All the feels

If you start crying, I’ll start crying. That is something that has become more apparent as I have had more life experiences, and I see it as a blessing. I truly enjoy photographing a variety of people, places and things, but photographing people has led me to feel more emotions than any other subject. When I am locked in to a session, I am looking for the emotion - - the feels, the little laugh, the pride, the joy, the sadness, the love - - the full range.

I recently had the joy of capturing a friend and his daughter during her Block Party for Bebeda, her business that’s opening soon in Downtown Tulsa. I recorded the event over a span of about three hours, and I took over six hundred photos. The energy was palpable, with excitement, encouragement and love taking main stage.

After LauraAnn gave her thank you speech to the group, there was an overwhelming feeling of gratitude in the air. It was truly a beautiful moment to be in. Towards the end of the party when things were slowing down, I captured the moment shown on this journal entry. It is my good friend, Lucho, being hugged from behind with such love and appreciation by his daughter, LauraAnn. Those are the moments that I hold my breath, shoot as many frames as I can, and hope that I captured the exact emotion that I felt.

When I review images, I choose the ones that make me smile, cause me to hold my heart or make my jaw open in awe. I pay attention to how I feel when I see each shot. It can be a very long process, but it is truly the only one that feels right for me. The result is photos that feel real - - because it was real.

With each photoshoot, I am appreciative that someone would let me into their world to capture their emotions. It’s like a special gift, one that I cherish with every single click.