What role do photographs play in the story? How do you think technological changes have impacted the importance of photographs today?

What role do photographs play in the story? How do pictures hide or reveal the truth? How do you think technological changes have impacted the importance of photographs today?

I need to think about this. One thing I know that I did not know before reading this book is that people did not smile in photos from the past because it would be too hard to hold a smile long enough to say the Lord's Prayer and not have it look fake. I often wondered why people looked sad or scared in pictures from the past.

Photography is a way for Charlotte to exert some independence. It allows her to interact with people in a different way

Photography was more than a hobby for Charlotte and it did give her some escape from the strict expectations of women in her day. It allowed her an intellectual pursuit and an avenue to approach people from all walks of life.

I think that the "photograph" has advanced to the point that most children think using phones, iPads etc to take pictures and videos is just a natural part of any day and not anything special or unusual. This is a very big change from the photos of Charlotte's time. She had to make artistic changes to play with her images while today all of that is done with the touch of a button or keystroke.
So I think that photos are both more important in that they are more prevalent and yet less important as I am not sure that there will be as many photos that are saved for the ages in albums etc.

I thought the introduction of photography in the story was a good idea. It made Charlotte unconventional from the beginning and as a photographer, she was able to be an observer, detached and disconnected from the scene and also gave her independence.

I enjoyed the photography aspect as well. It was quite the art back then, wasn't it? I think it was an inspired choice to make Charlotte a photographer and really added to the story.

I feel like photographs generally aren't as appreciated today. They're too easy - immediate results, no technical knowledge needed, plus you can take thousands of the same subject if you wish, no need to take care. I think as a result they've become in some ways more difficult to enjoy. You put them on a hard drive and they just live there in their thousands and don't get looked at often.

Photography was Charlotte's ticket to independence, to freedom of expression and creativity. She could remain detached, aloof from a scene yet observe and document the events of the day. She was part of the vanguard of amateur photographers who came initially from the monied classes. It was an expensive hobby and sitting for a photography was taken seriously. Even in my childhood, photographs were a relative rarity while today they are as ubiquitous as images of people's dinners posted on social media. Childhoods are documented in daily if not hourly increments instead of poses or snapshots taken on holidays and birthdays. The artform of photography has developed as rapidly.

I really enjoyed the way photography entered and became such an important aspect of the novel. Just as the setting of a story can become a character in a novel, Charlotte's passion and skill of photography drove the story to it very end. At important points of the story, photography in some manner, moved the story on - twisting the events in a new direction. And in the end, I imagine Charlotte's talent brings a new and satisfying life. And although many may not agree -- enable her to grow enough to not need Bay in her life in America.

I think images will always be an important part of keeping a record of personal life stories and record of the world's story as well. We have already learned how dramatically technology has changed the process. I can't even imagine what the future has in store for the art of Photoraphy. I love the photo albums I have made in the past. But I love seeing the images of my children's baby pictures on the large screen TV too!

I think photographs play another role in the book, aside from a way for Charlotte to be independent. When Charlotte and Sisi are discussing photography after Fred and Augusta's wedding, Sisi says "A great portrait shows the soul of the sitter; that is something a photograph can never do." Charlotte replies, "I disagree, Ma'am. A royal portrait is bound by its very nature to flatter its subject, but a photograph cannot lie." Photographs are the things in the novel that tell the truth, whereas paintings flatter and lie. Sisi is obsessed with her waning beauty and wants everyone to picture her as she is shown in her famous portrait with diamond stars in her hair. She shuns all photographs because she knows that they will show her as she really is, not as she wishes to be. Charlotte, on the other hand, is no great beauty. But she embraces the truth of photography. And it is a photograph that shows her the truth about Bay's feelings for Sisi.

I like that photographs and photography provide a common thread throughout the novel, and really "tie" it all together.
Photographs provide both the "doing" and the "undoing" of Charlotte, Bay and Sisi. Charlotte received high praise and notice from Queen Victoria in person, the ultimate compliment of the times. Charlotte's photographs provided an outlet for her talent, and gave her confidence in herself that she could succeed and have a life on her own terms. However, her photographs almost became her undoing when she photographed Sisi without Sisi's knowledge, and the photo was exhibited in public. The same photo almost became Bay's undoing when Charlotte notice the look of admiration on his face, as he gazed at Sisi.

Back then, taking photographs was not done by just anyone. It was a complex and expensive hobby. Now, everyone can take pictures and edit them. Photography give Charlotte an outlet for her creativity. She enjoys it and I think she enjoys the uniqueness that it brings to her.

Charlotte's photography played a large role throughout the story. It was a major part of her life, although it was not thought proper by many in that time and place. The truth was captured in her work. I think terrio's review expressed this well.
I think about our digital photos today. How many candid moments are thought of as "no good" and quickly deleted, along with the memory. For example, a birthday party when the photo isn't "picture perfect"...maybe a sibling is acting up and sticking their tongue out. Or anytime when it isn't a "Kodak moment". These could be treasured recollections in the years to come! Also, I think sometimes we take so many pictures that we can miss the present moment when things are actually happening. There sure are a lot of opportunities now...cell phones, I-Pads etc. as well as "real cameras". Charlotte would be amazed!!