5 Minutes
The editorial 5 Minutes shot by Sasha Tereshchenko, a Kyiv-based photographer, revolves around the personal story, which depicts 2 fraternal twin sisters and models for the shoot Dasha and Alina Palagnyuk. The story takes place in a beautiful high ceiling apartment owned by Zhenya Trifonova. The set enables to take extreme high angle frames, while the huge windows let light from the outside into the living room, creating a soft pallet, which emphasizes the nude colors of the shoot.
The exquisite work with the postures that almost merge two bodies into one human being builds on the uniqueness, the similarities, and the differences that may be perceived in twins. Two distinct personalities with very different lives, preferences, and physical appearance who have the strongest connection to each other on the biological level. The story questions the topic of boundaries touching on the themes of uniqueness and dissimilarity through a very emotional depiction and composition.
We speak with the team to shed some light on behind the scenes moments, the preparations for the shoot, and personal attitude to the work on set to create the right atmosphere.
Photography Sasha Tereshchenko Models Dasha Palagnyuk & Alina Palagnyk
Special thanks to Zhenya Trifonova
‘I wanted to create conditions that will correspond to my inner state. Mood board is a result, which will always come in the end, once all aspects of the shoot are in harmony with each other’
What was the idea for the mood you decided to create in the shoot?
Sasha: I didn't create a mood board before the shooting. I wanted to create conditions that will correspond to my inner state. Mood board is a result, which will always come in the end, once all aspects of the shoot are in harmony with each other.
Tell about the way you create the right dynamics for the shoot when working with two models?
Sasha: I don't usually work with more than one person. It’s much more difficult in terms of finding the right composition, and it also makes the environment a less intimate space, it's harder to find the flow, so you need to think more ahead, like in filming a movie. Despite this, we managed to catch the right connection. Psychologically, I attuned to perceive the models as one entity, which is also a theme for this story.
One of the main themes is the shape of the bodies that are created and brings forward a beautiful aesthetic and also an additional dimension to the photos. Tell about this shooting day, were frames conceptualized before or during the shoot?
Sasha: Before the shooting day, I had some ideas of the images I wanted to create. Essentially, we worked together on building the frames based on space and lighting.
I gave them freedom, in a sense, and adjusted the composition when I saw something close to an interesting shot. It was very interesting to observe the interaction of 2 people so strongly connected by fate. There was no tension between them, as often happens when you shoot people who know each other well.
What is different and what is the same, when comparing shooting with your twin sister to the shootings with a model you were not familiar with before?
Dasha: Few people know the difference, between identical twins and fraternal twins, in English, there is only one word for it 'twins'. It’s not that hard to explain, when we speak about fraternal twins, 2 different eggs are fertilized by 2 different sperm cells. Telling this to a person you don’t know who is interested in it - is not as romantic and poetic as explaining/defining our difference/distinction simply and concisely - we have 5 minutes of difference.
The difference of experience is in everything, with my sister I know the boundaries for my movements, I know where I can put my hand and which movements will not disturb her, poses are created intuitively, naturally and faster, when compared to working with a person you see for the first time, and you need to find the comfort zone.
Alina: It happens that when I wake up in the morning before the shooting, I feel that my mood isn't corresponding with my sister's mood. We silently go to the studio/apartment, where we'll meet with a photographer who is in his mood. Also, almost wordlessly, we put on clothes, apply makeup, tie our hair, and only occasionally glance at each other. Then, the photographer describes the task. We listen closely, trying to sense the needed state for the shooting. Then, there's silence... attending to our sensations, we find each other's eyes, to synchronize... Eye contact, followed by a desire to get closer, then touch. One question in mind: do you feel it the way I do?!
“Click” - the moment is captured.
What distinguishes shooting with the twin sister from shooting with an unfamiliar person/model is the emotional closeness.
How did you prepare for this editorial shoot?
Dasha: Alina is a masseuse, and before the shooting started, she showed how to self face massage, this was a preparation for the shooting for me.
Alina: In my opinion, the most important thing was to shoot on a sunny day. Once we scheduled the shooting for the upcoming sunny day, we agreed with a friend to use her apartment as our shooting location. Next - clothes, we kept it to a minimum, but with no vulgarity. Then, was the choice of film, well, and a discussion about where we would like the story to be published.
What was the most challenging part of the day?
Dasha: To wake up in the morning :) and of course, to be on time to catch the right light.
Alina: There were no particular difficulties. We worked together on each frame: watched the sun and shadows, moved furniture, discussed poses and plunged into certain states.
