Life Lessons

This is my third year photographing the kids at my son's elementary school as they learn and rehearse for their annual school musical.  My goal is to capture, in candid shots, the joy the children get from doing this and to share it in a slideshow for their friends and families to see on the night of their performance.  It's no secret that I love to photograph children.  Out of the hundreds of photos I get to take of these kids, there's always one or two shots that reach right inside of me and give my heart a squeeze.  I am amazed at how comfortable these kids are in their own skin, not worrying about what anyone thinks or if their outfit for the day matches perfectly or not.  As an adult, I can't remember when I last felt like that.  It's those shots that are little lessons in my life, courtesy of another beautiful child.

How about you? Do you have that one shot that has captured your heart? Do share!

Comments

[Marcie]

What a great outfit!! Love how you've framed this - just enough to tell a story. Altho all spontaneous images of children capture my heart..here's a recent one of mine:
http://www.marciescudderphotography.com/index.php?showimage=1058

[Anna]

I don't really photograph children often, simply because I hardly know any around here, but when I visit my family, I always love taking pictures of my youngest cousins.

http://fotokuchen.wordpress.com/2009/07/07/146/

[Darlene]

What a fabulous image, and you are so lucky to have the opportunity to photograph a group of young children. Adults really have much to learn from children.

Children are my favorite subjects, because, like you said, they are very comfortable in their own skin. The resulting images are always authentic moments and they all seem to tug at my heart strings. Here's one of my favorites:
http://www.whimsicalyearsphotography.com/blog/

[Elizabeth Harper]

I love your image with the child above ... it screams happy self-confidence without even seeing a face.

I found lots of great opportunities for interesting photographs of children when I was shooting weddings.

The little girl in my link below was waiting for the bride who was over an hour late for the wedding. It lacks a bit in image quality, but it was a moment not to be missed.

http://www.giftsofthejourney.com/Elizabeth_Harper-Gifts_of_the_Journey/Wedding_Albums/Pages/Tasha_%26_Jonathan.html#5

[lucy]

i was supposed to be photographing people schmoozing at an auction/ party, but these two friends were just so much more interesting than the cocktail set:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lucyloomis/3931878395/

[~ kristina ~]

So cute! I just spent a week at home - took lots of photos of my new nephew and his older brother - but none posted yet.

[Ari]

Oh my goodness, I love that shot! that outfit is awesome!!

I don't have anyone to take pics of (sigh) except myself, but I kind of heart this pic:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/curiousillusion/4360371931/
Even if my feet are STILL hurting from those dang shoes.

[kosenrufu mama]

here mine... http://esterdaphne.blogspot.com/2010/02/daphne.html

[Katrina Kennedy]

Love those feet and layers:)


He captures my heart almost every day.

http://ianck.blogspot.com/2010/02/day-of-9-photos.html

[Christian @ Modobject at Home]

I happened upon my 2 little guys enjoying a book together... it melted my heart:
http://www.modobjectathome.com/2010/02/captured-moment-weekend-reading.html

[kristin]

kids are the best at just being themselves.
my littlest loves to wear tutus but pair them with cowboy hat or rain boots. and we go out just like that. why not. childhood is far too fleeting i hope she keeps some of her individuality and style in her adult years. i find it spunky and free.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/14811117@N02/3227990067/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/14811117@N02/3963797861/

[cindi]

love the picture!

this is one of a few for me...

http://photographythrucindiseyes.blogspot.com/2008/08/action-between-poses.html

[sarah]

love it! here are a couple:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bradleysofaustin/4040610253/in/set-72157622108389703/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bradleysofaustin/4381833223/in/set-72157622108389703/

[Leigh Clements]

I don't even pretend to be a "photographer", although I do love taking pictures, but I have a great appreciation for those photos that tell a story of the moment they captured. Sounds like the project you're working on does just that. I love this picture because of the extreme colours. Without even seeing her, I can tell this girl is spunky and fun, imaginative and loves to dance, wherever she may be at that moment and regardless of who is around. I think I have a little girl deep inside me like that, and those polka dot boots are speaking to that inner little girl right now!

[Amy]

This shot I took in Honduras captured my heart. The smile on his face says it all...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nickersonphotos/2763588520/in/set-72157606670545855/

[Tracy]

adorable photo!

this recent shot of my daughter laughing definitely captures my heart:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/31417716@N00/4382196589/

[erika]

I love this one because I think it looks exactly how it feels to read to my boys.
Cozy & just right.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/onemoreplease/4366396916/

[Trude]

What a cutie! I'm not around kids so much, at that in-between age where some friends are starting to get married but nobody has really had any offspring yet. :) This recent diptych of my dad really has a spot in my heart though, he's such a character and regardless of how many hours he's worked in a day, he's always ready with a joke or a face: http://www.flickr.com/photos/trudem/4378212428/

[shona cole]

I have literally 1,000's of photos of my kids, they think it is normal for Mom to shoot their every movement. But for all those there is one photo that captures my heart every time I look at it (I have it framed in my living room). it is not a perfect photo by any means, but something in her look just speaks to me of gentleness, our creative life and the future all at once.
http://shonastudio.blogspot.com/2009/09/wings.html

I like the photo on my blog banner too :)

thanks for the prompt.

[Taylor]

I love that shot of the tutu/boots! So adorable. :)

I got a picture recently of my cat... I'd drawn a heart on the sidewalk with sidewalk chalk, and she stood in the middle of it and practically demanded to be photographed.

You can view the photo here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/trooke/4379919509/

[Stacey Bruce]

This picture captures my heart every time. My son, Sam was pretending to be a super hero... Children don't think of themselves as any less, do they?... without any thought of failing or not being practical. Their imaginations are priceless.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/staceymo/2588761360/in/set-72157605755660393/

[summer]

Love this shot...and with two small girls in my home it is a familiar one!
my children as well as all the kids I know are such an inspiration for me photographically. They have a light all their own that I love trying to catch.
Here are a few recent of my daughter and a friend of hers.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sufferingsummer/4373425731/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sufferingsummer/4374971448/in/photostream/

and her doing what she does best...climbing trees in a fairie dress and patent leather shoes...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sufferingsummer/4380355172/in/photostream/

obviously this is a subject near and dear to my heart.

[Kathleen]

This is my most recent favorite shot of my little guy - taken as we walked through a gloriously snow-coated forest. Breaks my heart wide open, this boy.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ko2008/4366240287/

[Terresa Wellborn]

This one picture says so many things to me. How I cringe when my 3 elementary age children trot out of the bedroom mismatched to the hilt and how I try and encourage them to at least match the stripes or stars or whatever.

Why should I care? When this is one delicious freedom that should be theirs?

Beautiful blog, it is my first time here, via a chapter from Sage Cohen's book, WRITING THE LIFE POETIC. She mentioned you and I knew I just had to stop by. So glad I did, I'm adding you to my daily blog feed.

[spread your wings]

this photo, and the little girl in it, captured my heart a long time ago
http://spreadingwings08.blogspot.com/2009/02/joy-of-my-life.html

[melody]

Chris, thank you for this endearing image. I want to recapture that spirit.

Here's a moment...present for the birth of my oldest son's first child, I captured this only minutes after my grandson's birth:

http://slurpinglife.typepad.com/slurping_life/2010/02/moments.html