Meet Megan and her handsome boy! Megan is a professional family photographer from Oxfordshire. Her work is truly beautiful and so I was absolutely thrilled when she chose me to photograph her family for her.
As most of my fellow professionals will agree, it is a very sad fact that we rarely feature in front of the camera. As a result, we can appear absent from many of the special, as well as everyday, moments we capture. This is something that I have become very aware of as my own daughter has grown. I read an article by Allison Tate of the Huffington Post a few years ago, and it really saddened me, as this seemed to be the fate not only of us photographers but of most mums too. It seems, for many reasons, mums rarely appear in family photographs. Part of my own absence can certainly be put down to vanity but, after reading Allison's article, I realised that it's far better to have a photograph of my daughter and me together, even if I'm not happy with how I look in it, than to have no photo at all. Over the years, I've become more accepting of this and try to appear in front of the camera too. I've even hired a professional photographer myself to ensure that we could get the whole family in the picture. It also helps that a professional will make sure you look your best by using the most flattering angles - something my dear husband still has to master! But, regardless of that, my daughter isn't going to look back at our photographs in the years to come and see mummy's huge hair and soft tummy. What she'll see is her beautiful mother playing with her girl, and she'll remember the moment with happiness. I'm sure she'll question the wardrobe choice but that's the charm of looking back at old photographs isn't it?
Anyway, back to Megan, who was also very aware that her little boy was growing up and that she had very few of her and him together. So, we met on a rather grey but beautiful autumn day in central London to photograph the family together in one of their favourite cities. It was really important for them to have their photographs here, as they are soon to move back to the United States and want to take their memories of life in the UK back home with them.
I was so thrilled with how happy Megan was with her photographs and it was so lovely to receive this glowing review from her:
"I'm a professional photographer, and hiring Jess Morgan to photograph our family was the best decision I made this year- by far! :) Jess is patient, kind, lovely with children, and she knows the techincal side of her profession very well. She moves at a comfortable pace for families, never being pushy or acting rushed for time. She provided us with a range of expressions, backgrounds, colors, and locations, all within minutes of the Eye in London. Hiring Jess is an investment in preserving your memories that is worth making. Our house is now full of cherished memories from our session and I couldn't be happier!"
I'll leave you with a few of my favourite photographs from our London family photo shoot.
All photographs are copyright Jess Morgan Photography. Jess Morgan Photography was specialises in the natural-light photography of babies, toddlers, children and families in West London and Surrey (Richmond upon Thames, St Margarets, Twickenham, Teddington, Hampton, West Molesey, Kingston upon Thames, Surbiton, Kew, Chiswick, Barnes, East Sheen, Putney, Fulham, Wimbledon, Dorking, Esher, Weybridge and Cobham)
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