Reuninting with Old Friends | Anne & Charlotte
A pleasant early Fall afternoon lead to a batch of wonderful memories and keepsakes for a mother and daughter who I hold near and dear to my heart. My childhood friend’s mother picked up my Facebook special for a mini-shoot of her and her daughter, Charlotte, and emailed me right away with plans for a session. Anne, the mother, explained that Charlotte would be leaving for school soon and she wanted a nice portrait of the two to hang on the wall.
The location was easy for us: we both agreed upon the park that Charlotte and I used to hold our birthdays at as children, right across the road from her home. Anne invited me over a little early to help her with outfit choices and wait for Charlotte to get home. We sat and talked while the mother applied her make-up, recanting memories from many moons ago.
Charlotte arrived at the home just minutes before we headed across the road to the park. I was taken back for a second and commented as we strolled down the path—the park looked so small now, in my memories it was much larger. I laughed it off with my old friend as we are much older now, and of course the park would seem endless as a five year old.
The three of us set up under a beautiful tree, the sun positioned behind them as to catch the filtered rays pushing through tall branches in the distance. With a few quick shots, their smiles began to relax. We moved to a wooden staging area under the shade of a towering eucalyptus, and then finally up to a sunshiny spot right off of 4th Street in Downtown Saratoga.
The photographs turned out just how I'd imagined--full of light and life, with a perfect sunglow around the two women as the three of us enjoyed eachother's company in the lush Saratoga park. I delivered the photos and went over them with the two, showing off the photographs that I liked the best and inquiring which was their favorites. A flash drive loaded up and happy smiles all around, the photoshoot deemed a success by both all parties.
It is such a privilege to be welcomed back into friend's lives to share my passion with them, and to be allowed to capture their smiles and keep them forever as a keepsake of the years they've spent together. I look forward to looking back over these photos, maybe years down the line, and enjoying that moment once again--hopefully with the company of Anne and Charlotte over a cup of tea.
