I want to share with you what I think, to date, may be my favorite image I have EVER taken. Let me tell you why.
Last Sunday my husband and I had to do a commercial shoot for a rope manufacturer. We decided my grandparent's wide spread sycamore would be perfect for the job so we headed out to their place.
We set up our ropes and got up in the tree. About 20 minutes in to the process I see my grandpa walking down the driveway and I gave him a wave.
We continued to move around and shoot. A few minutes later I look down and I see this- my grandpa lounging under a large pine tree, in the middle of all the dried needles that had fallen, hands behind his head, watching us. I immediately stopped working and moved the camera to him and took a couple of frames.
I've never been able to capture my grandpa in his true element before. He takes horrible pictures. His grin is always ridiculous and we always laugh about it.
But he's truly one of the most amazing men I know.
To start, he's 87 years old.
87 years old and still walking outside on a brisk day to lay under a tree.
I really don't feel like I need to say much more.
We got home and I browsed through everything I got that day.
Out of all the shots we planned, swinging from branches at great heights, images that would make us money and get us published, none of them compared to the one I got of my grandpa. I saw it and was instantly filled with joy and pride.
That awesome man, looking like a total bad ass in the photo was my grandpa, and I now had a moment that I could look at forever that truly reflected him and his whole life in one photo.