An alliance between the Queen and her country
I visited the Victoria and Albert museum as they were exhibiting photographs taken by Cecil Beaton in celebration of the Diamond Jubilee. The images had a strong sense of an alliance between both the Queen and her country, and the Queen and the Royal Family. While some of the images featured in the exhibition depict a more natural and down-to-earth side to the Queen others are more formal which were taken for a political purpose. I like the photo below due to the formality and extravagance of the Queen's surroundings as she is poised against an intricate couch. The quality of every photograph made the image appear like a painting due to the film camera that was used. When the Queen is captured by Beaton on her own the images appear more formal while they maintain different intentions as to when she is being photographed with her family.
The photograph above is a postcard I bought at the exhibition taken in 1968 in Buckingham Palace.
The three images above also portray a more formal image of the Queen as she is posing while either being shot in a studio or with a flamboyant backdrop. The middle image portrays a sense of wealth and strength, almost as if the image was propaganda, it could be seen as a metaphor for England. My favourite image in the exhibition is the image on the far right as I really like the colours and the composition. The light blue contrasts with the Queens black gown as the shadow on her profile allows the light to highlight the middle of her face.
An alliance between The Queen and her family
Although the first image is still formal, the sense of the Queen's alliance with her family comes through in these photographs. In the second picture Elizabeth is photographed with Prince Charles and Princess Anne as they pose for a family portrait. In the first image the Queen appears protective over her new born son, this is clear through her body language. I like the way this in particular image has been taken as it is simple yet interesting, the set up is similar to that of Richard Avedon. In the other three photograph the Queen appears more relaxed as she is smiling and is taking a more natural pose and position.