It was only 26 degrees outside when we left the house Wednesday morning to do a photo shoot for a family whose son will be deployed next Tuesday. He has just joined the airforce, and mom thought it would be nice to have some last-minute photos done.
In a perfect world, I would have changed a few things about the circumstances surrounding the photo shoot, but not because of the family, or because it was an inconvenience to shoot last-minute. Actually, it was because I acted as an irresponsible ‘hired’ photographer in the events leading up to it. Since it’s not so far in the past, let me remind you that Tuesday was voting day. All across the country, any politically conscious person was keeping a close eye on the races for all sorts of different issues and seats from house of representatives to Governors. The most interesting, nail-biting, suspense-filled race of all to me was the Governors race. I tell myself every single year that I’ll just go to bed and hope we know who it is by the next morning….but that never happens. I stayed up until around 1:30AM watching the gap between the tight Governors race for our state fall between just FOUR to a few thousand votes. It was more insane than watching any World Series or Superbowl I have ever seen. Ideally, I should have gone to bed much earlier than that.
Secondly, as mentioned above, it was freezing cold outside (literally), just two hours before the shoot was scheduled to start at 10Am. We could see our breath! Plus, the sun was shining SO brightly that I became concerned about the harsh shadows and blinding effects, especially considering that we would be shooting down by the ocean.
However, when I arrived, I was greeted by a pleasant three person family with a great sense of humor. All of my fears about the bright sun were immediately calmed once I realized that we could do the majority of their shoot in the woods along the walking trails. The trees offered a nice, shady canopy for the occasion. I think I was more concerned about doing an exceptional job because I was shooting for a member of the armed forces, which is a great honor. These photos will mean SO much to this mom when her son leaves on Tuesday, and I realize that even though I’ve never had to watch a child or close relative get shipped out to a war before….but as a human being, I think we can all understand the possibilities of the harsh realities that sometimes happen. I wanted these photos to be very special for this family.
As we walked along the trails, I was much more at ease seeing that this family was not only very “handsome”, but they were more than willing to try new things. They were willing to have fun, and not just “get it over with”. I was also pleased that the shoot was one of the most efficient sessions we’ve had in a long time, and I was very satisfied with the outcome when proofing the photos. The family was a lot of fun to be around in general. They were very candid…and the special thing about shooting on location at Moose Point State Park is that it is where Matt and Shirley go married! In fact, the photo of Matt & Shirley was taken just before the clearing along the walking trail where they said their vows about 10 years ago!
Enjoy the sneak peek below. Alec, we are so honored to have met you. We will be praying for your safe return. Thank you to Shirley and Matt for giving us the opportunity to work with you. It was a pleasure!
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