Photograph Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
  • Structure of a shot card
• Setup
  • Preparing the shot card deck
  • Layout
  • Starting the game
• Goal of the Game
• On Your Turn
• Step 1: Choose a Subject (take cards into your hand)
• Step 2: Wind the Film (move a card in your hand)
• Step 3: Take the Photograph (play cards from your hand)
• Rules for Playing Shot Cards
• If a Shot Card Cannot Legally Be Played
• Good Shot Cards
• Step 4: Check the Layout (lay out new cards, if needed)
  • Adding cards to the layout when playing with 3 or 4 players
  • Adding cards to the layout when playing with 2 players
• The Sunset Card
• End of Game
• Tallying Victory Points
  • Scoring victory points for photo reels
  • Scoring victory points for good shot cards
  • Penalty for blurred shots
• Determining the Winner
  • Example scoring for a 3-player game
• Rules for Experienced Players
  • Missed Shot (variant)

Components

97 cards: 84 shot cards (12 each of 7 colors: blue, red, yellow, green, brown, gray, and purple), 7 good shot cards (1 of each of the 7 colors), 4 player aids, 1 sunset card, 1 layout diagram, and this rulebook booklet.

Structure of a shot card

• Shot number — printed in the corners of the card.
• Color symbol — indicates which reel (color) the card belongs to.
• Cards that this card can be played after, following the rules of play (in ascending or descending order), are printed alongside the shot number.
• A good shot card states a condition; fulfilling that condition lets you claim the good shot card of the matching color.

Setup

Preparing the shot card deck

The number of shot cards used depends on the number of players:

• Playing with 4: use all the shot cards.
• Playing with 3: remove one color from the game (12 shot cards of one color).
• Playing with 2: remove two colors from the game (24 shot cards of two colors).

Note: when playing with two or three, also remove the good shot card(s) of the matching color(s).

1. Shuffle all the shot cards that will be used in the game. Then deal them face-down into 6 roughly equal piles. Shuffle the sunset card into one of these piles.
2. Place the pile containing the sunset card on top of another pile. Then place the remaining 4 piles on top of this combined pile to form the full deck. Place the deck face-down in the middle of the table.

Don't forget to place the sunset card into the second pile from the bottom when preparing the shot card deck.

3. Place the layout diagram next to the shot card deck. Each player takes a player aid and places it in front of them. Return all unused player aids to the box.
4. Lay out the good shot cards of the colors being used, face-up (one side for 4 players, the other for 2-3).

Layout

Lay out cards from the shot card deck according to the layout diagram, based on the number of players.

• Layout for 2 players: 3 rows of 4 cards each (12 cards total).
• Layout for 3 or 4 players: 4 rows of 4 cards each (16 cards total).

Deal the cards from the shot card deck into the layout in the order shown on the diagram, starting with the card numbered 1 and continuing in ascending order to the end of the diagram.

Note: cards in the leftmost and rightmost columns are laid face-up, while the two center columns are laid face-down.

Starting the game

The player who most recently photographed something starts the game (or determine the first player randomly). Starting with the first player, all players in turn take 1 card at a time from the shot card deck. Place each new card to the right of, and on top of, the previous card in your hand. Keep drawing cards until each player has 5 cards in hand. The card you took first will end up leftmost in your hand, and the last one taken will be rightmost.

Special note: the order of the cards in your hand can only be changed at the specified moments!

Goal of the Game

Each color of shot card corresponds to a particular scene from the life of your town. Over the course of the game you collect these cards and arrange them into sequences that form your photo reels ("films"). Try to make as many shots of each color as possible before sunset. When the sunset card is revealed, victory points (VP) are scored for the photographs you have made.

The first player to complete a certain number of shots of one color gets a bonus. But be careful — a blurred photograph will cost you VP! The player with the most victory points wins.

On Your Turn

Play through all the listed steps in order. After step 4, your turn ends and play passes to the player on your left.

A turn consists of the following steps (see below for details on each):

1. Choose a subject (take cards into your hand).
2. Wind the film (move a card within your hand).
3. Take the photograph (play cards from your hand).
4. Check the layout (lay out new cards, if needed).

Step 1: Choose a Subject (take cards into your hand)

At the start of your turn, announce how many cards from the layout you intend to take into your hand. You must take between 1 and 3 cards (never fewer than 1). Then, starting with the card in either the leftmost or the rightmost column and moving along a row toward the middle of the layout, take cards one at a time until you have taken the announced number of cards. As you take each card into your hand, place it to the right of, and on top of, the cards already there (so the last card taken ends up rightmost).

Note: you may not skip over cards in the layout. You must take cards from only one row of the layout.

Step 2: Wind the Film (move a card in your hand)

Choose any card in your hand (except the rightmost one) and move it one or more positions to the right and up (it may move as far as the rightmost position).

On this step you must move 1 of the 4 cards to the left of and below the rightmost card. Some possible ways to move it are shown in the diagram.

Step 3: Take the Photograph (play cards from your hand)

Time to take photographs! Having wound the film, play from 1 to 3 shot cards from the left side of your hand. Place the cards you play on the table in front of you.

On this step you must play, in order, from 1 to 3 of the cards on the left side of your hand. Place them in front of you in rows corresponding to their colors — your photo reels ("films").

Special note: you must play exactly as many shot cards as you took in step 1!

Always play your cards one at a time in order, starting with the leftmost, playing each card according to the rules below, after confirming that it can legally be played.

Rules for Playing Shot Cards

When you play cards, place them in front of you in rows by color — your photo reels. Each of your photo reels may contain shots of only one color. For example, once you play your first red card, all subsequent red cards go into that same row, placed to the right of the first red card.

Two rules govern playing shot cards:

Shots within each photo reel must be arranged in either ascending or increasing order of their numbers, or descending or decreasing order. This order is fixed the moment the 2nd card is played into that photo reel. For example, if the first red shot's number is 6 and the next red shot's number is 7, then after that only shots numbered 8 or higher may be played into that reel. If the second red shot had instead been numbered 5, only shots with lower numbers could be played into that reel afterward.

In addition, the number of the next shot you add to a photo reel may not differ from the number of the previous shot in that reel by more than 3. For example, if the reel's order is ascending, each next shot's number must be 1-3 higher than the previous shot's number in that reel. If the order is descending, each next shot's number must be 1-3 lower than the previous shot's number. Note: the range of shot numbers that can legally follow the current shot card is printed at the top and bottom of each shot card.

Note: you are not required to add all the cards you are playing on this step to a single photo reel — but the rules of play must always be followed.

If a Shot Card Cannot Legally Be Played

If the card on the left side of your hand that you must play satisfies both rules of play, you must play it, placing it face-up into the photo reel of the matching color (if you have not yet played a card of that color, it becomes the first card in that reel). However, if the card you must play does not satisfy the rules above, that shot is considered blurred! In this case, first show the card's face to the other players, then turn it face-down and place it to the right of the previous shot in the photo reel of the matching color. The back of the card will show a "-2 VP" symbol on the left. From this point on, players may not check the number on this card. At the end of the game, each blurred shot costs you penalty points.

Note: when playing the next shot to the right of a blurred shot, the order of that photo reel (ascending or descending) still applies, but the restriction limiting the next shot to within 3 of the previous shot does not apply.

If the second shot in a photo reel turns out to be blurred, the order in which further shots may be added to that photo reel (ascending or descending) will only be determined once a non-blurred shot is added.

Be careful! As soon as a photo reel with ascending order reaches shot No. 12, or a photo reel with descending order reaches shot No. 1, only blurred shots can be added to it from then on. There is no limit to how many blurred shots a reel may contain.

Good Shot Cards

When you add a card face-up to a photo reel, you may immediately claim the good shot card of the matching color if you meet its stated condition. Good shot cards remain in front of you until the end of the game — at scoring, they earn you bonus VP.

As stated on each good shot card, to claim it you must fulfill the following condition:

• Be the first to play 4 face-up shots of the matching color, when playing with 2 or 3 players.
• Be the first to play 3 face-up shots of the matching color, when playing with 4 players.

Note: a good shot card, once claimed, stays with you until the end of the game. The card is claimed by the first player to fulfill the condition printed on the good shot card of that color! Remember that blurred shots do not count toward fulfilling this condition.

Step 4: Check the Layout (lay out new cards, if needed)

At the end of your turn, after resolving the previous three steps (choosing a subject, winding the film, and taking your photographs), count the number of cards remaining available in the layout. If 3 or fewer remain, lay out new cards from the deck according to the layout diagram. If more than 3 remain, skip this step. The next player begins their turn with step 1.

Adding cards to the layout when playing with 3 or 4 players

1. Remove all face-up cards remaining in the layout from the game.
2. Move all cards lying face-down in the two center columns of the layout, keeping their position, to the first available positions in the leftmost column of the layout, in order, and turn them face-up.
3. Then deal new cards from the shot card deck into the empty spaces according to the layout diagram. Remember that in some columns cards must lie face-up, and in others face-down.

Adding cards to the layout when playing with 2 players

When playing with 2, remove all remaining cards in the layout from the game. Deal new cards from the shot card deck into the layout according to the layout diagram.

Note: when removing shot cards from the layout that are lying face-down, do not look at their numbers.

Special note: if after resolving step 4, 3 or fewer cards remain in the layout (because the shot card deck has run out), the game ends immediately!

The Sunset Card

If the sunset card is revealed from the deck during step 4 "Check the layout," the game immediately pauses, and all players simultaneously perform the following steps:

1. All players play step 2 "Wind the film" (moving a card within their hand).
2. Then all players play the 2 leftmost cards in their hand, in order, adding them to their photo reels.
3. Finally, return the sunset card to the box, then continue resolving step 4 "Check the layout." If the sunset card was revealed at the end of step 4, the game continues with the next player's turn.

Note: until the end of the round, players will have 3 cards remaining in hand.

Special note: no good shot card can be claimed while resolving the sunset card (above), even if its condition has been fully met. Accordingly, if some player's condition for a good shot card is met during resolution of the sunset card, nobody receives it, since no one will any longer be the first to have collected the required number of shots of that color.

End of Game

If, after resolving step 4 "Check the layout," 3 or fewer cards remain in the layout (because the shot card deck has run out), the game ends immediately. All players perform the following steps (the same as when resolving the sunset card):

1. All players play step 2 "Wind the film" (moving a card within their hand).
2. Then all players play the 2 leftmost cards in their hand, in order, adding them to their photo reels.
3. Each player removes the one remaining card left in their hand from the game.
4. Tally victory points (see below).

Note: as with resolving the sunset card (above), no good shot card can be claimed at this moment, even if its condition has been fully met.

Tallying Victory Points

Once all players have performed the steps above, final scoring begins. You earn victory points for the length of your photo reels and for your good shot cards, and lose points for blurred shots. The scoring is printed on the back of the player aid:

• 0 shots = -3 VP
• 1 shot = 1 VP
• 2 shots = 3 VP
• 3 shots = 4 VP
• 4 shots = 7 VP
• 5 shots = 8 VP
• 6 shots = 10 VP
• 7+ shots = 11 VP

Scoring victory points for photo reels

First, in turn, tally VP for the length of each of your photo reels. VP are counted for all cards lying face-up.

Scoring victory points for good shot cards

For each good shot card you have, you score 5 VP.

Penalty for blurred shots

For each played card lying face-down, you lose 2 VP.

Determining the Winner

The player with the highest total score wins. In case of a tie, the tied player with the most good shot cards wins. If the tie persists, the tied player with the longest photo reel (the most shots in a single reel) wins. If there is still a tie, the tied players share the victory.

Example scoring for a 3-player game

• 5 shots = 8 VP
• 1 shot and 1 blurred shot = -1 VP
• 1 shot = 1 VP
• 4 shots and 1 blurred shot = 5 VP
• 4 shots (+7), 1 blurred shot (-2), good shot card (+5) = 10 VP
• 0 red shots = -3 VP

Total: 24 VP

Rules for Experienced Players

Missed Shot (variant)

This is a variant for experienced players. The game is played by the normal rules; only the method of scoring VP at the end of the game changes.

In this variant, the last card remaining in your hand is treated as the shot you missed while photographing the surroundings of your town, and so it does not count during VP scoring — you were so distracted that you overexposed your entire photo reel of that shot's color.

Before scoring VP, remove the missed-shot card and all cards of the matching color that you played during the game. If you also have the good shot card of the matching color, do not count it either! Since that photo reel will contain no shots, you lose 3 VP for it (on the other hand, you do not score the -2 VP penalty for each blurred shot that reel would otherwise contain).

Note: if you did not play any shot cards of the missed shot's color, simply remove the missed-shot card from the game and proceed to final scoring by the normal rules.