Let’s talk about documentary photography for the family…
The opportunity to create a record of your everyday life is what documentary photography is all about.
Most of us think about documenting our families story in relation to events or milestones. We remember to schedule to have our photos taken when the holidays are near. I started my journey as a photographer in the very earliest sense, fifteen years ago when my oldest son was born. I knew when he arrived that I wanted to record his story and the story of our family. I had heard, like all of us expecting parents do, “enjoy everything, it goes so fast”. I can tell you now with a 15, 12, and 9 year old that it is very true and now that my kids are older and building lives and interests of their own, it seems to be going even faster. Years have flown by, life has been lived, and that decision just to document the life of my family and my children has turned into more than I could have imagined. A love for not only photography, but of documenting life led me to want to share it with others. I firmly believe that your story is worth keeping. It is the everyday moments where life is really lived, that are most beautiful.
When it comes to my family and newborn work, I call myself a “documentary/ lifestyle photographer”. Here is a little bit about what that means.
My style looks to capture authentic moments of connection. I do this with a mix of what would be considered “documentary” as well as “lifestyle” techniques. A full documentary style would mean I would be simply in the position of observation and I would photograph the events happening in your home without the use of prompts or guidence (I do love this style as well but these work better for what we call a day in the life session-message me if you have questions about these). A lifestyle approach allows me to guide you and your family into the best light in your home, it has me prompting you to love on your children or to ask each other specific questions (my favorites will always get a reaction) and makes for some authentic laughs. I have found that some basic positioning and prompting in a typical family sessions is helpful and still provides images that will reflect all the important connection and details during this time in your life.
