TRAGIC: Baby Found Dead In Strawberry Field
Brooke Mueller Avoids Jail Time
Baby photos: leave the camerawork to the pros
Filed under: Just For Moms, Development/Milestones: Babies, Media, That's Entertainment
I'm always clicking away with my
shamefully non-digital camera. My photos of my two kids fill three shoebox-sized Rubbermaid containers - and I haven't
yet filed any of those taken in the last six months. My photography budget exceeds $200 a month (not including new
equipment).My mom shakes her head. She wonders if I really believe that it hasn't happened until I've captured it on film. And, lately, I've been musing: could she be right? Truman has been struggling to take his first step in the past month - could it be that he hasn't taken it because I'm so busy changing my lens and focusing on his cute little feet? Everett almost fell down the stairs yesterday because I insisted on taking this photo of him swinging on the banister. We can't play hide-and-seek like normal people because I'm taking photos of his hiding place. How's a little boy ever going to learn?
As I was mulling over all these things, I was looking at my bulletin board. On it are dozens of photos of all my friends' kids - the ones who live thousands of miles away. They're sprinkled with festive holiday-themed paraphernalia, like a large striped North Pole; gigantic teddy bears and Winne the Poohs; delightfully-primary-colored, oversized A, B, and C blocks; and of course, feature those stylishly marbled backgrounds in pretty pastels. And suddenly it hit me: I've been blind to what really matters (i.e., whether or not Truman walks before he turns one year old!), and spending valuable time and money doing a job that should really be left to the professionals.
That's it! I thought. I've been fooling myself, pretending I was some artist when I should really be focusing my energy on my spreadsheets. From now on, I'm going to let those studio photographers earn their rightful livelihoods and stop taking photos of my kids. And think about it this way: shouldn't my memory be good enough to remember that silly look that Everett makes, or the way Truman sticks out his tongue when he eats? From now on I'm going to let my expensive brain (we're talking $200K in education, folks, I'll never spend that on my camera work!) capture their precious features and the important moments, and re-allocate my budget to keep the PicturePerfect people in business. They'll live in my memory instead of locked in the impersonal and highly impermanent medium of semi-glossy photo paper.
Because after all, it happened no matter whether I
have a photo of it, or not. Right?(P.S. -- Happy April Fool's Day!)
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ReaderComments (Page 1 of 1)
4-01-2006 @ 7:38PM
hahame said...oh sweetie, do not stop taking pictures. i'm in the exact same place...boxes full, not labeled or filed...yet. however, you will forget those little funny faces. and the professionals? those photos are posed, and i think, yucky. i do not like them, all made to look *cute*. nothing replaces the spontaneity you get with your own picture taking. the *capturing the moment*. and you will spend so much more on the professionals. have you priced them lately? seriously, you need to reconsider. if you can afford a professional once a year to take pictures of you and your family in your environment, that would be the thing, to supplement the everyday things. because like me, i suspect, there aren't that many with you in them.
Reply
4-01-2006 @ 8:52PM
Belinda said...I am actually getting in trouble for not getting any professionals done of my 14 month old yet. In truth, I don't like them. I like the good picture of her running around in her diaper and getting into trouble and getting messy, not the posed ones. I did some at Christmas that was slightly posed and they turned out WONDERFUL! She looked so cute in her Santa dress sitting on a reindeer or between her two Christmas teddies!
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4-01-2006 @ 9:10PM
Deb said...Sarah, please don't stop taking those precious photos. In 20 years' time, you'll want to look back on the silly & cute & wonderful things they did growing up. I believe, from reading your posts, that photography is more than just a hobby for you--it's a passion. You shouldn't deny yourself that! (I, too, am constantly taking photos of my boy.) The natural, unposed look captures so much more of who the kids are than a posed "pretty" studio portrait. So keep taking your pictures and never mind what anyone says about spending too much time or money on it. If it makes you happy, do it!
Reply
4-02-2006 @ 5:01AM
Laura Snow said...I believe that us, as parents capture our children better than anyone else ever can. We sprung for the top of the line camera, etc because we're honestly SAVING money by not going to someone else and really, it's helped me discover a true PASSION I didn't even know I had! Children are usually more comfortable in their own homes having their photos done by people they know. My son just won't sit at a studio for a stranger... and even when we've gotten him to, it's just not HIM in the photos. His personality doesn't shine in those.
Switch to digital and you may see the perks we have!
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4-02-2006 @ 3:43PM
Jen said...Oh no! Please don't ever leave it to the professionals--YOU are the professional. Look through your pictures again--don't you see that you know your kids better than anyone? No one else has the capacity to capture those little moments. Nothing magical happens in a studio in front of lights and strangers; it happens in the tiny, intimate moments surrounded by love.
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