Looking forward to sharing more of their session!
{to big trips that can't keep us apart}
-jbw-
Enjoyed spending an unseasonably warm November afternoon with these folks! Here's a little sneak peek into their family session. You'll recognize Tabatha from her many appearances on my blog - as a subject and also a second shooter with me. Her mom and brother made the big trip and flew in from Oklahoma to spend time with her and she knew there was no better time to capture them all together.
Engagement, wedding, maternity. All milestone moments in life when we decide to capture where and who we are in photographs. What about the moments in between? The times that really make us who we are?
There's no better time than right now to have portraits made with the person (or people) you love. Julia and Clint have been married for a little over a year now. They simply wanted to take the time to capture who and where they are in life and love with a portrait session. I couldn't have been happier to be obliged! We planned their session on what turned out to be the perfect fall weekend - the height of autumn leaf season. It couldn't have been lovelier! We began our session in downtown Raleigh and wrapped things up at Clint's favorite local golf course. Julia and Clint were perfectly comfortable - not just in front of the camera - but also with each other.
As a wedding photographer, it is my joy to capture Day One. As a married person, I know that it's all the days after that grow and deepen your relationship. It was my joy to get to capture Julia and Clint's married love, beyond Day One.
{to day one, and one thousand, and beyond}
-jbw-
It usually works out each year that the bulk of my work is focused on weddings and couples. so I am limited on the number of family portrait sessions that I commission. Usually they are families that I already have a relationship with, so I was excited when Loren submitted an me this fall to photograph her family as it was nice to expand realm a little.
Photographing families is much the same as photographing anything else; and yet very different. Kids are busy and kids are very interested in being kids and usually not very invested in taking photos. So, my approach to family portraits is this - to capture your family organically interacting with one another. This means playing. Running. Jumping. Swinging. Laughing. Twirling.
Whatever it is you do as a family when a camera isn't around is what I want you do when my camera is around. Just be you. Because that's what you're best at and that's what makes your family beautiful.
My favorite memories of my own family are the ones when we were just being "us". What I would give to have illustration to those memories. That desire is what shapes my approach to how I photograph families.
I love looking at these images of the Truschel family, because in them I see that they are just being them. Running. Hugging. Laughing. Playing an endless game of "one more time, Daddy!"
When they look back on this fleeting season and on their memories, I hope that I have done them justice with these illustrations.
What I would give to have done them justice.
{to illustrating memories}
-jbw-
Forget stopping to smell the roses.
After seeing these shots you're going to want to stop and crunch the leaves!
You may recognize these little faces from last year's fall shoot (or you may not, they've grown so much!) There's something so fun about family shoots. Unavoidably organic - because really, kids will be kids - you get 100% real and I love all 100% of the Castro family! It was fun to catch up with all of them and I enjoyed picking up on how they've grown and changed over the last year.
Documenting a family is a weighty responsibility. One day, each of these children will be adults potentially with families of their own. They'll want to look back on the times that will have shaped them into the people they'll have become, and family photos are one of our most treasured ways to do that. Being able to know that I've captured a picture of the Castro family history is something that I cherish! When they look back on their family in 2013 I hope they see people who were full of adventure and overflowing with love. At least that's what I see!
{to family history}
-jbw-
I've had the pleasure of shooting many weddings now. Big weddings, small weddings and everything in between. Until Amy and Luke contacted me though, I had yet to photograph an elopement.
It was incredible.
Take a wedding and strip it of everything unnecessary. No decorations, no flowers, no food, no fanfare. Simply a bride and a groom. And a ceremony in which they soulfully, whole-heartedly commit to love and serve one another for the rest of their lives; apart from any distraction.
This was Amy and Luke's day, and they invited me to capture it. I felt honored to be so close to their wedding as it was incredibly intimate - just them and the officiant. Following the ceremony to walk the grounds of the Inn at Meander Plantation to photograph their first moments as husband and wife.
Luke and Amy and laughers. Throw your head back, close your eyes and laugh from the heart kind of people. I don't know where life will take them (I pray it's always an easy journey) but I have no doubt regardless of the twists and turns, they'll be able to look back on their story & smile and laugh together.
That's what joy is about. That's what love and marriage are about.
That's what Amy and Luke are about.
{to looking back on your story}
-jbw-
I know I say this often - but I really love when my sessions end and I feel like I walk away with new friends. That's how Heather and Zack's engagement session concluded; with hugs, farewells and "hope-to-see-you-agains" because we really had a great time together.
Just they day before their shoot it had been gray and chilly, bearing all the signs of a dreary October autumn day. Heather and I had long been chatting about the shoot and unless we faced a downpour, we planned to forge on. Luckily for us, the sun rose on clear blue skies, gentle breezes and bright fall leaves. Perfection.
Heather and Zack love to love each other. They love to kiss and embrace. They love to make each other laugh and smile. They love to just be themselves together. And I loved getting to capture their personalities. We spent some time walking around downtown Leesburg before heading to Red Rock Overlook for none other than pumpkin carving (perfect fall activities for a perfect fall day) and a romantic walk by the Potomac.
******
On a photography related note, this was one of my first sessions in which I integrated medium format film into my professional work. As a photographer I am always looking for ways to push myself artistically and technically. This year I've begun integrating film back into my workflow; beginning with 35 millimeter and now medium format. For me its a way to maintain my focus on what my ultimate goal is - delivering fine art images of life to my clients.
Film forces me to be incredibly intentional with every frame. To be patient and wait for the most precious of moments before opening the shutter. To be prepared with utmost confidence in my technical approach, knowing that I will have used each exposure efficiently and without haste.
That approach...that intentionality...allows me more time to be in the moment and less time looking at the back of a camera screen. And isn't that how we're to live anyway? With intention, with appreciation for the moments we're living and experiencing?
Shooting film is about more than a format of choice and also about a philosophy and approach to how I create art. I look forward to shifting my workflow in a direction that has a heavier reliance on film than digital.
Shooting film is about more than a format of choice and also about a philosophy and approach to how I create art. I look forward to shifting my workflow in a direction that has a heavier reliance on film than digital.
{to appreciating the moment}
-jbw-
film images - Contax 645, Fuji 400H, processing by Richard Photo Lab
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