First haircut.

Generally, the first haircut for a son or grandson is a big deal. It is a rite of passage. When the first haircut happens for a girl, who takes note?

Yesterday, Anna invited me along to get shots of Janie "getting her bangs trimmed".  I had a camera handy so I did not mind. It was to be a small thing. However, the salon maven was not to let it remain such a simple event for long. It turned into a full-fledged haircut.

Well, Janie did not behave like a boy who screams with fear and indignation. No. She behaved like the little diva she is.  For her it was a pampered non-event...like she had gone through this experience many times in her life. I was caught off guard and fascinated.

Of course, there were pangs of sadness to see her lengthening curls dropping at beautician's feet, but it was a rite of passage. Even girl's have them. This is one I had never thought about.

Is that a compliment?

One goal that a serious photographer has is to capture a signature moment or something that clearly connects the subject with "his or her" reality. He tries to capture an individual's singular essence or a thread of their uniqueness. It still surprises me when I am successful.

When the subject is happy with the results, kind and complimentary words often follow.

Well, today I received a note from one of my clients. She writes: "That is the best picture I've seen of me since I've gotten so old." I reckon that is a compliment. I don't know when she got "so old", but I do know she has a couple of decades on me. I just felt the need to smile when I read it.

I take compliments when and where I can get them. Just don't expect me to post the picture. She is happy with it, so we will leave it to your imagination.

Progress.

Lately The camera and the off-camera flash have seemed unwilling to speak to one another at the most inopportune moments. They refused to even respond to my remote control at all. On Thanksgiving day, the camera alone decided to throw a tantrum and would not to turn on and do its job.


Well, I have striven to be the patient photographer and to use soothing commands and encouragements. Today they have seemed to set aside their disagreements and agreed to help me out. What a relief! This shot is a breakthrough.


As a result, I dared my wife and son to sit down with me for a Christmas portrait to send to family members. Things worked out okay for a change. Of course, I cannot post the image until cards are mailed, but I am happy to see progress in any place I can find it. 

Turkey Day

Yesterday was Thanksgiving. I felt like the turkey. It is a wonder I am not in someone's roasting pit today.

I had a family photo shoot scheduled. It was a photographer's nightmare. Besides the positive outcome,  a sharpening of my learning curve, the large numbers of catastrophes that befell me can only suggest that they may be only minor interruptions in the future. If something could go wrong, it did. I survived, bruised and broken but still one tough bird.

Interestingly enough, the curse continued this morning as I uploaded the images to Lightroom. Yet, I endured and I prevailed.

I took a couple of images yesterday that were acceptable to my tastes. The client tends to be a connoisseur but I only promised snapshots and no money changed hands, leaving me with some kind of a saved face.

Today I will will lubricate my bruised ego with chocolate and Starbuck's Christmas Blend, reaffirm that my gear really is in working condition, and move on.  After all, if photography is a passion, it is also an addiction.

Lillian Grace

Maybe I am just getting old. Maybe I am getting wise. It just may be that my granddaughter has turned me on to something. Anyway, I am beginning to notice and enjoy babies. They soften my heart.

Last night Steven and Elaine  blessed their daughter Lillian Grace, who came along back in October. Elaine let me to attend and grab a few snaps of the event that included the extended family. (I have thoughts on extended families, but that is a different post.)

Well, Lily displayed the reality of her name and demonstrated great "Grace" throughout the proceedings. Despite being passed from one pair of hands to the next, she opened her quizzical eyes at various moments but did not let out a peep. She was totally sweet.

The event was joyous, fun, and peppered with much laughter. Some of you are familiar with Elaine's signature laugh so I found it quaint that there are echoes of that style in her mother-in-law's laughter. Laughter makes an environment as calming as sunshine in a beautiful garden or seeing rainbows break the tense ferocity of storm clouds.

I am grateful that I could linger an play paparazzi to this budding starlet.

Louise Hayes Strickland

Mother died today. She was 87. I do not have any pictures to post at this time. It has been 19 1/2 years since I last saw her. It is a long and difficult story so I won't go into that. The last time I talked to her was after Daddy's funeral 6 years ago. They were divorced.

She was a talented and intelligent woman. Driven. Hard. Difficult. Really smart in some things. A good cook.

She is gone now. All conversations are ended. No bitterness or tense emotion on my part. I accepted her as she was. I pray she has found the peace that I have so long desired for her. I cannot give it, but I can pray that she finds it.

Veterans' Day Babysitting

I had hoped to attend the parade today and to practice my camera skills. It was not to be. Babysitting! That is what grandparents get to do. I have no idea why Anna and John did not want to take their children to the festivities.

Being determined to get some photo practice, I did the best I could with the lot that fell my way. Adam seemed always to be out of reach of the camera, but he did not mean to. Joshua wanted to turn away from it. Fortunately, Janie was distracted by the flavor of her first, juicy pear.