Marc is a documentary photographer, his work holds strong narrative and combines text, audio and video with his imagery to enhance the experience of the viewer. I found his work inspirational as his aims are to tell other peoples real stories through his skills in photography. Therefore I chose to book a review with Marc to look at my most up to date photobook project on motherhood.
The Review ~
The chronological/liner order of the work seems to allow for a timeline of events to occur, which is familiar and well known in a 'ordinary' motherhood story.
The use of a shallow depth of field draws the viewer into the key elements in the photographs, such as the baby or fine details which add to the narrative.
The printed images in the book are soft and subtle, this is due to the process of printing which always makes the imagery softer, but this works in favour of the work as it visually showcases the delicate narrative and emotional experiences that mothers go through.
Changes ~
For book finishings rather than using real muslin cloth, find a paper stock which mimics a similar texture as the finishing will be to a higher standard with the text being stand out and contrasted on the front cover.
The paper stock I had created the current book in (xenon) was too glossy and distracts the attention away from the fine details in the images, by experimenting with a semi-gloss, satin or matt finish it will remove any shine from the pages and allow the images to hold all the attention of the viewer.
The wide range of photographic genres clash, which results in the narrative being lost at times. The studio work and tree images feel like another project, with the perspective, style and lighting being drastically different to the rest of the body of work. Potentially these could be re-shot or removed and replaced with a similar style of imagery as the other photographs.
Adding more breaks in the book with pages of text or blank space allows for the viewer to be drawn back into the work, as having a endless rotation of images back to back makes a lot loose interest as they are aware of what is coming next. So variation is key to holding the viewers attention and keeping them interested in the narrative. Also by involving more text in the sequence it may uncover the real side of the story, a more realistic representation of how the first time mothers feel. Giving the viewer more context about the model's, making you feel like you are in the scene.
From this review I was able to refine my sequencing and narrative, as I began to add quotes and real events from the interviews I held with both of my models.
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