I originally photographed the Strawberry Queens on assignment for The New Yorker magazine. The subject matter was brilliant, the teenage girls in their giant red ball gown dresses, getting ready and running around town, in Plant City, FL. It really reminded me of the Cheerleading series. I decided to revisit the subject during this year’s Strawberry Festival and pageant, reexamining the subject matter and similar situations but this time with video. Capturing those personal moments and translating my bold use of color and exaggerated moments into this other medium was very important to me.
I did a lot of research to find the video camera that best allowed me to shoot the way I was used to and headed down south. Discovering the subtleties of sound and dialog was something new and fresh, like picking up a camera again for the first time. After shooting way too much, almost 10 hours of tape, I worked with an editor, Brad Kronz, and edited the piece down to a tight three minutes. Then worked a muscician who wrote the score, to create fun and playful music to match the feeling of being at the festival.
