Wednesday, July 15, 2015

Seeing the story in your photos...

I'm sure you've all heard the phrase "A picture is worth a thousand words". Well I have a lot to say. I mean, a lot. I take tons and tons of photos! I've always been interested in photography and I don't have to tell you that it has come a long way in recent years! In high school I took a photography class and we used SLR cameras and developed our own film in a darkroom. Now, I have a dSLR (a digital Single Lens Reflex camera) and I rarely pull it out because I have an amazing camera in my hands at all times on my iPhone! I love that documenting everyday moments is so easy, but I do have to admit that when I pull out my "big" camera, I'm always glad I did.

The other day, I had the opportunity to take photos for my Aunt and Uncle and their kids and grandkids. I am not a professional photographer. I have to stress this, because I'm not amazing. I only take photos for family and friends on occasion because I enjoy it. What I am, is a memory keeper. And that helps me to see the stories in the photos.

The thing I love about photos that are mine or of people that I love, is that I see things that others don't. For example, in the photo below, you might see two little kids sitting on cement. I see two kids who were just dancing around. I see two cousins who were having the best time together. I see Ryder trying to get Mae's attention. I see snippets of personality.


In this photo, you may see a happy little girl. You may see that the happy face isn't completely in focus. I see Mae, who loves her Poppy. I see the look of pure joy that is on her face even after 10 minutes of doing the same thing. I see a grandpa who indulged her, and although you can't see it, his smile was as bright as hers.


In this photo, you might see an imperfect family photo. You might see a funny face on a little boy. I see one of the strongest families I know. I see four people who God put together for a reason. I see a little boy who, despite the fact that he's having a really rough morning, is really trying to put on a smile to make his mommy and daddy happy. He really was trying so hard. :)


To me, the beautiful thing about taking these photos is the story behind them. It's a story only I can tell. It's my perspective. The photos on their own might not say the same thousand words that I have to say. That's why memory keeping is so important to me. 

Next time you look at your photos, ponder on them. Look at them and let your mind wander. Dig a little deeper. What can help you tell the story of that photo more completely? I would love to hear from you how scrapbooking (or memory keeping in any form, really) has changed your perspective.


8 comments:

  1. What a wonderful post! I love it and all the pics!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jen, I would not look at these photos and think anything other than "extraordinary!" You did a fabulous job with them. You captured more emotion than I could ever dream of capturing myself. You clearly made them at ease and enjoyed the photo session with you.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Love this - reminds me of Ali Edwards post 'do you see what I see' Really made look at the photo, quite poignant at times if you look at old photos

    ReplyDelete
  4. Great photos! I love this part of scrapbooking... being able to tell the story behind the photos to bring meaning to something that might not otherwise be seen.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Beautifully said...sometimes we have to give voice to what we see or those memories are lost forever.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Jen, you are such an inspiration! You are one talented photographer, scrapper, and storyteller. Thanks for sharing your talent and vision with us! :-)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thank you so much for this!!
    This is what I need right now. I felt lost in the world of Project Life vs regular scrapbooking, part of me even wanted to stop all together because it had begun to feel like a chore.
    Reading this blog post made me remember why I scrapbook and how wonderful it is to be a storyteller.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Documental photographs inform tales with pictures. The major dissimilarity among photojournalism and representation photography is that representation photography is destined to provide as a past representation of a political or sociable period whereas photojournalism represents a specific prospect or occurrence. Gulf Shores Beach Photography

    ReplyDelete