Sincerely & Joyfully Documenting Your Story
Sincere (adjective) - Definition: (of a person, feelings, or behavior) not pretending or lying; honest.
Have you ever had an experience of being in front of the camera and the person behind it prompted you to fabricate a moment for the sake making a photo look like it was candid? “It’s okay, just pretend!” was probably said to you during this situation.
Statements and circumstances like these genuinely make me cringe and it is why “sincerity” is one of the best words that describe the way I strive to photograph people.
In front of my camera lens, I invite you into a carefree & authentic space where there’s no pressure to be or do anything in a specific way. After all, I'm here to capture YOU & your story, not to make up an entirely different story. I prioritize capturing moments that unfold as they happen naturally authentically; the SINCERELY candid moments.
Rest assured, I'll also offer guidance & reassurance when needed, since I know having a camera pointed at you can feel daunting (hey, even I don't love being in front of a camera most of the time!)
But what I’m really trying to say is - my job is to let you be yourself & to capture it all; in your truest and sincerest form. And from my experience, that’s when the most beautiful & treasured photographs are captured.
“What I do in all my portraits is to try to stay out of it. I try to catch people the way they are.”
– Mark Carder
Joyful (adjective) - Definition: Something that is joyful causes happiness and pleasure. Someone who is joyful is extremely happy.
Okay so not to brag - but I was actually voted “most joyful” in my kindergarten class. And ever since then, it’s been the #1 word people have used to describe me. I guess that’s why I particularly adore capturing some of life's most joyful moments & occasions. Truly, everything I witness and capture is through a joy-filled lens.
During hard times, it can be easy to forget all of the good times in life. But the beauty of photographs is that they allow you to remember. They encourage you to reminisce on your joy-filled memories & the individuals who have brought you so much joy throughout your life. Photographs prompt you to cling to joy.
One of my favorite Bible verses puts all this into perspective as it says, "Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning" (Psalm 30:5). Meaning, while life is imperfect & filled with painful seasons, those bad times will pass eventually, and joy will be what endures.
When you look through your photos in 5, 10, or 20 years down the road, I want you to remember the way it felt to be that joyful. I want your closest friends & family to also cherish those photos because of the joy they see radiating from you. Above all else, I want your photos to help you realize that while life is hard, it is a precious gift, and that there’s always something to be sincerely joyful about.
