Richard Billingham's series 'Rays a Laugh' are images of his family in their home on a day to day basis. 

The story behind these images is a tragic one; Billingham's father, the books namesake is a chronic  alcoholic, and his mother a very heavy smoker. His younger brother Jason is sometimes pictured, but he was taken into care as a young boy and when he was returned to his parents he became a teenage parent himself and was rarely around. 

These documentary style images are shocking to see at first, and filthy looking, however they have grown on me slowly and I really like the aesthetic the series possess; the use of flash and contrast are aspects which I want to use in my own narrative. 

He used the cheapest film and got them processed at the cheapest place possible. I really like that he openly admits to doing this as he is a respected practitioner and I was surprised to see a professional say something like that, as it seems cheap, but the results represent exactly what they needed to. 

This image shows a lot about the family dynamics in the house and gives the viewer an idea about the mood the family home had and how it must have felt to live there. Both subjects are sat on the sofa eating their dinner. This already shows signs of an anti social environment as the family do not sit down at a dining table to eat and socialise with each other. There is tension within the image and it makes the viewer feel almost awkward for looking and being a part of the scene; The angle from which the photo has been taken is above, rather than at eye level. There is no engagement between camera and subject and the camera is positioned in a dominant position, suggesting Billingham doesn't see himself as one of them, but someone who is studying and documenting them.

A critic has previously described the council flat and its inhabitants as Billinghams own personal 'safari park', something which has really resonated with me as I don't believe that he has exploited his family in any way, he is simply documenting his surroundings and people he is close with. He may not feel as though he is part of the family; his images do objectify his family and there is no engagement within his photographs.

In my own narrative project I want to photograph from the position of the insider rather than an outsider as I feel comfortable surrounded by my friends and in my home. In that respect, my images will differ from Billinghams seen here, however I plan to try to adopt a similar aesthetic. 

Information from http://www.americansuburbx.com/2010/07/richard-billingham-rays-laugh.html