2 Seconds

Anyone who spends more than 5 minutes talking with me about photography (my fave subject right after my family) has probably heard me say that I think good photography is mostly an illusion. A play on a moment which was captured on film but “created” in the photographer’s mind in the seconds before the shutter clicked. It is how I personally view my photography. And I have recently been thinking about those seconds. You know the ones I just mentioned? In those few seconds, I make the image in my mind, for those few seconds, its perfect, its real, its alive, and in an instant, its gone. Did I get it? Yeah, sometimes I do. And that is perfect.

Over the last couple of years, I have tried my hand at a lot of photography. I started with only natural light, outdoors mostly. And I liked that. Then I did some indoor natural light (boy that was trickier). Then I invested in studio lighting and learned (still learning!) about that, so I did that for a while. I even rented some studio space and became a “studio” photographer. And I liked that. Then I moved back to natural light, mostly outdoors. And I still really like that.

I also tried a lot of different styles to my work. I have tried candid, posed, posed but candid, and just confused myself. I have been back and forth and up and down and have come to the conclusion that I like a lot of things. That makes me a good photographer (although a hard person to pin down on the answer as to what I like best).

As much as I like it all, I know what I LOVE. That is maternity photography, newborn photography, baby photography and child photography. It is one or two kids only so that I can concentrate on those seconds instead of trying to corral all the kids and parents into the shot. It is NOT traditional, NOT posed, NOT grouped, that’s NOT me. I like to connect with the kids, and up until about age 5 (or when they go off to school), I really can do that. I love singing the Mickey Mouse Hot Dog song, and talking about my favorite Princesses. I love mud fights and Thomas the Train. I love baby drool and how a 6 month old falls sideways when he reaches for my pull toy ducks and Mom or Dad catch him and he cracks up. I love squishy newborns with their little hair swirlies. I love having a beautiful pregnant woman tell me “I didn’t know I looked that good”. Well, you do!

So, since that is my LOVE, that is what I have decided to do. Live in those seconds, grab those times, create my illusions, if only for a couple seconds. The moment is gone as soon as I blink, so I have to grab it.

I want my current clients, my future clients, my friends and my family to know that I will always do my best for them, and by focusing exclusively on maternity, newborn, babies and children up to school age (yes, this means no large sibling group shots and no family work), I will be able to give to them what I create in my mind in those seconds. Before I blink, I’ll create my illusion, and create your portraits. And they will be perfect.

I can’t wait to start my new journey….from this moment forward, I will be starting down a road that has taken me almost three years to come back to. I know I will miss out on some of your portraits now, but your families and children will always be in my heart, and in my soul.

~Susan