Initial project proposal

Elizabeth Chandler - BA(HONS) Photography - Level 5

Proffessional Frameworks - Editorial Photography

Project Proposal

The aim of this assignment is to produce a body of work (10-15 images) that have continuity through narrative which, together illustrate an editorial feature on a subject of my own choice. The images must be of high enough quality that the commissioning editor/picture editor would not hesitate to use them within their publication.

With in-depth research and a number of feedback sessions I hope to develop an understanding about my subject/s in order to greater understand what the written article would cover.

Extended captions must also be provided to accompany the images, these will help identify the person, subject and items within the images which play a vital role is telling the story.

For this, my initial proposal I wish to outline a few ideas I feel I could potentially peruse and develop for this assignment. First of all I wish to explain the nature of these ideas as all of them could be considered similar in the sense that they all involve creating awareness in a round about way.

For example, each of the ideas I mention here, in my proposal has been selected and highlighted by myself as potentially having strengths over numerous other ideas generated after receiving the brief.

The three I will be explaining as mentioned above, all kind of revolve around the idea of creating awareness. A look into what is usually hidden, or sugar coated for the public eye.

I wish to create a body of work, which reveal something of the unseen.

Although everyone is aware of these organisations, what goes on behind closed doors I would consider somewhat of a mystery to most. I propose to contact and photograph in a dogs home, cattery or old persons home.

I am aware of the issues around accessing these places but plan on contacting/approaching and asking for their cooperation. In return I will offer them copies of the images and so on.

The whole idea stems from the fact that I, many years ago used to work in the dogs home on the weekend as i was in school at that time. I used to get £10 a day to do, essentially what all the other workers did. My interest in this has come as a result of seeing the workings of the dogs home and the realisation that the running and management of the dogs isn't as ideal as outsiders perhaps like the think. The conditions which the dogs live in are quite bad in many ways. Some kennels have 6 or 7 dogs squashed in, they are rarely walked simply because there isn’t enough staff or time. Although they run a voluntary dog walking scheme where the locals can come and take a dog out for half an hour not enough people do. This amongst other things lead me to think of an interesting project where I could portray the dogs home in a true light, revealing what is, in some ways the grim reality of the dogs home in modern times where funding is minimal. Not the galmourised pictures we seen in leaflets ect.

Similarly to this, I feel the same kind of project could be perused in either a dogs home or a cattery ect. I would imagine the going’s on behind their doors is much alike the dogs home.

Although I am aware that I cannot paint a terribly negative image of these organisations I am interested in presenting the reality of them rather than the typical fabricated images showing only the good things that happen there.

I have based my initial research around the idea of the dogs home as this is the one I am most passionate about developing if after contacting the organisers I am able to gain access.

Some Dog magazines that would potentially publish a body of work like the one i am proposing to produce.

http://fidoseofreality.com/

http://www.naturallyhappydogs.com/

http://www.moderndogmagazine.com/

http://www.yourdog.co.uk/

http://www.dogsmonthly.co.uk/

http://www.k9magazine.com/

http://www.dogworld.co.uk/

I found an article on the Daily Mail online website which revealed the living conditions of people in Hong Kong. I have included this here as I really like the images captured and how they really work well with the text in order to tell a story of these people and their horrendous living conditions.

I have been looking for articles which do as I propose and so far haven’t found any stories which talk about the living conditions in dogs homes. I founf plenty of articles which cover neglect and illegal activity such as dog fighting, dog breeding and so on. These could be useful and inspire me. They will certainly give me some ideas regarding composition, tone, the mood of the images and other useful technical hints.

Some examples are below.

http://www.moderndogmagazine.com/articles/puppy-hell-horrors-puppy-mills/269

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2169146/Puppy-owner-neglected-pet-badly-went-bald-pretended-stray-avoid-600-vet-s-bill.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2095451/Cruel-couple-facing-jail-appalling-neglect-sheepdog-trapped-ball-matted-hair.html

http://www.pitbullsontheweb.com/petbull/articles/brownstein.html

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-19242715

http://crimeblog.dallasnews.com/2012/10/the-maltese-felon-police-suspect-illegal-dog-breeders-are-mass-abandoning-their-pooches-in-denton-county-elsewhere.html/

I found a website which detials and outlines numerous different terms associated with animal abuse, it covers dog fighting, dog neglect and hoarding.

http://www.pet-abuse.com/pages/animal_cruelty.php

Contact details of the Manchester Dog’s home.

Manchester & Cheshire Dogs' Home

Crofter's House, Moss Brook Road