I've Got a Tale to Tell: PHOTOSTORY CONTEST RESULTS

This year the Galleries Virtues wanted to host a Photostory contest to celebrate "authors" and showcase the range of talent members can find in the Photostories subforum. When you next have some extra time, stop by the Photostory gallery. If you like serial stories, check out the Serialised Photostories: A Database. There's something for every taste.

"I've Got a Tale to Tell" was the only juried contest DoA offered this year. Instead of opening the entries to popular vote, the three Gallery Virtues independently evaluated every story on a 1 to 5 scale across four areas: story conception, use and posing of the doll(s), quality of photography, and continuity of story and characters. Each of us commented on what we really enjoyed about each story. We did not compare scores or comments until I totaled everything at the end.

We've presented these stories in random order except for the top three, which you will find at the end of the thread (our way of encouraging you to read them all!). As the winner of this contest chose not to receive the prize, the ANother Secret Bamboo sculpt will go to the second place story.

We hope you enjoy these entries. If a particular story touched you, take a moment to PM the author. It would mean a lot. An awful lot of effort goes into making a photostory, so, to everyone who entered, you have our gratitude and respect! We offer you a small token of appreciation: an icon you can use to show your participation in DoA's Seventh Anniversary Photostory Contest, where, in all honesty, everyone is a winner!

Let's do this again!​

 

equine-aurora

Quiet Queen: This reminds me of how wonderful it was to have a hand to hold when the shadows grew scary when you were a child!
Taralphiel: Poor guy! Lovely imagery of that time in childhood when shadows were quite scary at night ...
FairEmma: It's darling how Yuuma trundles out of bed and climbs into Airi's, and then how he drapes himself on her lap. I really enjoy how loving a family these three make.



Yuuma: *whimpers in sleep and mumbles* Shadows, no go away.


Reino: Yuuma? Are you ok?


Yuuma: huh? *still groggy* I thought I heard my name. (btw this picture is dark like that on purpose)


Yuuma: AHHHHH! SHADOW! (this one is also dark on purpose)


Airi: *sleeping contently*


Yuuma: AIIIRRRIIII!
Airi: Huh? *still groggy* Yuuma?
Yuuma: THE SHADOW MONSTER IS AFTER ME!


Airi: Shhh, it's alright Yuuma, now tell me what happened.
Yuuma: I was dreaming that a shadow was attacking me, and then I thought I heard my name so I woke up, and I saw a huge shadow by my bed and I got scared and ran to you.
Airi: It's all right, it was just a dream. Shadow's are nothing to be afraid of.


Reino: *knocks on door frame* Umm, Airi?


Airi: Oh Reino, come on in. Yuuma just had a bad dream.


Reino: Yuuma? I'm sorry I scared you. My shadow was the one you saw when you woke up. I'm really sorry, I haven't been sleeping well and though a walk would help and I heard you whimpering in your sleep when I walked past your room, I was just checking on you.


Yuuma: It was you?
Reino: *smiling* Yes Yuuma, it was me. I'm sorry for scaring you. And I'm sorry Airi that this caused you to be woken up.
Airi: It's fine, he would have come and woken me up anyways after having a nightmare about a shadow attacking him. Thanks for checking on him.
Reino: Not a problem.


Airi: See Yuuma. I told you shadow's were nothing to be afraid of, it was just your cousin checking on you.
Yuuma: Yeah, sorry Airi.
Airi: It's all right Yuuma, I love you.

 

Lucius Sikilmituile

Quiet Queen: This really reminds me of a fast paced music video!
Taralphiel: Interesting story. He seems to have a pretty detailed past!
FairEmma: The enigmatic quality of the text pulls the viewer in to imagine the larger story around the shadowy past of this time-wanderer and ask how it influences his present circumstance. Who is "she"? Whose is the hand? How did he get from then to now? The absence of an answer engages. The photo manipulations seem to build the tension.



Shadows of my past

Will I never be free? How many years have to pass, until I can forget that one life?
How many times do I have to be borne again into another, to reinvent myself?


She will always watch me fall again and again.
Am I strong enough to get up this time, though?
What will happen when I am not?


… Fail…


I have seen so many things, experienced this worlds sorrow.
I wandered through destruction and hate, never looking into myself.
I dreamt that my heart had hardened much further than the coldest stone.
But…


…it was only a dream. I’m still as human as I was then.
And this time, I fear
…not
…strong
…enough...



Credits

Storyformat: Narative
Songtext in the pics, aside from in the last one, by The Morningside
Song:The shadows of the past
Album: The Wind, the Trees and the Shadows of the Past
Year: 2007
Genre: Melodic Death/Doom Metal
Country: Russia (Moscow)

 

Tekenduis

Quiet Queen: Beautifully atmospheric, reminiscent of a Victorian painting.
Taralphiel: A lot of emotion in the one image - striking!
FairEmma: This illustrated poem is a compelling memento mori with an image that challenges the viewer to evaluate it more deeply. The echoing lines balance with layers of dark and light. The arms look almost skeletal in relation to the youthful appearance of the veiled head,. It's wonderful how the veil itself echoes the theme--the shadow of death. This is a great example of how a story can unfold in the mind when you pair a single image to text.



~~The Shadow Of Death Hangs Over Us All~~

O, all the comrades that e'er I had,
They are sorry for my going away,
And all the sweethearts that e'er I had,
They'd wish me one more day to stay;
But since it falls unto my lot,
That I should rise and you should not,
I'll gently rise and softly call,
Goodnight and joy be with you all.
~~Author Unknown (Variant of a 19th C. Broadside Ballad)

 

JessiFlakes

Quiet Queen: Heart warming in a very genuine way.
Taralphiel: What a heart-warming story. This has a really nice flow and mood to it. Well constructed
FairEmma: When a story reaches in and puts you in touch with your own experience of loss, it's done a good job. I love the economy of the telling, the power of the grave stone image with its fitting words, and also the details, such as how the narrator's hair becomes dishevelled in her mourning. Presenting it in black and white minimises the visual stimulation, which helps the view focus on the interactions.



She followed me everywhere, like she was attached at the hip


Even though she shouldn't have been out of bed.


But I couldn't say no to her; she just wanted to be normal.


We had so much time together, so many laughs.


I should have known it couldn't last... things went so wrong, so quickly.


Only a few months later she was gone.


She wouldn't have liked it, I know, but I cried for days.


Then I found the bear.

Her bear.


It reminded me how even through all the sickness, she was so happy. She knew her story's ending, but she didn't care; she was happy... with me.


My little sister, my little shadow.

 

Saralena

Quiet Queen: Beautifully Poe-ish, very effectively spooky!
Taralphiel: Haunting! Some of the images are shiver-inducing! Set the scene very well.
FairEmma: It's not often you get to see a fabulous gothic horror story. Images of Poe mixed with Dostoevsky pop up in my head. A divine tension builds through the tale and is echoed in the images as the narrator descends further into madness. I love the opening image as well as the images of him leaning against the wall and the hair wrapped around him.



He died with his eyes open; I would know. Not because I attended his funeral and gazed into that flower-filled casket as it was lowered into the ground, but because I’m the one that killed him.


I needed to pay them back and he was well known for his collection of valuable jewelry and knickknacks. It was a simple plan—sneak into his room while he was away, steal everything I could fit into my simple black bag, and disappear back into the night.


That night though, it was storming out, so I didn’t hear him when he entered.


Once I finally noticed, I panicked, and pinned him to the ground without thinking. Before I even realized what I was doing, his meek struggles ceased and his last choking breath died out.


I paid them off with his stolen jewels, but even without that well known gang breathing down my neck for money, I still felt unsafe. I saw him everywhere—ever since the night I’d killed him, I couldn’t get him out of my thoughts, and it felt as if something had changed inside of me.


The shadow of my guilt… the shadow of his revenge… they loomed ominously down on me. I boarded up my doors and windows, locking myself up inside my house. There wasn’t a single moment I couldn’t feel his blue, blue eyes staring at me from dark corners, there wasn’t a single moment I couldn’t see his silhouette in my window.


He was everywhere, and he wouldn’t leave me alone. I felt as if I was going crazy, and maybe I was.


The boards fell away from my windows and doors and a chilly breeze slithered over my skin. One pale foot entered my house, his long robes dragging along on the ground behind him. His hair crept in like pale smoke, slinking across the walls and blending with the shadows. I wanted to run, but I was paralyzed.


It slid across my skin, pushed its way into my mouth and nose and eyes and tightened its grip around my throat. I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t move; all I could feel were my lungs screaming for breath and all I could see were tendrils of his long, slinky hair and flashing spots that clouded my vision. I tried to gag, tried to spit, but soon enough the blackness took over and I was consumed by the shadows.


But in reality, it was really I who was the shadow; and I consumed myself.

 

Vienni

Quiet Queen: A very sweet concept, where I particularly loved the boy's very natural poses.
Taralphiel: Very cute use of mimicry. Lovable characters. Well done.
FairEmma: I enjoy how this draws upon the adoration of a younger sibling for the older and how this is paralleled in the age of their respective dogs (though the puppy doesn't seem possessed of much adoration ... being very puppy-ish after all). The relationship is especially sweetened by the older brother's affection. A very delicate story!



I know and I realize, I have a very adorable little shadow...


My little shadow always try to copy every single thing that I do...


For example... is this...


I'm teaching my pet to look closely to his prey...


But it seems my shadow's pet is running away before she can teach anything...


Hmm... have you give up, my little one ?
If you give up already... then...


Here, sit with me... let's enjoy sunny day together, my sweet shadow...

 

NY_Kitty

Quiet Queen: A sweet concept, with wonderfully dramatic shadows.
Taralphiel: Adorable. Lovely work with the shadows. Has nice movement to it
FairEmma: I love the play of hands with their corresponding shadows ... the boys are so sweet together, especially when the one scares the other and then comforts him, and it's delightful how the shadow theme plays on different levels. This story feels so genuine.



Look it's a crocodile!


What else can we make? How about moose antlers?


No! Let's make dinosaurs!


Look, we can try my bear.


See! Look at the scary shadow it makes.


I don't think that's going to work, I'll be right back.


Ahhhh!!!


It's a giant bear! ::Cries::


Hahahah I knew that would scare him.


Come here lil' one, it's ok look...


I have a big bear just like yours.

 

ReiScarlet

Quiet Queen: A lovely concept, told in a very lyrical way, almost like a fairytale.
Taralphiel: Heart-warming. Love the premise of something fairytale, and sacrifice for love & friendship.
FairEmma: A beautiful, beautiful story, told in the manner of a fairy tale and carrying with it the possibility of different interpretations. I love the parallel pictures of three shadow hands at the beginning and three feet that can walk (oddly with minimal shadowing!). The structure is so well thought-out, the writing gentle and nicely in keeping with the tone of the pictures.



Somewhere in the world, in a small town lived a young girl. She had silky golden hair, sky-blue eyes and carried an uncurable illness though all her life. She couldn't play with other children or go to school - all day long she lied in bed in her room looking outside the window watching people going past her house and listening to birds, singing their sweet songs.


She didn't have any friends and her parents were always busy at work. So, she usually read books or watched TV. But most of sll she liked creating stories with the help of shadow from her hands. Yesterday, it was a tale about a dog and today she will tell a story about a family of birds - nobody could hear them, those tales were told by herself to herself.


Despite everything, she wasn't lonely. Once, she heard, that a human's shadow is something more than just a place, where light can't reach. Since than, she started to believe, that dark silhouette that always repeat her moves, can understand her feelings too. When girl was sad, shadow became closer, as trying to hug her and when she laughed, shadow laughed with her too, girl thought.


One night, when she couldn't sleep she looked out from the window and saw something, falling down the sky, shining.
-A fallen star! - thought the girl - Oh, little star, grand my wish, if you can! I believe my shadow is not ordinary, I want to see her in a human shape, just for one day! I think it is my biggest wish!
The star winked and disappeared.


On the next day a gentle touch woke up the young girl. In front of her sat someone, who looked very similar to her, in the same clothes but instead of blonde, newly appeared girl had shadow-black hair...
-I'm your shadow, you wanted to meet so much! - said the girl.


It was the best day of her life. The young girl told her shadow everything, that was on her mind. She even said about her greatest , yet, unreal wish - to be able to walk, like everyone else.
-You know, not only faeries can cast spells, shadows can perform miracles too - Shadow smiled mysteriously - and now, got to bed, it's already that late!


When she woke up Shadow wasn't there. The girl was confused, was everything real or not when she felt that something in her body had changed. Not believing to succeed, she tried to stand on her feet and walked around the room. It was impossible - the incurable illness went away and didn't leave a sign of it. It was truly a miracle, did by shadow.


Soon, the girl went to school and got a lot of friends. Though, her shadow didn't look special anymore. The girl thought that Shadow gave her life or soul in exchange for girl's health, but she never knew. Instead, she kept memories about her precious friend deep inside her heart...
-I believe, one day, we will meet again - the girl used to say...

 

aernath

Quiet Queen: A really amusing concept, you almost wish you could hear the smallest boy's final comment…
Taralphiel: Very good job at portraying humour without words. I like this!
FairEmma: The progression of little to big to bigger is clever. The first two establish the mirrored pattern, but the moment when the quasi-cluess biggest guy finally joins in and puts up the wrong arm is delightfully unexpected. I love how the other two react. And the biggest dude still doesn't get it. I had a good laugh.

 

thegashlycrumb

Quiet Queen: Very amusing, I just hope my dolls aren't doing this behind my back!
Taralphiel: I liked the sequencing and use of the dolls. Very funny n.n
FairEmma: The true charm of this story lies in its details and how the Inkling mimics and reacts to the girl's range of emotions. Both characters are wonderfully expressive. It's a great use of different face plates, and I think the effect of this story is heightened by the absence of words.

 

Maya Cecile

Quiet Queen: Beautifully lyrical, as if it's invoking its own mythology.
Taralphiel: Lovely emotion. Really love the feel of the writing too.
FairEmma: These images creates an ambiance of poignant romance. The sense of warm and cool echoes the text and asks me to determine whether this shadow of love is a good or sad thing. I actually enjoy being able to decide for myself



Like Saturn's children


you surrender to the hungry
lips that mark the throat
I have given you


it is your combat
to supplicate, mouthing
words I will not hear


this is your love,
the shadow that crosses my heart


its beating of wings.

 

Razaera
Third Place

Quiet Queen: Wonderfully funny with marvellously vivid characters.
Taralphiel: Great use of humour - Cadell always cracks me up!
FairEmma: The energy and personalities in this comedy are absolutely wonderful. It's easy to convey humour and self-interest and enthusiasm and suspicion in text, far harder in poses, especially when the setting doesn't change. I really like how this story breathes life and has me feeling I'm a fly on the wall. I love these two together!

 

captnklaus
Second Place

Quiet Queen: Both sweet and funny, with the cutest monsters ever!
Taralphiel: Creative and squee-inducing monsters. Very well done!
FairEmma: So clever and adorable, and the minimalist "set" demonstrates less is so often more. It's reminiscent of Where the Wild Things Are. I especially like the upside-down monster that looks a lot like our hero, whose wisdom is revealed when he turns the problem on its head. These are shadow monsters to love and our hero is a very clever boy to learn the truth of that.



At night the monsters come out and I can't sleep.


I try to close my eyes to make them go away, but they sneak up on me. They just get bigger and scarier.


I'm so scared I can't scream!


But wait- I have an idea! Those aren't monsters ...


... They're friends! And they like to tell funny jokes.


Some of them have the fanciest feet I've ever seen.


All they want is to have fun, just like me!


It's been a fun night, and with my new friends watching over me, I can finally fall asleep.

 

JennyNemesis
First Place

Quiet Queen: Truly funny, and beautifully posed!
Taralphiel: A scream! Very funny, and I love the mid-dance posing.
FairEmma: Such a fabulous mix of irreverence and comedy to highlight the internal debate we can have with our shadow selves (very few of whom ever get let out of their box). There is indeed shameless majesty in an otherwise naked shadow-soul cavorting, dressed only in a leather jacket and goth rollerblades with boxer shorts for a hat.



.... Can it be? Nobody here?...


Ahh! Peace in the Valley. Finally.





"... When I'm watchin' my TV... and a man comes on to tell me... how white my shirts can be... but he cain't be a man, 'cause he doesn't smoke the same cig-ar-ettes as me..."


"I caaan't get! no!.... a-no-no-no!..."


"A-hey-hey-hey!... That's a-what I sayyyy..."


".... no satis-fac-tion... no satis-FAC!-TION!... Ah cain't GET! NO!... daananaa-na-nanaana-naana..."





You know part of you wants to join me!!


...*yeee!*...

 

Congratulations to our winner(s) and a heartfelt thank you to everyone who entered!! captnklaus, please PM FairEmma with your shipping address.

(If you choose to use the 7th Anniversary Photostory Icon, please save it to your computer and upload it to your own hosting service.)