Connecting Essay 5

Photo I found on the Internet: 

My Photo:

I found the first image when researching about Mental Illness photography. In this black and white photograph, there is a girl screaming on one side, and on the other side, there is the same girl holding on to her head and clenching her teeth. The photographer has used a slow shutter speed in order to create this image as there is two of the same person. This photo resembles two emotions, the first being frightened and fearful, as the girl is screaming. The second being frustrated and confused, as the girl is grabbing on to her head for a release of anger, and is also biting down on her lip in order to stop herself from screaming. This photo shows that this person feels all of these emotions at once. 

My image was shot for the topic of Mental Illness, whereby I used a slow shutter speed to create a blurred effect. I then asked my model to scream but move is head as he was doing so. Therefore, this created the illusion that my model has multiple heads. However, My actual model is in focus, whereas the copy is blurred and slightly orange due to the lighting. Thus, it looks as though the copy is himself trying to leave his body, but can't and therefore is getting extremely frustrated and angry. 

These two photos depict the feelings and thoughts of a mentally ill patient. For example, illnesses such as Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder cause people to feel as though they have multiple personalities/identities. These illnesses also cause people to experience a range of different emotions all at once, or one after the other very quickly. As in both images, there are two of the same person, it is as though the person has two identities. Also, because both models are using facial expressions to show their emotions, we can see that their feelings are incredibly overwhelming and taking over their minds.