Today is a guest post by my blogger friend, Chantelle! She’s a great writer and I know you’ll enjoy. You can checkout her blog, here.
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Have you ever gone on vacation and taken hundreds of photos, only to look at them when you got home and find that you aren’t in a single one? It’s happened to me. I used to be okay with it because I didn’t like how I looked in photos. But, in recent months, I’ve changed my outlook. I realized that it’s not just about me.
Why do we take photos? To remember our surroundings, the fun that we had. To remember our children as babies, our shining moments and things we do not ever want to forget. With every photo you take, you freeze a memory in time. You could always say “Yeah, I was there…I took the photos.” Or, you can pass the camera off to someone for a while and be a part of the action!
What inspired my change? A couple of things, really. The first was the loss of my Mom early last year. While going through photos I realized that while I had a lot of her, there were very few of us together. That really upset me. I vowed then and there to get more photos of myself and more with my family. They will be glad that I did someday.
The second thing was my lifestyle change. After my Mom passed away, I decided I needed to make some major changes regarding my weight and my health. My weight was the reason I shied away from the camera in the first place! Nine months of hard work is paying off and my camera shyness is fading. I’ve learned that while I may not like every photo ever taken of me, they are a part of my legacy.
Smile…and get in those photos!
Thanks, Amanda! =)
I love this. So inspiring and such a great reminder, because I am also always behind the camera… Looking back it would be so sad not to have those memories. Thank you for sharing this!!
I love this..thank you!!
I came to the same realization when putting together a photo book for my in-laws this past Christmas. I was looking for family photos and the only one we were all in was one where we were all wearing 3D movie glasses! I vowed to make the same change by taking more photos of all of us as a family. I love that I’m not alone!