“365 Days in a year. 365 images to produce, along with my thoughts on each. Combination blog, journal, photo diary… But hopefully more fun! I am looking forward to sharing my days with you.”
I looked at Quinn, and she looked at me. It was clear who had the upper hand… This was towards the end of her session, and she was starting to get cranky with me and my manipulations. When a baby is done, they are simply done. This was one of the last shots. I really learned something from Miss Quinn. In this industry, it’s very common for the high-end photographers to pose babies in various positions ranging from kneeling on a stack of towels to hanging from a bag of cheesecloth like a pink ball of smoked Gouda. I actually like these poses. I’d like to try some, and add some of my own. But working with Quinn made me realize that most babies just want to be with their mother. And while those artsy poses have their own aesthetic, there is nothing like the delicious scent of your baby’s hair as it tickles your chin while you cuddle her. These are the moments I want to capture more than anything else. Ten fingers, ten toes, the relationship between parent and child. So from this point forward, that is what I’ll start with. Every pose will be in mom or dad’s arms, or with siblings. Once I’ve captured that, I’ll move on to the more artistic poses if baby is willing to play. So here is day One. The first day of my blog, and day eighteen for Quinn. Welcome to the world, little one!
It amazes me sometimes how blithely we treat our memories. I can’t tell you the number of photographs even I have on my hard drive, in boxes, file folders, and envelopes. For parents, life moves fast- often at the expense of the very moments we seek to preserve. A lifetime… How do you measure it? We say to ourselves that we want to treasure this moment forever, and commit the wide eyes of our child at Christmas to memory, vowing to remember it always. And we do. Sort of. Somehow, it gets watered down, no matter our intentions to the contrary. There are still days that I can remember as clearly as if it were yesterday. I think I’ve done it… Preserved those memories just like I said I would… And then I happen across an old photograph of my now nineteen-year-old son at 10 months of age. Suddenly the memories come flooding back. The ones I’d forgotten. And so the reason for this business becomes abundantly clear once more: My goal is to create memories that will last a lifetime. They should be on your wall, enhancing your living space, speaking of the love that lives in your home. Years later, when your child returns for a visit from college, you’ll both be struck by the difference between then and now, and the lifetime of love that is your relationship.
Day Three. Water has always fascinated me… These are studies from a series on surface tension, one of the properties that make water like nothing else on earth- an alien substance that acts like an element but in fact is not. At birth, our bodies are 75-80% water. Later, as we age, we become closer to 65% in terms of the amount of water comprising our persons. Maybe this is why we as humans seem to be drawn to it. The gravitational pull of the moon calls to the tides, and it would seem, Homo Sapiens, as well. The water on the earth today is the same that was here at the dawn of time, the same as the dinosaurs drank, and contrary to what we hear every day, not going anywhere. While the amount of water isn’t changing, we are: As a species, we are quickly outgrowing the 1% that is available as drinking water- for all living creatures. Americans use over 150 gallons of water per day on average, which is in stark contrast to a person in Africa, who might use up to 5 gallons. Imagine carrying that every day! At eight pounds per gallon… For hours… Whew.
Pets remind us not to take ourselves too seriously… They find joy in a single moment, no matter the circumstances. Especially dogs. A cat is more about food and massages (who can blame them?), but a dog, well, they just live to be with you. Lippy here is ancient. In dog years, he’s sort of like Yoda. His tongue is always out mainly because he has no teeth. Which probably is too much information, isn’t it? Because what we’d like to believe is that he’s making a face. Although he really is happy in this image- Because he’s in his person’s arms. One of the greatest injustices we humans have wrought on dogs is that we tend to attribute human characteristics to them. They are not people, and don’t think like we do. They are not subject to the impediment of language and semantics. Nor are they petty, greedy or addicted to reality shows. Dogs just don’t think like we do. If they did, I think they’d tire of us very quickly. So this is a good thing. It’s Lucky for humans they need us for food, love and affection. Because we certainly need them, too!
Day four…
Day 5
and run all over the studio grounds, playing on the swings, and in the grass under the trees. Sometimes we visit the goats and chickens, taking pictures as we go to document the story of the day.
How do you capture the essence of a child? You PLAY, that's how! I had the time of my life with this beautiful, precocious, insightful child. His eyes alone speak volumes. When I am working with a young child, the rule is to simply follow them at first, allowing them to play naturally, to be who they are. Eventually, when I am ready to get down to business, we know each other. The child is comfortable with me, and the big black box in front of my face. By this time, we've talked quite a lot,
One thing I can tell you is when my littlest subjects are out of patience, that's a wrap! So I work fast because I know I have to get the shot. Working with a sense of play allows me to enjoy every minute!
BEAUTY IS A MATTER OF PERCEPTION, NOT PERFECTION As women, we spend our lives judging our insides against other’s outsides. And those outsides have been enhanced, primped, dyed and curled or straightened, then presented to us precisely as those people wish to be seen. All the while these perfected people are comparing their insides to other’s outsides... And most of the time they are feeling inadequate too! We compare ourselves against perfection and find ourselves lacking because we see every flaw. Nearly everyone does this, women in particular. But ask yourself this: Do you look at your friends and see every line, every imperfection? Of course not! You look at your friend and you see… your beloved friend. That’s all. And you will be astonished to know that this is how they see you, too! Insert “ A-ha! Moment” here… I’m challenging women of all ages, from 7 to 97, to see themselves as the beauties that they are. Our glamour sessions are not about MAKING women beautiful. They are not about objectifying women, either. They are all about SHOWING women how beautiful they truly are, lifting them up and showing them what was in there all along, then giving them beautiful portraits to take home. These sessions EMPOWER women by showing them their beauty, how to recreate the look, and also, and most importantly, that BEAUTY IS A MATTER OF PERCEPTION. If you feel you look beautiful, then you ARE. Love yourself right now, in whatever body you find yourself, with whatever hair (or lack thereof) you were blessed with, no matter what age you are. Learn to love yourself, love others, and by all means, let others have the experience of loving you, just the way you really are