Amazing photos are amazing because... - Boise Family Photographer's 2019 Favorites
When reviewing the images I made this year, I made a collection of my favorites from a technical, photographer stand point. Those photos were awesome in composition, light and moment and I worked my butt off to make them. I am super proud of them. You may have seen them on my Facebook page.
But I started thinking I needed to pick favorites based on those that brought up feelings, thoughts and memories.
Basically, picking with my mom goggles on.
So here are my top 11 of 2019!
(Yes, I didn’t want to take one out just to make it an even 10. It does kind of bother me, but I can deal if you can)
We were attending a birthday party and I was following the kids around Planet Kid in Boise without actually climbing through the tunnels to follow them.
I loved the graphic lines and bright colors here, but taking it to a little deeper level, I loved capturing Cooper’s face squished in there on the dirty and stinky foot straps. No one but a four-year-old would do something like that. I work to capture true childhood in my photos.
The older boys were playing hard and running around, but my poor little baby couldn’t see what was going on. He would always try to watch his big brothers playing since they were (and still are) his biggest form of entertainment.
His sweet little head just barely showing reminds me of how little he really was and those tiny baby toes are to die for. Kids never stop changing, but my photos of them freeze time for me to savor forever.
Laundry is one of my least favorite chores. Laundry day at the Laney house happens every week when I wash 5-6 loads all in one day. Gotta get it over with so I don’t have to think about again for a week. Sometimes the boys help, sometimes they act like ostriches.
I capture the mess and the real life stuff, because frankly, these photos are personal. They aren’t for someone else. They aren’t taken to get featured in a magazine. They are for my own benefit and I know that sharing more of our messes and failures will bring us all closer together as a human race.
More on that here.
A huge reason why we moved to Boise was to be near extended family. We wanted our boys to know their grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins on both sides. I wasn’t very close to my extended families since they lived in Utah and we only saw them once or twice a year.
We gather for family Sunday dinners and it’s chaos, but exactly what we were seeking out with the move. I treasure the photos I have with my cousins because they were my best friends when we were together. I’m trying to give that gift to my kids.
The summer of 2019 was our first real camping summer. We went on camp outs with friends, both sides of the family and all by ourselves.
Our boys all thrive outside in the dirt with no walls or boundaries. They are feral and imaginative and dirty and wonderful. That’s a real smile with a real emotion behind it. None of this “say cheese” stuff. I only want smiles that are the result of joy.
We made it a point to visit graves of ancestors around Memorial Day. The wind was so strong that day that all the flower pots were blowing over. The boys were respectfully putting them all right back up and uncovering other graves that were hidden by dead grass and leaves.
I was very proud of them and the love and care they had for each grave site. It sure says something about their hearts. And I’m glad this photo can remind me of that day.
These two I hope get married one day and we can use this photo in their slideshow, but really it reminds me that good friendship is a constant in my life, especially with this little girl’s mom. We’ve been friends almost 9 years and through a couple moves for us both, we’ve stayed closer than ever. I don’t see that ever changing.
It’ll be amazing to look through photos of all the years we’ve been together. Photographing our friendships is just as important as photographing our family relationships.
After playing outside in the mud, both boys needed a bath. No time to clear the counters and do the dishes so dirty boys and dirty dishes shared a sink that day.
Someday soon, they will all be too big for the sink and the tub so I take the time to document these little moments when they’re little.
I love making a point to do family time where we all connect and play together. I love to photograph that time, but also want to be fully engaged in the play too. I handed off my camera to my then 8-year-old to take a few snaps of me going down the slip ‘n slide and playing with the younger two.
This shot reminds me to let go of control and let others help me and share my load. I don’t have to do everything myself.
Before bowling with the cousins at Big Al’s in Meridian, we explored all the arcade games. This was the Jurassic Park video ride trailer and all three boys were equally enthralled and terrified, and couldn’t look away.
Every single time I look at this photo, I giggle. Their faces just crack me up. I always look for humor in daily life. Laughing at our circumstances is how we get through the day sometimes.
My heart sings when all four of my boys wrestle together. It’s hilarious and I hope they never get too old to want to take down Daddy. It’ll get easier and easier every year. Even the baby needs to get in on the action. My boys start wrestling with Dad when they are 6 months old.
They love the rough and tumble play and I love the fun photos I make.
Thanks for heading down memory lane with me. It was a good exercise for me. Amazing photos aren’t amazing because of the technical aspects and the likelihood they could win an award.