Making my photobook part 2 (Exam)
Making my layouts:
Before making my layouts on InDesign, I would organise my images and what I would use to simulate text into page spread I made out of A3 paper. Once I was happy with the layout I made. I would transfer onto InDesign and write out my first draft of my text. This was an effective method as it allowed my to physically move and organise my work which I feel gave me a different view of my work which is good.
I think I quickly found what layouts were best for my work which is really good. However, the pace of my working is quite slow, meaning I need to do a lot more work outside of the assessment. My next step will be printing out all of my layouts and and reorganising them into an order I will be happy with.
Day 2:
Today, I have reviewed the photobook website I am going to use. This has now changed as YouLovePrint can not print anything with under 24 pages and my book has 20 pages. There are not many websites that print only 22 pages. However, I found that Snapfish does. It is quite a bit more expensive and there are less factors that I can alter but I am okay with that as I can still get a photobook I will be happy with.
Next, I am printing out all of my layouts and then physically sequencing them. I will then make these alterations on my InDesign file and then print a sample photobook to see if I like how it looks.
These were my sequences I made for my photobook. I like the one on the right as I feel it flows quite well. I think I have flowed nicely from old childhood toys to relationship with my brother to relationships with friends then to relationships with toys. I like that my final image relates to my autism as it feels like a timeline of how these things affected my life and then after all of it I get my diagnosis and it all makes sense.
After sequencing my images on InDesign, I have gone back to my layouts and changed the wording that is with my images. This is to allow my images to stand out more and not be drowned by writing. This gets my point across better and makes my images look better.
I have now switched back to YouLovePrint as Snapfish does not support InDesign. However, I may have found a local company that can make my book exactly as I would like it.
In between the exams, I did a photoshoot of my attempt photobook. I wanted to do it in my room at home as I felt that it was the most comforting and familiar which matches the images in my photobook. I like these images however when I photograph my actual photobook I will use different lighting as the only thing I could use at this moment was a lamp. I also want to make it a similar atmosphere to a shoot I did last summer with toys and bubbles, things that are very comforting to me.
Images for reference.
I experimented with angling my camera to create depth of field with my book which I think worked well but I would prefer if it always focused on the images rather than the text. I also experimented with changing the background.
The pillow was to represent comfort and also how these ideas of being attached too much to these things run through my head at night and make me unable to sleep.
The photo wall was to represent my whole childhood and the variety of changes that is shown in them. It shows that these attachments are the only constant in my life. I had my brother hold it so I could get the best angle with my camera.
The idea behind photographing it on the shelf is that the shelf is chaotic. It is full of things that I keep but don't use very often, much like the things in the book.
Day 3:
My final page spreads (not in order).
Currently, at the end of my exam, I am waiting to hear back from YouLovePrint about getting my book printed correctly. This means that I have not got my photobook ordered due to reasons that are out of my control.
