We have all heard the saying that a picture is worth 1000 words. Have you ever really thought about why this is true? I think it is because of the story it tells. So many times when we have family portraits taken we stress over what to wear, how our hair looks and any other thing we can possibly worry about. Somehow in all the stress and worry the fun of a family portrait session gets lost. We are all so busy with life that is hard to get the family together for photos and then we spend that rare time together fighting with each other to get the perfect photo for the fireplace. Many times I have even heard people refer to it as the “dreaded family photo session”. Maybe if we really thought about that the fact that a picture is worth 1000 words we wouldn’t stress so much. We could relax and be ourselves.

Stephen and I have some wonderful clients that we met in October of last year for a maternity session. Since that time they have become great friends and I have had the honor of photographing the precious baby girl that they waited 14yrs for several times. We had planned to do a family session in July. However, Monday I received a phone call from Robin asking if we could move the date up. Then through tears, she told me that she had just been told she had Stage II Melenoma and would have to have surgery and we wouldn’t be able to get that family photo session in for a while. After setting a time and getting off the phone I couldn’t stop thinking about everything. I kept thinking about what I could do for her to let her know I cared about her and her family. Finally it hit me that the best gift I could give was to document their memories. No white shirts and blue jeans, just the real them interacting with each other. That is what life is all about. Spending time with those you love and care about, not stressing over hair out of place or making sure everyone matches perfectly. So last night when Stephen and I met up for our session with Robin and Mark we had a great time taking some lifestyle portraits. Capturing the emotion between the three of them. I have to say it was perfect and not the least bit stressful.

I hope that everyone reading this will realize the importance of capturing your family memories. Stop worrying about all the rules like wearing matching outfits or making sure everyone is looking perfect. Give the kids a lollipop or some ice cream and just enjoy a rare afternoon of family time and realize that it is okay to hang those memories on your wall. In the end the photos in the family album that matter are those that capture an emotion and bring back memories of a good time not those that just document all of your family members at that current time. Now that I have written a novel, here is a little peek at our afternoon with this precious family.