When I first go onto the book side, I have to take some time to see al my images and embrace how I want them placed. Its quite overwhelming at first.

I started by making all the pages black, not definite to keep it like this but I did do black backgrounds for my last book and really liked the outcome, and because I have majority black and white images that are dark and sad in a way the black pages represent that better.

I like to leave the first two pages blank, page three I plan on maybe writing a poem, even maybe joyful about love or as if the beginning of the story which this is.

I am considering and trying out this as my first image, the flower is bright and full of life, symbolising that romance is not dead yet, which helps bring in my symbolism, it also shows the start of life, and romance being beautiful, I moved it around so the flower was centre and made it full bleed but it is a black background image anyway.

I firstly laid out these two images together, I’m not sure I like them together, I wanted to show happy love at first and as I go throughout my book I show it dying but, I just think these images look a bit clunky together and don’t love them, but just for the minute I am going to leave them there.

I decided to change how I was going to start the images, and started with doing the comparisons because those are photos I’m sure of and sure on how I will present them.

This is my second comparison photo, so still doing the comparison ones first and will slowly work around those pages, to decide on which ones will go first and which ones will go after, or go in at all.

This page will have a comparison photo with it but I don’t have it saved at the moment, so its going blank, I am going to do this with a few other pages that I don’t have the comparison photo with yet.

Then I wanted to show slowly more ways in that social media had ruined romance, and used this photo as a full bleed along these pages, to show no one living in the moment.

I continued it on to these pages where I try to tell a story of someone seeing a couple being cute on social media and wants to be like that, not 100% certain this will be the final layout but this is what this blog is for to experiment on how i want it to look.

I then tried this way for a bit more symmetry and sequence in my book, but still not convinced.

After all the comparison photos because I was certain on how I wanted them I added in this photo which is the same as page 4 and 5 to continue the sequence and story telling as this flower is a little more dead and it shows romance dying.

Then I moved this page after it.

Then I had this image which I used as a full bleed image, and then down the middle is between them both almost as if they are being split apart from the nature and each other due to phones.

Then i had this photo all on its own to show an older relationship of street photography.

Not sure about this page and think it might be random on where it is places but I am just trying to make pages I like then hopefully find some sort of order onto them when they are done or keep them how they are.

Dying flower even more dying as we continue throughout the book.

so I am almost completely finished with my book, I rearranged the order there are just a few things I cant decide.

I cant decide my front and back cover and might just have to plain with the title and my name, I also cant decide a title and need to decide that.

Next is these pages where I am planning on having a poem or few sentences that are about my book, and might continue that throughout the book.

Then I start my book, with a very beautiful alive flower, to dip into my symbolism and represent love being alive and beautiful

After that I move onto my first comparison photo, of love year ago, where are a couple are holding hands and looking at each other with love, when the photo next to it is love in the 21st century where they are on their phones with headphones on. not talking to each other but it is clear they are a couple holding hands.

Then we have the second comparison, again the first image, in a car kissing lying on one another, clearly in love as known in movies, what was dreamed of, because when people look back into the 80’s and older, they think of drive in movies and kissing in a car, and in todays world, we think the same thing but going in cars isn’t as romantic as was pictured.

After that I added in a new image, that shows a couple in love and cuddling, to show that some love is still alive and to break the comparisons up.

Then it is a photo of someone on their phone, over on the other side, to add a sort of symmetry and sequence into the book, this shows that their is love in the page before but here comes the social media that is known to be ruining romance slowly.

Then I return back to my comparisons, again where instead of the couple speaking with each other they are on their phones, not really in each other presence like we should be.

Continue on to another comparison, which I do like but it bothers me that you cant really see the carving in my photo. in this one it shows that they only did the couple thing of carving their names into a tree to post it so everyone thinks their couple is cute.

To continue on the sequence of my book, I have another coupley image on the left side, after two comparisons.

Then on the other side, a man walking on his phone, oblivious to what is going on, unaware of the romance that could find him, maybe thinking that all the couples he sees on social media is something he wishes he had. And it is another image of someone on their phone after a romantic picture to demonstrate more that social media is slowly taking over.

then I go onto another comparison, and continue that symbolism, and sequence throughout.

Then to have it continue even more like a story and show that romance is dying, I have the same flower once again but it is more deceased and lifeless.

Then I move onto these pages where they tell a story within them selves and have their own symmetry of what’s going on, they tell the story, of the girl seeing a couple online being cute, and likes the idea, is jealous that her relationship isn’t the same, so decides to show her boyfriend and create the same image to post online.

Then back to the overall symmetry of the book we have this image on the left side, as the previous two have been of them being coupley and cute, but this shows that they are now more infected by social media then they where before, they are still holding hands and being cute but they are more involved in their phones.

Then we have another street photography photo of someone on their phones, but this one is even more social media based, and showing the infection of phones even more to represent how it is getting worse as he is carrying two phones.

Then I have this image, which I really liked, and always wanted to be in it especially as a full bleed image, not only do I like that it represents the couple not appreciating being their with each other looking at the gorgeous view but it also shows them taking photos to post of social media, proving that social media is fake, and taking over, but I have also placed it in a way that the image will be split in half but the fold of the pages breaking up the couple so that they have a split between them, showing that the social media is taking them away from each other without even realising it.

then I have this image, which I don’t know if I will defiantly keep here, but I really like it and I was tempted to have to has my front and back cover but it didn’t spread across the page or look right. so I moved it into my book but this here is is randomly placed.

Then I have this image, which I also don’t know if I love and will keep there.

Then I move onto these pages, which show the guy sitting alone on his phone and that he was really look at a dating app, which shows that he believes he needs a relationship due to social media and what he sees around him and he ends up using social media to find it, and dating apps are known for being creepy, and fake and unreliable.

Then I have this image of the same happy couple shown before, now not so happy, as she is on her phone and caring about social media or sat looking for whatever not involving herself with her partner, and the partner is now jealous and paranoid looking over at her phone.

Then I have the final photo, of the flower we began with now dead and destroyed, like romance, on the right page opposite to the first to show that we are ending the story.

And that is my book layout plan as of now.

Then I started planning my front page and title, for the title I decided between ‘digital intimacy, real distance’ or ‘disconnected’ and decided that disconnected sounded a lot better, so that was going to be my title.

This was the first look, but I don’t like it because it looks boring.

Then I changed it to have these two images here but separated by the spine so that it breaks them apart as they are right next to each other by miles apart.

Then finally I added in a little poem to begin my book. slightly explaining but in a symbolic poetic affective way. I might add more poems throughout, not sure.