About Project Storyboard
As Seen & Heard On:
Part 1: Breast cancer survivors will participate in a fashion styled photo shoot which will be published in a coffee table book with their personal stories. In addition the photographs will be unveiled in a gallery setting at the Unveiling Soiree in October 2012.
Part 2: Men and women who are going through treatment for breast cancer will have their portrait taken to be published in a Coffee Table book along with their story.
Part 3: Breast cancer survivors and those who support them will submit their experiences to be published in a book.
Pink Soirée
How It Came To Be:
A few years back I created a wedding theme photo shoot which included vendors in the wedding industry. Seven vendors agreed to participate and we found an actual married couple to be our models. (It’s easy to photograph models, it takes talent to photograph those who are not.) My shoot included limos, an Anne Barge wedding dress, scooter, custom designed shoes, cake toppers, a presidential suite and a bull dog. The shoot was an amazing success and to thank all who participated we had a soiree where I personally thanked everyone and presented all the photos. I was amazed at how many people were willing to help.
A Few Months Later:
While taking a break during the summer heat in Savannah Ga. from a day long engagement shoot it occurred to me that the previous shoot could be bigger and more meaningful. It’s great that vendors in an industry work together and create something that hasn’t been done before but what about creating something that hasn’t been done before AND has meaning. At this point I was like a kid getting excited and not knowing why. Well, I knew that I wanted the project to work in tandem with a local charity but also have a connection to. After taking two seconds to ponder it was a no brainer to choose breast cancer. I’ve know a number of women who were affected by breast cancer via individually or through a parent.
It was important to me that not only did the photographs have to be phenomenal but the women had to tell their stories. In my research in Google I found there were very few breast cancer photo shoots and of the ones that did find they included women who’ve never experienced breast cancer. What a tragedy! Why create a “breast cancer photo shoot” with no one who experienced this disease?
The Set Up:
I determined that I was going to find 12 women who personally experienced breast cancer or their mother had breast cancer. In addition I was going to use a gulf stream jet, awesome cars, and helicopters just to name a few things to make this shoot unlike anything else that has been done before. In just over a month in a half I found my 12 models, millions of dollars in props and 35 businesses who were gracious enough to donate their time and talent. Praise Jesus. In addition, I found an outstanding writer and cinematographer who would sit down with each of the models to uncover their stories during the shoot.
What I also did was to rent, at a very steep discount, an extended hummer limo for the models. As you know, if you are not a model it is very difficult to work in front of a camera. As a result, I needed the models to know and feel like princesses and rock stars. The hummer was only for them. In addition, make-up artists from CNN came to make each model beam with radiance.
The Power of Stories:
Stories of women who have been affected by breast cancer are powerful because it teaches those who will go through it in the future, those who are being affected now and those who have already survived what to expect.
Consider these stories:
- A daughter whose mom with breast cancer struggles with her thoughts of “selfishness” about deciding if she should quit school to help her mom whose dad is emotional distant.
- A young woman diagnosed with breast cancer but has no one to turn to because she has no friends who have been affected by the disease and all the support groups have women who are 20 years older
- A young woman wonders if she genetically inherited breast cancer because grandmother and mother are breast cancer survivors.
- A woman in the prime of her life is diagnosed with breast cancer with no family history. How does she adapt to her new way of life?
How can this not be helpful?
The Book:
The “To Have & To Hold” book was published with 96 pages of each of the women’s personal stories and photographs from the shoot. You may purchase the book and all the proceeds are donated to the Koman foundation.
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ABOUT PETER:
Peter . . .
- Is a HUSBAND
- Is a FATHER
- Is a PHOTOGRAPHER
- Is an AUTHOR
- Is a TRAVELER
- Is an ARTIST
- Is HONEST
- Is TENACIOUS
- [and] IS DETERMINED TO LIVE A LIFE THAT WILL MAKE HIS GRANDCHILDREN PROUD!
Peter is also the photographer at Storyboardlife.com. If you have any questions peter is as close to your nearest phone or computer. Talk to you soon. (770) 846-9274 peterdoyle[at]storyboardlife[dot]com
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
I love your photographs and the idea behind your project. I hope that this is a continuing project and that there are more to come!
It’s definitely continuing! It takes a lot of time and plenty of help to pull this off but it’s going to be worth it. Thanks for stopping by.