Bantayan Island: Brynn

I really thought that this shoot was not gonna happen. There were reports of big waves and strong winds. Trips were canceled. I had to wait a day before we gave it a go.

I just had to be there because I said I’ll be there. In my twelve years of being a photographer, I can’t recall an instance when I had to beg off because of bad weather. I’m always on time and present.

Brynn was very shy when we did the shoot on the first day. She was a bit sleepy already. But with all her shyness, she managed to greet me with “Hi baby!” She calls everybody that. She likes books and I think her mom does too. She recently turned one.

Family shoots are my thing. I love how natural it can be. How candid! How real! Especially when there are little ones involved. Mommies forget about how messy their hair already is. Daddy’s perspire like they’ve walked a kilometer or two. The focus is often towards the child. Small as she is! She’s got her parents wrapped around her little hands.

There’s this little challenge I play inside my head whenever I take pictures of families. I have to capture the relationship. The connection they have. It’s not something we can touch. But it is something we feel and see. That is if we look closely. When I shoot, I noticed that I don’t talk too much. I don’t give out cues because I want it as authentic as possible. Why ruin a moment by changing their pose or fixing a stray hair or telling them to stare at each other.

Just let them be.