"Believe"
Not gonna lie, between: our eldest graduating high school and preparing to move away for university; photographing ‘kids’ (now young adults!) he went to preschool with for their graduations; the finale of Ted Lasso; AND the full moon…
I’ve shed more than a few tears the past couple weeks.
#truthtime #alllthefeels
One of my fave scenes from Ted Lasso (and the list is long), was when Rupert challenged Ted to darts and, while handily beating Rupert 🎯👏, Ted references this quote:
“Be curious, not judgmental.”
~ author unknown
(although - apparently - often misattributed to Walt Whitman)
This quote makes me think of a great video from Brian Fretwell I watched recently… he was talking about how asking a kid, “what do you want to be when you grow up?” can undermine their confidence by making them feel shame because they - rightly - may not yet know; INSTEAD, what if we asked, “What are you proud of doing?”, which in turn builds their confidence as they tell you about having helped a kid on the playground, or having built a birdhouse at home, or how their mom is sick and they always offer to help with dishes… this helps them maybe start to see where their inherent strengths and interests lie. Such a small shift, yet so impactful and - imho - a perfect example of being genuinely curious about the soul in front of you…who they are vs who you hope they might become. ❤️
Gah, they were so little 😍
…also: full, noon-day light not ideal 😜
These cuties, during a weekly afternoon playdate, willingly posed so I could get some shots on film to develop at my B&W Darkroom class. And now 2 of them are GRADUATES! (with the other 2 right behind) 🤯
Beautiful B.
It was SUPER windy and SUPER chilly, but here she is looking as confident, and capable, and graceful as ever. What a gift to be a part of this record-making… recalling the four of them playing together when they were so little and now two of them setting off on their next big adventures.
Our son’s pre-school experience was wonderful… and it led me to a friendship I’ve treasured - truly treasured - since. Thank you to Jill McDavid for allowing me the honour of this session AND for - with all her love, goodwill and talent - photographing our son and family on his graduation day. 🙏🏼❤️
Lovely L. An architecture enthusiast, we’d planned a location shoot for her and her friends (a beautiful gift from her very proud parents!) but when the day held rain… and more rain 😬, I offered the Plan B of a studio shoot… determined, we kept to Plan A and Lady Universe had our backs! It rained as I drove there AND again almost immediately after I got back in the car BUT we had lovely overcast light for the entirety of the session! So excited to see where your path leads you!
As our graduates navigate their ‘next chapters’, may they embrace curiosity along the way without succumbing to the - unfortunately - inevitable judgment and comparison… our world is made so much better when we encourage each other to be exactly who we are while we each chase our unique talents and dreams… on our own timelines. 🙏🏼
Thank you, Ted Lasso, for all the laughs + lessons. 🦋
“Believe you can and you're halfway there.”
~ Theodore Roosevelt
What a joy it’s been photographing the graduates this year… I cannot wait to see the myriad ways you’ll each contribute your special talents to our world!
xo Lori