Lewis Carroll's classic is a story that just begs to be told through photography. I've been fascinated with this theme for years, even briefly brushing the surface of it some years back (anyone remember Spring Minis 2012?). A few weeks ago, I was finally able to explore Alice's story more thoroughly. The images we created during that afternoon are some of my favorites that I have ever captured, and I'm thrilled to share them with you!
Start at the beginning...
Storybook sessions like this require more preparation than other portrait sessions. These sessions are highly stylized and involve several elements all working together to tell the story. To prepare, I always re-read and re-watch the books and films for whatever story we're recreating. (That means Disney movie night!) I then note the elements that standout most to me, as well as the major scenes. I'll even sketch out the particular shots I want to capture for each of these points.
Finding the proper wardrobe and props can be a challenge at times, but because we're being inspired by these stories, and not exactly replicating them, there's plenty of room for artistic freedom and interpretation. You'll notice that none of the characters are dressed in film authentic costuming, but are still easily recognizable.
"If you don't know where you want to go, then it doesn't matter which path you take." — the Cheshire Cat
Storybook images also require extra work after the session, during processing. I do some extra magical effects to these images that I don't do in my regular portraits. These effects vary, depending on what's needed to tell the story. For example, in Alice in Wonderland there is the exciting moment when Alice falls down the rabbit hole. To capture that feeling of falling took some prep work on set. I had to know how I wanted the final image to look so that I could photograph the base image(s) properly. Creating an image from multiple shots or elements is called a composite, and is an art form all its own. Composites can take a tremendous amount of time to complete (several hours or even days) depending on the complexity. Luckily the two major composite images for Alice only took about and hour each.
**Side Note: I wish I had thought to video the editing process, but I guess you could say I was "mad as a hatter" with excitement at the moment ;) If anyone is interested, I may try to re-create it for a behind-the-scenes video later. Comment and let me know!**
On with the Story...
Without further ado, here are the final images from our Adventures in Wonderland!
A very special thank you to the Harcrow kiddos for being such perfect models for this project! Expect to see Miss Zoe (and maybe even her brothers if I can sweet talk them) having more fantastical adventures in the land of make-believe!
I hope you enjoyed this little trip down the rabbit hole. Until next time, I'll leave you with my all-time favorite Lewis Carroll quote:
"Imagination is the only weapon in the war against reality." — Lewis Carroll
Never stop dreaming, my dears!
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