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My most favourite photographs of all time.

Blogging, Family, Lifestyle

My most favourite photographs of all time are a varied bunch but they are all significant because of one thing. They each mark a magical moment in time which can never be repeated or relived. They feature people still here, people who have gone, people who have grown and changed, places, seasons, phases, emotions and connections captured.

 

Connections are the most important thread in my work. They can be subtle or scream out, but however they present they are crucial. A photograph that has no connection between it’s subjects will feel empty, That is not always a bad thing as that can often be the message in itself, but for me personally and my style of photography, connections and emotional links between people are what makes me tick.

To start my story of my ultimate favourite images, I would have to start with this one.

My father died when I was 30 years old. He died very suddenly 5 weeks after being diagnosed with cancer, before I could even process his illness, he was gone and my precious photographs of him were all I had left. Unfortunately, nothing brings home the importance of photography like losing someone. All of a sudden those images were the only connection I had to my memories. They became a lifeline to the past, present and future.

This photograph marks a whole new chapter in my life, the one that stars my new little family. I look at this image and I see the serious little newborn who still remains in my loud boisterous boy. We marvelled at this wonderful creature we had created and we were enjoying a whole new beginning. We waited 4 long years for our darling boy to arrive, we went through lots of procedures, IVF and sadness but this photograph literally melts away everything that came before it. He is this baby, his eyes speak the same truth and I love that Marie Donn the fantastic photographer captured him in a way that he will always be. It’s a true reflection of him even as a 6 week old newborn baby. Thank you so much Marie, I love our photographs and the natural, relaxed shoot you created has shaped many of my own.

Some of the photographs I have chosen are priceless and precious to me because the moment in which they were taken was so fleeting and others because they were phases and stages that went on for ages yet still they will one day fade from my memory so I need to capture them to document their existence. For example the monochrome image of my children face to face was a moment when Rafferty jumped in his sister’s cot and just kissed and stared at her. She was about 6 weeks old, was still very much attached to me and he was struggling to adapt. But it was the first moment he truly expressed spontaneous affection for her. It’s actually in my top 3 ultimate faves ever!

Another image that represents a chapter in our lives is the dress up photos. My children have always loved dressing up and various costumes represent various stages. These photographs have almost assumed new superiority now that my eldest no longer wants to dress up, I almost sobbed when he announced I could give away his Batman and Spiderman costumes. Things never stay the same.

Whilst looking for the digital files of all these precious pics I then fell in love with lots all over again and then my choice to choose my all time faves became harder! So I soon realised I needed a the shortlist for this blog. And secondly, I knew I liked black and white photographs but I didn’t realise quite how much their timeless quality shapes my own galleries. Hope you enjoy looking at my collection of all time faves as much as I do.

This little bench features in a lot of our family photographs, it speaks of a time when their bottoms were little enough to fit on it. It also speaks of the lollies munched on it, the treasure hidden beneath it and the lovely hugs shared on it.

In my journey of motherhood I had to feature my own mother as she is my inspiration. She is hugely photogenic but the connection between her and my daughter is what makes my heart skip a beat with this picture

Professional photography is obviously something I value but I also really value being in my own family photographs. And this my friends is why I book an annual photoshoot every year. It’s something I so proud of. I know as my children grow, their legacy of photographs is also growing. Our story and growth together can unfold and one day when we are no longer here they will still have our photographs.

Aswell as Marie Donn, the other amazing photographers I have chosen to capture our memories are Scott Collier. A great big bear of a man and inspiration. He’s creative, bold and has a talent for making us the stars in our own home and on location. Scott’s work is all over my home and he’s photographed us 3 times. Thank you Scott.

The amazing Tennielle Murray Photography is also hugely talented and captured our images when the children we 1 and 2 years old. Tenielle’s artistic flare perfectly captured our young family. Tenielle is now in Australia but I look at her work everyday.

Most recently the mega Charlie Alexander of Farlie Photography photographed us in our happy place on the beach in Walberswick,near Southwold. This was a dream come true for me. A lot of my fave family pics are taken there by me, for example to panoramic header image at the top of this blog, but to have someone actually photograph me so I can feature in my own story is truly wonderful. Thank you so much Charlie, you were a joy, we loved every second of our shoot with you. Same place next year please.

NB I have been very stingy with the amount of family pics I have shared in this blog. My other half is quite private and a lot of my ultimate faves (goodness me I really have a big list of all time faves don’t I?! This was another discovery whilst writing this blog) are all such truly personal moments that he asked me to keep them private, as an oversharer this was hard for me, but damn it I had to agree!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my blog. I’d love to hear your comments too.

until next time, lots of love x

9 Comments

  1. Jo Brailey

    Love this ❤️❤️❤️ Beautiful words, pics and sentiments x x

    Reply
  2. Lucy

    Absolutely gorgeous pictures and no truer words said. We have to capture these moments because time will never stand still for us…..I find it very sad looking over old photos just because I realise how quickly the kids are growing up. Thank you for freezing our special moments. We have photos of birthday parties, baptisms and crinkly little babies all over our home and they will be very special to us forever. Thank you so much

    Reply
  3. Liz

    These photos are just so, so gorgeous. Loved reading this xx

    Reply
  4. Liz santos

    These photos are just so, so gorgeous. Loved reading this xx

    Reply
  5. Louisa Willimas

    These are stunningly Kika! Great blog post.

    Reply
  6. Heather

    A lovely read. It’s so true so many moments caught that can’t be recreated. Wonderful memories to look back on.

    Reply
  7. Georgina

    Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous!

    Reply
  8. Sue Fox

    Oh wow families and family moments captured so exquisitely, how blessed we are! Sue

    Reply
  9. Niki Roach (eyehart Photography)

    Lovely blog post and captura perfectly the importance of capturing your memories, time really does go so fast doesn’t it. I love that you have an annual shoot too-I’m inspired to do the same!

    Reply

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