OK, here’s the deal…
I asked for your catchlight photos and I received them. Thank you so much!!! You all are so awesome!!! I am super excited to write up the post about catchlights. The thing is, it might not be until next week. So it WILL happen, just not as soon as I originally thought and said.
I have this bad habit of biting off more than I can chew. I don’t do it intentionally but when the time comes and everything is due, I end up staying up all night and trying to finish all the projects at once. As I’m typing this I am thinking it might be a time managment problem instead…
I am having flashbacks to fashion design school. The night before a big project would be due I would stay up pretty much all night working like mad on it. In fact, one of my final projects for a specific class stands out in my mind. I stayed up all night busting my butt trying to get it done. I had until something like 10pm to turn it into my teacher at school and after that we could drop our projects off at her house. I remember driving to her house at 4 in the morning and leaving it on her doorstep in the middle of the night. Good times…
So the point is I think I need to do the catchlight post next week because last night I woke up around 2am and couldn’t get back to sleep until about 7am because I was thinking about my presentation on Saturday at Photocamp. I haven’t finalized everything I am going to discuss or my examples. I need to sit down and do that today so I can sleep tonight!!!
So before you point at me and call me a liar for not having the catchlight post ready, I would like to console you with a little giveaway. I would like you to answer a question for me. The answers will probably be used in my presentation.
Here’s the question (actually it is two): Why do you take photographs of your children? What do the photos mean to you?
Answer that in a comment for one entry. Post a link back on your blog for another entry, leave a separate comment with the link.
I have 5 prizes to give out so there will be many happy winners! Deadline is Friday, March 13th.
Obligatory photo. This is from last summer when we would go up to this great camping spot and have picnics and kind of “day camp” but we never ended up staying the whole night. Maybe we will this summer.
March 10th, 2009 at 9:33 am
I take pictures of my son because I want to have concrete evidence of memories. I like to look back at earlier pictures and remember details that I would have otherwise forgotten. Also, my son loves to see pictures of him from when he was younger.
March 10th, 2009 at 9:58 am
I love to photograph my children because photos capture the true innocence of young children and their choices. We print LOTS of photos and also share with friends and family through a smugmug site.
March 10th, 2009 at 10:01 am
We take pictures because kids grow so fast and we want to catch the memories to look back on them. When they are grown and too busy for us, we will need those pictures. That is why we want pictures in all stages and various emotion and not just the portraits from the studio or at school where they are posed like everyone else. No one is with our kids more than us moms so no one has as many opportunities to catch the ‘true’ picture that represents your child. They are not only meaningful to us, but our kids will also want to see pictures of themselves representing times they cannot remember. My kids love to look at pictures of themselves when they were babies. A picture holds those memories for us and help moms not only hold onto (and document for future proof/ blackmail) those memories, but the pictures help us share those memories with our kids. We can also share them with grandparents, and other family that do not live close enough to see our kids on a regular basis. Plus, we are proud of our kids and want to display how gorgeous they are! I mean no one has cuter kids than mine, right?!
March 10th, 2009 at 10:25 am
I love taking pictures of my children because it captures a moment in time. Not only does it capture what they look like or what they are doing, but a little of their personality and emotion, too. Photographs can also capture the essence of relationships, too.
March 10th, 2009 at 10:49 am
We adopted our daughter at 1 year old. She’s now 2 and 1/2 and I think I am trying to make up for that lost year of photos.
March 10th, 2009 at 10:50 am
I take shots of my kids for SO many reasons. One is for the memory. It’s my family history. I like to look for not just the big events, but also the little nuances of their personality. I try to capture their trademark facial expressions, their favorite toys, their latest accomplishments, their friends, their backyard sandbox masterpieces. I could go on forever. I photograph the big events and red letter days too, like ballet recitals, concerts, awards, and countless other special occasions, but my favorite shots are usually when we are just hanging out on an ordinary day.
When I photograph them, I am hoping I can get a photo that lets them see themselves the way I see them, as fascinating, talented and gorgeous individuals with endless potential and a whole world of opportunity in front of them. A beautiful image can do a lot for a kid’s self esteem. And having a mom that dotes over them and thinks they are the cat’s meow doesn’t hurt either.
Another reason I photograph my kids is simply because I love photography and want to learn as much as I can about it. They make great test subjects for my latest creative photo idea. Sometimes my ideas work out, and sometimes they crash and burn. That’s what practice is all about, so I keep shooting.
March 10th, 2009 at 11:04 am
I take pictures of my son because I want to capture moments. I want to look back on his photos in a few years and say oh yeah, I remember when…. I also want to have that as a keepsake for him as he gets older. I enjoy taking pictures and love to dabble with photoshop too. I figure the more I take pictures, the better I will get.
March 10th, 2009 at 11:57 am
I take pictures of my son because I want to hold those memories and go back to them any time I want. I want HIM to have these to look back on. My mom didn’t take many photos of anything…so I had very very very few to go back and look at time from when I was a child. Pictures tell a story and I want to hold onto, display, and share each story with my son, friends, family and to look back on myself after times have past.
March 10th, 2009 at 11:58 am
I just like to take pictures! I love capturing those precious little moments and I love playing with my camera. The photos are animate objects of their short time as little ones that I can not only cherrish forever but can pass out to and share with others.
March 10th, 2009 at 12:02 pm
I love taking pictures of my kids! Not only is it a great hobby, but its so fun to go back and look at the many ways they have changed. To me, its like creating a life story through pictures and I know it will be cherished by not only us but also generations to come. Thanks for the great giveaway!
March 10th, 2009 at 12:58 pm
Taking picture of my children are WHY I even bought myself a better camera and looking INTO photography!
I always had done it as a side hobby, but used whatever camera I had.
Then when I started to have children I realized how EXPENSIVE professional pictures were…and I KNEW I could do a great job with them.
I hated how going into a studio it seemed so stiff and unnatural…but when I would take their pictures at the park or just at home they looked like themselves!
So I took the plunge, bought me a REALLY good camera…and have never looked BACK!!!
They will have that too look back on for the rest of their lives…I sometimes wish I had more photos of myself…to compare to see how much I look like my children or DON’T look like my children at certain ages!
March 10th, 2009 at 2:59 pm
I take pictures of my kids because it’s FUN! Sure, I want to remember them, how they were, what they like, all their little quirks, but really I just like to take pictures, and my kids are easy subjects.
Or not so easy. Depending on the day.
And don’t stress about Saturday. You’re going to to awesome!
March 10th, 2009 at 3:31 pm
I take pictures of my life and my sweet son so that when I am old and gray I will still be able to remember all of the fun, silly, tender moments of my life. Our memory is not perfect and as time marches on memories can slip away. Each picture I take is so priceless to me that when I have found that some have been “lost” from my computer it has broken my heart and caused me to shed a tear or two. I can not even accurately express the depth of what photos mean to me but know that I am so grateful for the wonderful invention of cameras which allow us to immortalize snapshots of time.
March 10th, 2009 at 8:35 pm
I take pictures because they’re amazing little snippets of time captured forever. I want to remember everything (well, maybe not EVERYTHING, lol), and this, to me, is the way to do that. Probably once a month my oldest son (6) sits down and looks through all his baby photo albums and we really enjoy the memories. Now that he is in school and playing sports too, we’re taking even more pictures.
March 10th, 2009 at 8:44 pm
There are so many reasons I take pictures of my kids. From not having a lot pictures when we were kids to watching them grow each day. There are so many changes, it’s fun to look back and see them. I love being able to share those memories with them. It’s also so much fun to take their pictures! I love it. iclipalso(at)yahoo(dot)com
March 11th, 2009 at 11:05 am
You probably know what I’m going to say already…but i want to remember the “STORY” of what’s happening in our lives…i want to continue to remember them just the way they are at that moment…because i know i’ll forget the sweet details. they change so quickly and i want to be able to freeze them for my own selfish reasons.
March 11th, 2009 at 12:26 pm
Hi - I’m new (well, I’ve been lurking for a while) and I’ve been meaning to comment for a while. So, here goes.
I take photos for many reasons but mainly - One- because I have 5, yes 5, pictures of myself as a child. Two - because I print my family blog and my photos into one big hardbound book every year and when I look back through that book it brings tears to my eyes to see how much they’ve grown and changed in the last year - it brings some good laughs too. Those moments and memories are priceless!
March 11th, 2009 at 2:54 pm
I take photos of my children so we can all look back and remember how great life is/was. I have the photos set as a slideshow screensaver on pretty much everything that can have a screensaver. LOL I love to see pictures and remember what was going on when it was taken. It brings back the feelings of that time. Sometimes they are great, happy feelings. Sometimes they are reminders of struggles we endured. The photos I have taken mean so much to me. I have found that I don’t really have that great of a memory. If it weren’t for the photos, there were many precious things I would likely have forgotten or that would have dulled in my memory. I have learned the great importance of a regular back-up system when we lost ALL of our pictures of a very rare trip to Mexico City in a hard drive crash not long after returning home. So many photos completely lost. I do still remember the trip and can picture the view from the top of the pyramid in my mind, but it’s not the same as having the photos to remind me. Now I have a daily back-up that runs on my computer. I don’t want to lose any more precious memories.
March 11th, 2009 at 11:18 pm
I LOVE to take pictures of my kiddos to remember. To remember what they each looked like and how they have changed. To remember what we have done together. To remember how they felt, whether it it a genuine smile or a tear on a cheek. Basically “to remember”!!!
March 11th, 2009 at 11:45 pm
I wanted to answer this before reading anybody else’s comments, so if I repeat anything I’m sorry. Trying to take pictures of my kids was when I first started to obsess about making good photographs. Once I got into it, the satisfaction of capturing spontaneous moments and expressions helps keep me going. When I look at a photograph, a flood of images and memories resurface and I’m taken back to that moment in time and remember fondly all those fun and happy moments. I look forward to the happy moments to come and especially those times I’ll be able to sit with my grandkids and tell stories about their parents. We are doing more than just capturing moments for us, but for generations to come so they have a better understanding of where they came from. That is why I take pictures of my kids.
March 12th, 2009 at 2:56 pm
I love to take pictures of my little girl because she has got so many facial expressions of everything. I don’t want to forget that as she gets older and I want to just catch that very moment when she’s smiling, eating, playing, screaming, or whatever she is doing. I love taking pictures of everything of her from her little toes, fingernails, her hair and every little detail. They grow so fast and I’m greateful to be able to capture some highlights of her on the camera and or video. Finally, I can’t wait to show it to her as she gets older. I can’t wait to see her reaction of her looking at herself when she was a baby, toddler and so forth.
March 12th, 2009 at 3:15 pm
I take pictures of my children to try to capture the sweet love and enthusiasm they have for life and to remember when they were younger. I also think it helps them develop memory to show them photos of events and places visited in the past. My two-year-old has surprised me with things she’s said when looking and pictures and her favorite book is “Daddy book”, an album I had printed with my husband on the cover.
March 12th, 2009 at 3:17 pm
Oh, also, I did put a link to Momshots on my blog yesterday! Same link as if you click on my name.
March 13th, 2009 at 1:25 am
I love your banner Jessie! and not just because my kids are on it, but I think it looks great!
March 25th, 2009 at 1:41 pm
Hello there! Saw your presentation at Photocamp. very nice! Are you still playing with catchlights? I’d love to see the examples of what was submitted for your catchlight blog! Is there a way to see those? (new to this blog stuff) I’ a BIT catchlight CRAZY and have done a few tutorial classes on them, hence the reason I am so interested!