The three photos that made me cry and their stories
This post was created with the intention of showing you a bit about the feeling that I look for in my clients when I photograph them. Care to join me to find out more?
1 – A horse and a pregnant lady in perfect sync:
I was hired by Daniela and Henrique (the latter is passionate about farming) to take Daniela’s pregnancy photos. The parents wanted the shoot to be set on a farm and I had no idea how to make that happen. Then I remembered that a friend of mine had a farm house in a city nearby. She sympathetically offered to help me.
The parents were ecstatic, and so was I. It took a few weeks of planning for this photo shoot to happen, because I wanted to do everything in my power to make it special. After all, it was my first time photographing with horses. This was an old dream of mine because I have always loved horses.
Then the big day finally arrived. It was a sunny fall afternoon and the weather helped to make everything go as expected. It was very pleasant to be outdoors.
It took several clicks and many hours of rehearsal, until Daniela's brother managed to lure one of the horses to where the pregnant lady was. It all happened within a few seconds, but it gave me the opportunity to capture the moment perfectly, as you can see below.
It was a very happy moment for me and for everyone involved because we knew that this was an unusual situation. But when the photographer and the family are perfectly in sync, everything ends up working smoothly.
2 – A happy family and a happy baby in the newborn photo shoot:
Newborn photo shoots are close to my heart, and I know how special they are for the whole family. Babies are so small and fragile you feel as if they might “break” at any time. With that in mind, I always say that these are perhaps the most contagious and risky photo shoots for photographers to perform. It is therefore essential to really get to know the person you are hiring, in addition to knowing their professional qualifications. Your child is your most precious asset and I’m sure you would never want to put him or her at risk.
A good professional photographer has to be prepared for everything that can happen and this photo shows precisely that.
At the end of the day, Michaela's photo shoot was wonderful and everything went well. As usual, at the end of this shoot, I invited the parents to take some pictures with the newborn. I was helping the parents to pose and to look at Michaela when, suddenly, she gave the most amazing smile. Luckily, I already had the camera in my hand and at a reasonable distance. The photo came out wonderful and I won an award for it a few days later.
3 – The woman who lost her husband during the pregnancy of her third child:
I've experienced a lot of incredible things in photography, but I must admit that this one left me a bit shaken. As a mother and wife, I could not imagine what this client was going through. When she contacted me, she explained the whole situation, and one of the first things she asked for was to make a photo montage of her husband. She was a widow and mother of 3 children. One of them was a newborn and she would very much like to make a montage of her with the newborn and her husband, who had died when she was six months pregnant.
My world fell when I heard her story. I felt I had a deep responsibility to do this photo shoot and to do it the way she wished. That mother's pain moved me deeply and I was determined to showcase all of the emotions that her family was experiencing.
We set up the photo shoot. She drove about an hour and a half to get to my studio. I took pictures of the baby with the whole family (the mother and the other 2 children, who were 5 and 1 year old) and, finally, hers with the baby in a pose that was specifically crafted to allow for the montage she so wanted.
Right after the shoot, I edited and sent her the long-awaited photo. I'll be honest, I cried during the whole editing process! The end result? The mother also cried a lot when she saw the photo! She said it had come out much better than she had expected and that it was the most valuable memory she has ever had!
At that moment I realized once again the meaning that a photograph holds in our lives. Everything is fleeting, but we will always be able to refresh our memories through photographs. In light of my experience, I can assure you that today's photos will be your cherished relics for you to treasure forever.
When was the last time you had a Photoshoot? Do you think your family's memories are important?
I would love to help you planning your session and I can guarantee you, it will cost less than what you think. Click on the link below to know more.