Somehow this year has put its rollerskates on and zoomed past me again. I have just looked through some photos taken back in May 2023, at Beacon Hill Woods (Shepton Mallet, Somerset, UK) before the bluebells began to fade. It struck me how different a mood was created depending on the people in the photo and how they were positioned. This was a family morning out, not a photoshoot, so forgive me for blocking out my family’s faces.
I’ll show you what I mean though.
Photo 1. I imagine it’s a standard family photo – smiling for mummy with the camera. But given the beautiful backdrop, it feels a bit forced and staged.
In Photo 2 (below), my husband is sat on the same tree stump, but I’ve relocated to take the photo from behind. If I didn’t know why his head was bent (blooming well looking at his mobile phone despite the gorgeous surroundings!), I’d say it gives the photo a solitary, contemplative, almost melancholy air.
But finally, all it took was my son to join the photo (photo 3) and give it an altogether different feeling. I absolutely love this photo. I can’t take credit for any of it really. The beautiful light was just coming through the dappled Spring tree canopy above. All I did was stand in the right place and press click.
A father-son hug was all it took to give this photo some heart. As always though, I’ll give an honest response. I do wish I’d taken a photo with no people in the shot just to see what that looked like too. I imagine this photo will only appeal to me, because that’s my family. But isn’t that what a photo should do? Mean something – to you.