Wow, everything is much smaller now. Image © Jain Lemos.

Still pictures and films are totally different photographic mediums. But here is one way to merge them. For editorial photographers, one frame should be able to convey your story. Start building:

• Single shots
• Article
• Book
• Exhibition
• Film

As the project develops, incorporate the work of writers and other artists to add depth and texture. Practically any subject can be expanded but first you need to determine if your idea can make it all the way through to film. To make a good movie, the scenes need to leave you with a sense of having actually been there. Your films don’t have to be long, have actors or a traditional script (storyboards are a must, though).

Take a simple concept such as smoke and mirrors. Smoke puffed from a cigarette, swirling from a campfire and after a gunshot. Shots of mirrors made from water and buildings. Then move into the process of how mirrors are made, early mirrors, mirrors in mythology and so on.

Sometimes I worry that the idea has already been done. But think of a song that is re-recorded by another artist. The new version could be great but usually I feel the original is better, probably only because it is the authentic one. As long as you aren’t copying frame-for-frame and your approach to the style is sincere, give it a go.

Speaking of style, I’m reminded of a joke from Rick Sammon: One blurry picture is a mistake. Twenty blurry pictures is a style.