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When I drive, my mind wanders.  Not enough to take my attention off what I’m doing, mind you, but I think of a variety of things on my trip.  Yesterday on my way to meet a client I was thinking about the shoot we had done a few days prior.  And I was thinking of what a great young man the client’s son was, and how much I’d enjoyed our two days of taking pictures both in and outdoors.  And THEN I thought about how lucky a photographer can be.

What do I mean by “lucky”?  I mean I get to see more than what the camera captures.  You get to see the end result, the photos with smiles and laughs and backgrounds and all sorts of interesting things to you, but I have gotten a peek into who the person really is. And that makes me a lucky girl!  I meet amazing people every day. Every time I am asked to take pictures I have a different experience.  Lots of laughs, plenty of smiles, sometimes tears and in a lot of instances, the beginning of a new friendship.  I look back on some of my past shoots and think of what we were talking about when the person had that great laugh, or how tough it was to get that toddler to finally smile, and my excitement over catching it in that ONE SHOT!

Maybe I’m not explaining it well.  I’ve rewritten it plenty of times and it still doesn’t make a lot of sense.  But what I can tell you is a good photograph isn’t just the perfect lighting or the perfect outfit or background – it’s what a wonderful friend told me once – it’s catching the person’s “essence”.  My favorite photos are the un-posed ones!  The giggles from a senior girl who just can’t hold a straight serious face.  The mom and daughter who get a few moments of tension-free time at a wedding to enjoy eachother and laugh.  I think those moments are way more important than the “perfect” shot.

I’ll try to show it in photos – they speak better for me than I do on a day like today, when words don’t say it like the smiles on these beautiful faces!  Have a great weekend everyone.