Contact Sheet 6

Open publication - Free publishing - More childhood

Contact Sheet 5

Open publication - Free publishing - More childhood

Contact Sheet 4

Open publication - Free publishing - More childhood

Week 5 Exercise - Time Difference

Looking at the same subject, framing etc. but showing a lapse of time between the photos - here, contrasting the plain park by day, normal and unthreatening, with the slightly eerie park by night, shadowy and ominous.

Contact Sheet 3

Open publication - Free publishing - More childhood

Contact Sheet 2

Open publication - Free publishing - More childhood

Week 4 Exercise - Short/Long Exposures

Short exposure - capturing motion of waterfall

Long exposure - portraying pedestrian motion over time

Shoot 1 Contact Sheet

Open publication - Free publishing - More baby

About to photograph first model...

Later today I'm meeting with my first model (age 6 months) and mum for my first shoot and later with my second model (9 years) for my second shoot. I've decided to go at the series from a few different angles and then select the one which turns out the best with all the different children. Firstly, I'll be asking the child to show me three things which are most important to them at that particular moment in their childhood - I've heard that a few photography students have done this in the past as a reflection on what is important to a particular age group, but I want to show how these important things that shape the child's identity change over time. Secondly, I'll be shooting them with a teddy bear I'll be taking along, and seeing how the ages from 6 months to 13 years respond to the teddy - I expect that at around 3 years will be the best age to play with the teddy, but I'm intrigued to find out and record the different interactions with the toy at different ages. This will be reflecting on the somewhat sombre idea that children grow out of things that are iconic of childhood as they make their way to teen and adulthood. Lastly, I'll be handing the child a wrapped chocolate bar and recording how they react to a gift and the chocolate inside - this was an idea I discussed with Matt as a way to show altering attitudes to this as the child matures.

Progress

Since my last post, I've been considering my idea and rethinking how I could successfully portray a clear theme of time through my childhood series. I have been thinking about using a motif to link the series together, like a height chart, that shows a clear development of time as the child grows. Or I could incorporate a second motif that explores reactions to a particular object and how they change as the child grows - I discussed this with James - something that seems amazing and wonderous to a small child might seem really mundane to an older child/teen, like chocolate :) Although the older child is likely to appreciate it, the younger child is naturally likely to be more excited about a few squares of confectionery.

Also, in more research, I really like the aesthetics of this painting by William Adolphe:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:William-Adolphe_Bouguereau_(1825-1905)_-_A_Childhood_Idyll_(1900).jpg

I think the slight desaturation of the image gives the image a timeless look - so the images would show a graduation in time, but it would take away the association of an image's aesthetics with a particular time period - the focus is on the progression, not the pinpointing of, time.

Proposal - Project 2 - Time

My intention is to create a sequence of photos that show a child growing up and leaving behind the previous stage of his childhood. I will show this through dropping and discarding toys, distancing the child from things associated with babyhood and showing a progression of time as he grows up. I am in contact with a parent of three young boys as potential models for the project, and should be able to do regular shoots with them. I intend to take the series in the children’s home so that they are portrayed in an environment familiar to them, with readily available props etc for the photos. The aesthetic I want for this project is an aged look, not sepia, but desaturated colours, showing an aged look and reflecting the passage of time that I want to portray.

Am currently awaiting a reply from the mum of my photography model(s) in order to arrange an inital photoshoot - watch this space :)

Inspiration...

Link

I really like this photo as it captures the moment of the child looking sad/thoughtful - as if she's been all dressed up and isn't very happy about it! My series is going to be focussed on moments, so I really like that this has that quality.

Link

I really just like the aesthetic of this photo - the black and white, the plain background, and the child looking intrigued by the camera - maybe not exactly what I want in my series, as I think I'd rather have the child oblivious to the camera, but I still like the appearance of this photo - simple, pure, like childhood itself.

Link

Further to the capturing of a moment theme, this photo is an excellent example of freezing time - the child is just about to get stuck into eating the lollipop - something I'm sure many people can remember doing as a child.

Link

Again looking at capturing a moment - this child is playing in wild grass and the movement is captured with a fast shutter speed. This particular set of moments is looking at the joy felt by the child while she plays, very much conveying feelings through 'paused' time.

Link

Link

In both of these, there's a very short depth of field which is something I want to utilise in my series. I feel it really puts the focus on the subject (the child).

Ethics

I have been considering the ethical side to my project, and the potential issue that I have been photographing children in context with my playground shoots... Therefore, I did some research into the matter and found this webpage on a photography site. Following this, I have made sure that all of these general ethical rules have been followed; I ask the parents permission to take photos before making any attempt to do so, to make sure they are aware of what I'm doing - all of them have been quite happy for me to photograph for the project. I'm not using these photos for any commercial purpose, and all my subjects have been quite comfortable with me taking the photos.

Project 1 - Space - Final Images

Selecting the Final Images

This was by far the hardest part of the project... I spent several hours arranging, rearranging, swapping... etc. And finally, with the help of a few friends, selected the final series.

Possible series no. 1

Possible series no. 2

Possible series no. 3

Possible series no. 4

Possible series no. 5

Possible series' no.s 6 & 7

Possible series no. 8

Possible series no. 9

Shoot 4 Contact Sheet

Open publication - Free publishing - More children

Planning the series

A4 images printed to plan out series... blu-tacked onto my closet doors to arrange them in order.

Possible final 6...