Through the Eyes of a Child

Through the Eyes of a Child

I decided to photograph a swinging chain ladder leading up to a play structure at my favorite childhood park. I always loved to play here with my sisters, and when I think back to what it was like to be a little kid, this park definitely comes to mind first. I chose this specific object because I liked the potential that the scene had for the usage of several compositional elements, and the lighting was better in this area than in most other parts of the park.

I chose to utilize the compositional elements of leading lines, repetition & patterns, symmetry, texture, and perspective. The use of an upward angle from a position that was low to the ground helped create the perspective of a small child, which was the purpose of the assignment. The other elements help draw focus to the rising ladder while making the top portion of the play structure look very distant, further contributing to the goal of making the photo seem as though it is from the viewpoint of a young child.

I do think I was successful in translating my thoughts into a visual form. My usage of leading lines and "worm's eye" perspective really help the image seem like it is what a child would see if he or she was climbing the ladder and looking up. It also abstractly portrays the larger idea that, for children, most tasks seem more daunting and objects seem larger than they truly are because kids are so small, young, and inexperienced. Things that I thought were scary and impossible when I was little ended up becoming parts of my everyday life that no longer phased me as an adolescent or teenager.

If I did this again, I would try to position the ladder better so it was completely straight all the way across. I attempted this the first time and even had my mom hold parts of the ladder up so it was more even, but it was still higher on one side and slightly tilted.