Learning From Mom
Before shooting the facing-page image, I had created a beautiful pose of this family. I had the little girl on the left, standing and holding onto the back of a small chair. Her older sister was sitting on some blocks in front of Dad, and Mom was sitting a little straighter with the baby in her arms. It was a beautiful, pyramid-shaped composition.
The vision in my mind was of the baby at a 45-degree angle in Mom’s hands. However, the infant kept trying to lean forward and sit up. This effort can quickly tire out a baby—and, as I have learned over the years, if you want a really bad session with a baby, let them get tired (or hungry).
I voiced my concerns to Mom and wondered what we could do to keep the baby happy. She told me that she knew how to do it and laid her head down on the baby, sandwiching the baby between her face and her hands. I loved it as soon as I saw it and told everyone to follow Mom’s lead and put their face on the person next to them. The younger daughter laid her head on her sister’s arm, the older daughter laid her head on Mom’s head and gently touched Mom’s hand, and Dad rested his chin on top of the older daughter’s head. What started out with “what am I going to do?” ended up being one of my favorite family photos.
Additional images from the same session.
Cooperation Is Key
Every portrait is the result of cooperation between the artist and the people in front of the camera. They may not cooperate the way you might expect, but they do it by being themselves. It is important for the artist to recognize when something that has happened that is actually better than what he or she had envisioned.