As is usual for me, I like this image mostly because the tender moment between father and son wasn’t staged for the benefit of my camera. It is often when photographing one family member that I’ll notice in the corner of my eye something genuine and potentially portrait worthy happening elsewhere. I love it when I’m able to respond quickly enough to capture it before the subjects become aware of being photographed.

While it is easy enough to convey love between parent and child in a portrait, when photographing adults there is usually an added element of performance involved. Though not necessarily a bad thing, it does act as a barrier to seeing beneath the surface. They may smile a bit too brightly, or concern themselves with appearances just enough to distract them from being fully present. And because I’m sensing this, it can be distracting to me as well in the photographing. So I’m always looking for opportunities to catch them off guard. Many of my favorite parent and child images are the result of a child not “cooperating” with the shoot, when the parent has had to drop the notion of being photographed long enough to tend to the child. This opens the door to a sincere and vulnerable exchange between them, which to me is infinitely more beautiful than anything we might orchestrate to obtain a pretty picture.



~Cynthia