Noir Stories: Photographing a Timeline of Insomnia

Noir Stories: Photographing a Timeline of Insomnia

Creating stories is what many photographers are striving to do, whether in video or stills. Pulling on emotional ties with your viewer with something they can relate with gives the storyline a bigger impact. One photographer created a dramatic series on something most of us have been through at some point in our lives: insomnia.

After seeing a few images on the Do More Photographers Forum, I decided to contact the photographer to learn a little more about the storyline. Stacey Krolow created a fictional character and story based on an aspect of what model Julien was going through at the time. The team treated it as an intimate short film captured in stills. For two weeks prior, the pair designed storyboards and prepared to photograph the whole series in a 24-hour period. 

They felt that is was less boudoir and more exposition. The focus was more on a character in a "story as opposed to a person tippy-toeing the line of erotic teasing" Krolow wrote. She used a  Nikon D750, 35mm f/1.4 Sigma Art, 24mm f/1.4 Sigma Art, and a Fuji X-T2 with a 23mm lens for the whole set. 
A short video shows the entirety of the series, pulling in all the pieces of the story. It is where many of us have been. Each image created a tighter connection to the character from coming home from work, up all night, attempting to ignore the fact that sleep has escaped us, to the following morning, when we start the process all over again. 
Creating short stories is a great way to collaborate with other artists, shake off a rut in creativity, or simply to get what is in your mind out into the world. Working with someone who has gone through the story you are trying to create will help with genuine emotions. 
View the entire series and video that pulls it all together. 

All image with permission and courtesy of Stacey Krolow

Jennifer Tallerico's picture

JT is known throughout the International Boudoir Photography Industry and the region for her unique approach to Fine Art Photography. Her underwater work as JT Aqua is ethereal based and conceptual. She is an educator, writer and currently teaching workshops for underwater and boudoir.

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