Our lives sometimes surprise us. Sometimes, something happens in our lives that defines who we are. Some of those moments are planned, like a wedding. We spend time thinking about the ceremony, who we want to invite, how we want to share this moment in time with our family, and how we want to document it. Sometimes, quite often actually, we hire a photographer to capture these times in our lives. We spend a lot of money, and we agonize over 6 hours coverage vs. 8 hours. We think, one photographer or two…. Weddings are important. Very important. They are a milestone in our lives.
Not all moments are weddings. Not all aspects of our family story are prepared for months in advance. We don’t always get to hire a photographer to professionally document our lives due to budget, timing, or happenstance. But there are so many moments that are worth recording, that become part of our family story, our life story.
The in between moments are just as important or more important than the monumental ones. Every few months, I’ll pull out my camera for the afternoon, and document a moment in our family story, like this trip to the Lego Store. We get all pumped up for vacation photos, and with all the prep and planning, those vacation photos get saved and tucked away, but the everyday moments are what makes life life.
I hear from parents all the time how much their young children love looking through their phones to see photos of their lives. How much they flip through each image smiling and talking about their story.
So, my challenge to you, document a story in your life. Maybe the story of taking your dog for a walk, from grabbing his leash, to opening the door, to seeing him sniff along the way. Document the story of your walk. Life happens in these moments. Document what you do, from making lemonade, to planting a tree in the yard, or even painting a fence with your friend. Document the ordinary, tell the story, and I bet you’ll discover how absolutely extraordinary it actually is.
Erika Thornes is a San Diego photographer who spends countless evenings at the beach. She captures life as it unfolds, especially near the water, above or below. She has been recognized as a leader in silhouette photography, teaching others how to convey emotion and a story through their images. Erika is an author on Lynda.com a contributor to The Photoshop Show, as well as This Week in Photo, and was the featured gallery artist for the Google+ Moment that Matter gallery show in San Francisco.
You can also read more of her articles on Photofocus HERE.
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Filed under: Photography Tagged: children 
