Why do I do this?

When things got rough last fall between my workload and mental health, I considered throwing in the towel and quitting. What started as a hobby and an outlet during covid had turned into so much more. As I faced the increasing pressure and commitment of running a business I asked myself, "Why am I doing this?"

The answer to that question is complex, but thinking back to my time with the Boss family helped me remember one of the core reasons I do this work. It started with an email from Janean, a client of mine, asking if we could schedule extended family photos - sooner rather than later. She shared that her father's cancer had returned aggressively and she wanted to capture some final memories with him while she still could.

I arrived on site at the family farm and as the family gathered outside, I realized - I KNOW this family! Janean's brother, Josh, was a friend of mine from High School and her stepmom, Jackie, was a colleague of mine through my day job. I became even more determined to make this session meaningful.

As we set up and I began photographing, I realized something else: I was probably taking a photo that would be part of Jerry's obituary. A few months later, that realization became a reality as Jerry's battle came to a close.

To try to put into words the honor I feel in being able to capture these final moments with this family feels almost impossible. I felt the weight of the inevitable outcome from all angles. A wife losing her husband, children losing their father, grandkids losing their grandpa, and siblings losing their brother. But in the midst of that, I witnessed so much love and laughter which helped ease some of the heaviness of the situation.

Towards the end of the session, Janean asked if I could capture some photos of her and her siblings playing catch with their dad. As Jerry tossed the ball back and forth with each of his children, I couldn't help but wonder what Jerry was thinking. I imagined him seeing his children at different stages of their lives with every throw - a toddler tossing a foam ball, a young boy hitting a baseball off a tee and sinking it right into dads glove, a teenager catching the game-winning fly ball.

When I edit galleries, I often find myself smiling as I relive those moments through my lens. But as I edited the Boss family’s gallery, my smile was joined by misty eyes as I carefully perfected every image, trying to encapsulate the legacy of a life in a gallery of a couple hundred images.

So why do I do this?

I do this for Jerry and the Boss family.

I do this for every family with a unique story to tell, cherished milestones to celebrate, and legacies to preserve.

I do this because photographs are the only thing in this world that allow us to revisit what has once passed, keeping those memories alive long after they are gone.