When you hire someone to take your photograph, you’re not really buying images,
you’re hoping to capture moments that are all around you,
woven through every day,
a tangle of beauty, love and life.
A great photograph is a classic.
It captures something that you recognize immediately.
It’s an instant reaction,
a visceral “yes”.
A great photograph is love.
A head thrown back in laughter,
a boy hugging his mom with all his might,
the ferociousness of childhood,
a knowing look between a husband and wife.
A great photograph is priceless.
When you’re in your dotage, gathering your grandchildren around you,
your photographs will be the most valuable thing you own.
More than bonds or preferred stock,
your children’s children will be coveting the 8×12 black and white print that has been propped up on your mantle for as long as anyone can remember,
the one that shows you when you were a new mother,
your hairstyle now dated,
the joy on your face as plain as day,
as you held your first baby and dreamed of the future.
Having photographs taken of your family is proof that you were here,
that someone’s life was better because you were alive,
that someone’s day got better because you walked into the room,
that you were here
and you were loved.