I just had the Lucas family back for another wonderful photo shoot. Philippe’s mother was in town so it was a great chance to capture the magical bond between grandmother and granddaughter. I just love shooting family love; especially when three generations are involved ;)

Little Sophie stole a piece of my heart when I first met her (you can check out our first Lucas family photo here). She is such a little darling!

I got a very sweet email from Philippe after I dropped off their cd of images. A bit of it went like this…”Mary and I are once again blown away by what a wonderful photographer you are.  We love the slideshow montage, and my mom will lose her mind.    We remember the day as one in which Sophie would barely cooperate, but the shots that you got are amazing.”

The reason I share Philippe’s response is that it highlights what I feel is my mission as a photographer. It is my responsibility to peel away your layers of anxiety (baby didn’t nap today, child not cooperating, feeling unphotogenic, etc) to be able to capture images that are true to who you are. I am here to witness your love and to pass it back to you in a tangible treasure that you can celebrate forever. All relationships evolve and change constantly. You will never again be at this time and place. Unfortunately, a photograph’s worth is not usually fully understood until it cannot be recreated.

A few years ago when I was working at a camera store in town, a mother and daughter came in holding a 4×6 print. It was hard to make out the facial features of the man in the underexposed photo. They apologized for not having the negative but they hoped I could scan the image, crop to his head and shoulders and enlarge it to an 11×14. I looked up at them to warn them of what they already knew…the quality would be horrible. Their eyes welled up and the mother explained that the image was for her husband’s funeral. He had always hated and refused to have his picture taken so this was the ONLY image they had of him. The mother made me make a promise that day. She left me with the following message:

“No matter how much you don’t like your picture being taken, allow it to happen. It is not for you. It is for those that love you.”

I thank that woman for teaching me to appreciate the magnitude of family photo shoots.

Speaking of family photo shoots, let’s get back to some images of the Lucas family.