Marionettes are mediums of expression rooted in illusion. They only seem to come to life when their strings are pulled. Photography bases much of its own expressive power on illusion as well. A photograph, in itself, is no more real than a marionette. Photographs draw their vitality from the interplay of light and shadow, very much as marionettes depend on their strings for energy. I have brought the two mediums together with this picture. Using the interplay of light and shadow, I’ve tried to imply a sense of vitality to both the marionettes and this photographic image of them. It is the variation in the tones of light, the pattern in which it falls on the marionettes, that makes it seem as if these marionettes are behaving as humans. The figure at left is only partially revealed as he seems to rise out of the shadows below him. Because of how it is abstracted by those shadows, we must imagine where this marionette is coming from. The figure at right is even more abstracted by the shadows surrounding it. Because its face is only half illuminated, it, too, seems to springs to life in a way it would not if we could see all of it. The figures are dressed in clothing that reflects light and color, adding still more illusion to the scene. I include very little additional context in the frame. The less seen, the better the illusion.