Like so many other photographers that I know, my journey into photography began with a desire to capture my family in a real and beautiful way. I wanted more than my, then, run-of-the-mill snapshots. I longed for pictures of my kids that were worthy of the coveted space above the fireplace. I wanted my house to be plastered with the connections between my children and my husband and I. And I wanted to be able to provide those images myself.
So I delved into the art of photography with both feet, as well as both my arms, my neck, my entire body. I took workshops, I spent hours poring over books at Barnes and Noble, I read online forums wee into the night. I pointed that camera at my kids until all I could get from them was a big fat hand telling me they had had enough.
And then I started my business. And it took off. And I was busy. So busy. Taking pictures of families, and seniors, and babies, and kids. Other peoples’ kids. Lots of pictures of other peoples’ kids. My clients’ walls are filled with beautiful pictures of their families and their kids.
And my walls are still empty.
That vision that jump started my journey into photography is still a vision. It has yet to be fulfilled. Like so many of my fellow photographers, my vision is still there, waiting for me to take the time to make it a reality. . Too often we are so busy working for clients that we miss capturing our own families as life passes by.
So I’ve decided that now is that time.
I’ve been lucky to have met so many incredibly talented and wonderful photographers during this journey who share the same desire to capture their own families in a real and beautiful way. I’m teaming up with eleven of these women on a very personal and meaningful project called, “What ________ Looks Like.”
Our goal is to capture our own families in a real and beautiful way. Some people call it “lifestyle”, some call it “real life”, some call it “unposed”. No matter what you call it, our desire is to snatch the moments that represent the relationships, the dynamics, the reality, the beauty, the truth, and the life of our families and record them here on our blogs as well as in print at the end of the project.
Each month we will each choose to fill in the blank with our word of choice. Some of us may choose to use the same word all year and some may choose to change it up each month. We will each link to the next photographer until our circle is complete.
We hope this project inspires you to take more pictures of your own families so that those moments that make your family unique will never be lost or forgotten.
This month I decided to do my best to capture the morning of the first day of school 2011. A typical, run-of-the-mill, ordinary school morning is hectic as can be. Add to that, first day of a new school year complete with school jitters, the anxiety of a new elementary school for my two littlest, and me hauling my camera all over the house, and I’m shocked that I was able to capture what I did of our morning craziness. But it’s all real and honest and us. Four kids, a mom, a dad, and a camera.
Enjoy.
Now head on over to see what Jennifer Nguyen | Snails and Pigtails Photography | Temecula, CA Photographer posted this month!
