that something the Princess is witnessing is very, very bad.
Comments and Concerns: The worst has happened and our Princess is left crying is shock and disbelief. The hardest part of this photo was getting her tears to seem prominent in this shot.
Comments and Concerns: Although the window is clearly in focus, the Princess’s action of running from the scene she’s witnessed becomes the focus of this photo. Catching the movement of the Princess, and getting my camera to focus on the still window, was a challenge.
Comments and Concerns: The Princess goes to her bathroom and here we can see that she is processing what she has seen and what to do about it. She is in disbelief and shock and needs a moment to herself to process everything. The challenge of this photo was not catching myself, nor my camera, in the mirror reflection.
Comments and Concerns: The Princess suddenly comes up with a plan and here we can see her mood shift from despair to determination. I actually did catch my camera in the reflection for this shot, and I had to correct this in Photoshop. This was a fun shot to get the focus correct on.
Comments and Concerns: The plan is coming together and the Princess removes her crown, hoping to remove her royal title with it. I took about eight different shots of this action to get one I was happy with. It was hard to figure out how to translate what was happening here to the viewer, but I think this one does it best of the many shots I took.
Comments and Concerns: The Princess wipes her makeup off her face, no longer worried about her appearance as her crown is no longer on her head. I used two light sources to get this shot right. I really like how it captures her determination and resolve.
Comments and Concerns: I felt this shot was important, as here we can clearly see the makeup smeared on her arm and her crown in the background. This shot helps to piece together the two previous ones, weaving the story together.
Comments and Concerns: Without her crown and makeup, the Princess removes her dress. It’s clear her plan doesn’t require a Princess at all. I wanted to take this photo to further weave the next one in. A costume change is always a big symbol of things to come, but I didn’t want to confuse the viewer along the way. This shot helps to push that symbolism forward, without showing too much of the Princess in the process.
Comments and Concerns: Costume change complete, the Princess has dove beneath her bed to retrieve something hidden there. I wanted this shot to give the viewer pause—what is happening? Why is she under her bed? What is she looking for? I think this captures that well! You can also see her dress out of focus at the bottom of the photo.
Comments and Concerns: The Princess has finally found what she had hidden beneath her bed—a sword! This shot is taken with her in motion, about to stand. She looks determined to act.
Comments and Concerns: Back into the bathroom, the Princess ties up her hair. The reflection of the mirror shows the sword on the sink before her, and you can see the crown on the sink as well.
Comments and Concerns: The Princess is ready and her plan now makes sense—she will become a warrior! This shot was a lot of fun to capture. I used two light sources and had to figure out how to avoid the reflection of myself or my camera in the blade of the sword. I like how clearly we can see the etching of the blade, and how determined and ready the royal warrior is. This is the perfect clincher photo for my essay.
