baby love

I just got back from 4 days of snuggling with babies, playing dress up and tea party, long sister talks......and a lot of sleep deprivation. [And unfortunately I didn't get to post my blog on Friday given my sister-in-law's internet went down and there wasn't exactly time to fix it with a crying newborn in the house]

I've never been more sure of my Cancer qualities or more aware of my most natural and joyous state: mothering. I am sure it's entirely different when you go weeks or months without sleep, but I thoroughly enjoy being an auntie and absolutely didn't mind staying up all night to stare at my niece's precious newborn face.

I am further in awe of motherhood, the bond between women and the love you can feel for a child....it's simply amazing. I couldn't believe how much love I felt for my nieces or how profoundly bonded I felt to my sister-in-law after being in the thick of it with her for a few days.

OF COURSE, all of this has filled me with so much artistic fuel, inspiration and ideas. I am used to viewing the world as a series of possible images to capture with my camera, piecing together entire photo spreads in my head with just one look from a child, one leaf blowing in the wind, one sigh from a close friend.....on and on. But now, I have the added experience of visualizing paintings when my emotions feel more intense than I can express with words. It's incredible to experience this given I just started painting a few weeks ago, but it's very much there in my artistic brain now. I have several paintings to work on for my nieces and sister......oh when will I find the time?!

Tomorrow I will post the result of Olivia's newborn photo shoot, which I feel incredibly pleased with and can't wait to share!! As Annie Leibovitz says "a thing that you see in my pictures is that I was not afraid to fall in love with these people." For me, portraiture work has much to do with the love I feel for people and the connection I have with my subjects. I think that is why I am most drawn to photograph infants and children, because I connect with them beforehand and I think that really shows through when I hit the mark.

xo