The session last night was one of those where everything just worked. Holding a session at sunset, on a beautiful evening, at a super-crowded beach had complete potential to be a disaster. It actually was anything but that. I attribute a huge piece of that to the fact that Mom and Dad just rolled with the punches and let their kids be kids- even when that meant rolling around in sand and wading into the water perhaps a bit before we were ready to be soaking wet and covered with sand.
That brings me to my next thought. My photography, as both a hobby, and then as a profession, has evolved greatly. When I began, I prided myself on being a candid photographer. To me, what that meant, was that I would take pictures any place, and any time of day, and I would make them work. Middle of the day at a park with absolutely no shade? Sure! No problem. In your basement with only fluorescent lighting? Absolutely. Over time, I tweaked my definition of “candid.” Candid took on the meaning of natural photos, no posing, and perhaps a bit more guidance for location and time of session. Then, somewhere along the way, I realized that the families I was photographing really wanted candid images, but what they meant was “all of us smiling at the camera, looking happy, but in a natural location, with no studio backdrop.” Soooo… “candid” became just that. With a big piece of my business becoming mini-sessions, I felt I didn’t have the time to get that “perfect, everyone looking at the camera image,” as well as the ones that make me swell with pride because they are truly a capture of kids being themselves, so my focus became getting that one “holiday card shot.” For the last few months, I’ve been working hard to bring back that feeling that got me started in this business in the first place.
So, why the lengthy explanation of my evolution as a photographer, thus far? Because last night we nailed it. Perfect lighting, perfect time of day, and tons of images that make my eyes well up with tears. These are the images I want of my family. These are the images that these kids will have forever, to remind them of exactly who they were at this time. Thank you to this gorgeous family for being a part of this wild ride with me (you can see more of their sessions when you click here and here and here and here ).
To A and B, thank you for stepping back and allowing me to capture these magical moments of your family, just being yourselves. This session is making me seriously consider cutting mini-sessions out this year, and just focusing on the full-length sessions. The ones that give me the time to capture these magical moments.
I am obviously incapable of just sharing one sneak peek images, so here are a few to enjoy:
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