SOMETIMES, THE STORY BEHIND THE PHOTO MAKES THE DIFFERENCE...
The family:
Although we knew these friends for some time, and photographed them on friends gatherings, it was the first time they decided to do a studio session to mark her first birthday...
The scene:
In all honesty I was very excited as it was the first time I got to do a “cake smash” session, and i must say I enjoyed every second of it!
The atmosphere in the room:
In one word Unpredictable! as you can see on the other images from this set, toddlers have a will of their own, their mood can swing from one end of the spectrum to the other in a matter of seconds and you have to remain calm and roll with it…. its all part of the session….must say I like the crying images just as much as I like the smiling ones….
The family:
A family with a daughter who got my name through a friend who had a friend who knew me, they wanted a family session in the studio
The scene:
while photographing the family with kids I am always trying to “shoot” from the eye level of the child, which makes me less intimidating (I am not a small guy…) and more approachable to the kids, after a few minute while I was lying on the floor Aya started inching her way toward me and the camera the results are shown in the image
The atmosphere in the room:
I remember it so well, it was calm and fun, Aya was very open, smiling and happy, which made the entire experience a joy.
The reason they came:A family session
The family:
Returning clients who came for a Family/Maternity session and returned for a second session to mark their baby’s first birthday
The scene:
One year old and full of charm and character, Like in so many other of my photos, I elect to have a simple clean white background, I believe it draw all the attention to the “subject” and in some I “leave” plenty of dead space on one side to make the image balanced
The atmosphere in the room:
It was great, the mother did a great job making sure the baby had plenty of sleep before the session and came in awake and energetic
The reason they came: First birthday
The family:
They came for a Bat-Mitzvah book for their first daughter
The scene:
While photographing outside the entire family I made sure I was taking individual photos of each family member, we found a patch of grass and instead of photographing standing, sitting poses I tried taking an even lower point of view, lying on the grass and using a very narrow depth of field which blurred everything aside for her face I took some photos. ITs her eyes that are so captivating in this image.
The atmosphere in the room:
We were photographing at Stanford University (one of my favorite locations) and it was getting late in the afternoon, Lighting conditions were less than perfect, but they were so fan to photograph that I “pushed” the ISO higher and continue to “shoot”- so happy I didn’t stop….
The reason they came: Bat-Mitzvah book.
The family:
Birthday gift from two best friends to the third to capture their friendship
The scene :
An evening on a weekend three (Gourgious) best friends are at my studio to capture their friendship, there was wine, chocolate and a lot of cloth to change in and out of….
The atmosphere in the room:
What comes to your mind when you think about you and your best two girlfriends at a studio with wine, chocolate and a camera ? - a lot of photos, poses and laughter…. sometime you don’t need to direct much and just take the best seat and document. what a fun night!
