“Anyone can prove you existed at one time. That’s what these are for (holds up a phone) It’s our JOB to capture emotion.” Anni Graham, said recently at the Let’s Go Workshop I attended last week in Pacific City. I’m a believer in education in any field, especially one like photographer where it’s like a black hole for how much there is to learn. This industry can take a toll on you if you allow it. It can be a never ending cycle of never quite feeling good enough, always eyeing the next photographer over, feeling overworked and underpaid, and sometimes you just have to hit the reset button and remind yourself why you’re doing this in the first place.
I didn’t quite know what to expect at this workshop, but the moment I saw it, I knew I wanted in. I hesitated for a few weeks, as it wasn’t the cheapest investment, but like a great leather jacket, sometimes you just have to bite the bullet up front, knowing what an asset it will be to your closet. Not that I actually have a real leather jacket, because I lust over camera equipment like some girls lust after a new pair of Louboutins. So, a day at an epic location AND I get to learn more from renowned wedding and family photographers? Twist my arm.
It was everything. It was the inspiration I needed and the business kick in the pants I wanted. I was so pumped from the workshop, I couldn’t wait to shoot my next family session.
Enter the Rash family. We’ve been wanting to do a family shoot together for quite some time now. This family means so much to me. They are former wedding clients, turned friends, which is my favorite kind of client and such a great part about this business. I’ve loved watching their family grow and Cassidy is the most beautiful mom to her brood of boys. I adore her. The stars aligned and we had the most magical family shoot at a beautiful location in North Plains. My goal was to capture this family, how she loves on her guys and how they love on her. This session was different than how I traditionally run my family portraits. I didn’t want the posed moments. I wanted the real, the raw, the emotion. They indulged me and it helped bring life back into what I adore about photography in the first place; capturing a time, a moment, a memory.
ALSO, I wanted to help style the session and it’s an idea I’ve been toying around with, so stay tuned. I had an idea of how I wanted the shoot to look and we ended up building around the dress Cassidy had and it came to life just beautifully.
lastly, one of my most favorite photos of all time:
