Do we need a family photographer today?

Do we need a family photographer today?

The outbreak of Coronavirus makes drastic changes to our lifestyle. Suddenly we realise how vulnerable we are, ‘especially how vulnerable our parents can be. It makes us all, or at least me just a little bit more sentimental, sensitive and… responsible. I often hear that the age of professional photographer has ended, and that portrait photography itself has lost its value as everyone can take a decent image with a smartphone.

Partially it is true and we can see a big drop in digital camera sales due to smartphones. But as I browse through the photos of families I have photographed over the years, this one photo session suddenly stood out. I did a family photo shoot in the Irish National Heritage Park, Wexford where the extended family flocked together to celebrate a mother’s anniversary. Her son flew all the way from America for a big surprise. It was a beautiful, lively photo session that I really enjoyed.

Tragically though her son died soon after from terminal illness. This was a very hard time for the family and this photo session is the last time they were happy together. This is what Alla, his sister, recently wrote to me :

“Life is unpredictable and nobody knows where it ends. I am really happy that we managed to get that photo session with you, Vladimir. Our mum wanted to have photos of all of us together. At that moment we were all so happy ! We laughed non stop and had a lovely walk around the park. We lost our brother unexpectedly but photos are so valuable now. These memories will stay with us forever.”

Thank God I don’t get such testimonials from my clients very often but reading them makes me feel that I do something right.

Stay safe, look after yourselves and enjoy every moment with them. And if you ever need a photographer you know where to find me.

Published with StoryChief