A Naming Ceremony

The other day, a friend asked me if I could take photos of her second son's naming ceremony. I was flattered to be asked to do it, and more than up for the challenge of taking photos of people most of whom I hadn't met before. It occurred to me that in my teens, when I was as passionate as one could be about photography, I dismissed a career in the field because I couldn't see myself ever getting excited about taking family photos. And rather than taking ever more pictures of ever the same poses, I then decided that photography would remain my passion and hobby, never to be my career.

Today, I can officially declare that taking photos of a family and the milestones of family life is not boring but an honour and a very special privilege which is not to be taken lightly. I was rather nervous knowing that some of the photos would end up as special presents or in a treasured family album. I could even be overheard complaining about the sun that shone into the room making for hard shadows and very difficult light to deal with.

But what's light and all that if you see a baby boy with the biggest eyes ever, adored by his big brother, his parents, his grandparents and aunties and uncles, and a cheeky cousin who did his best to escape my camera (I won in the end - the cake was simply too yummy!).

It was very special to be part of this.