I don’t mean to seem “trendy” with my photography, but sometimes the image just calls for certain things. A chair in the middle of a field? Most have seen these types of photographs, I have seen many myself. Why is that chair in the field? Why is that girl sitting in it? Would it not be better in the shade? What does it mean??? But this field, and this chair, are anchors for the image I wanted to create today. So, let me explain.

Today was the 5th anniversary of my mothers passing. Although Ella will never meet her grandmother on this earth, I hope she learns through me, her sister, and others, who she was. This rocking chair was my mothers when she was a child, and my family has held on to it for close to 60 years. It is Ella’s now, and while my mother will never hold Ella, her favorite rocker will.

After Ella was born, Christy and I wanted to make special Thank You cards for all the shower gifts we had received. It was a beautiful day, we had a pretty flower growing in our garden, a soft blanket, and a basket from friends as shower gifts. So with all these accessories on hand, and an open field next to the house, we thought why not take a “trendy” baby in a basket, with a huge flower on her head picture for the custom Thank You cards? Why it was brilliant! Everyone loved the cards. I mean who doesn’t love a naked baby in a basket?

That brings us to today’s picture. Ella will be 1 in a couple of weeks. So with my busy schedule, I have been looking for a day that the girls and I can be together and work on Ella’s 1 year photograph. I wanted to use the field by our house again. The field is an anchor, a common, easily accessible place for what’s becoming her yearly photographs.

As for the rocking chair. Ella had just discovered her grandmothers rocking chair a couple of weeks ago. She loves to rock in it, as soon as she hits the seat, back and forth she goes. So with remembering my mother today, I felt we could use her chair as another anchor. A way to tie her with the event, and create a memorable image for Ella’s 1st year photograph. I think mom would be pleased. I am sure she would have giggled at the whole fiasco. And believe me, that’s what taking pictures of Ella is right now, a fiasco. But, that’s life as a father I guess. Luckily my girls just have a way of softening the edges and bringing a smile to some of the hardest things I have to deal with. I guess most kids can do that for their parents, it’s amazing how the smallest of hands can pull us out of the deepest, darkest holes.

This years photograph of Ella may be weak on its own to some. With all it’s trendiness, I mean why would a baby be sitting in a upholstered rocker in the middle of a field? And the trendy cross-processing… But as with a lot of my images I work to create, there is an underlining story. A story not for you as the reader perhaps. But for my daughter. This one is for her.

Rocking Chair camera info: D700, 80-200mm AF-S @ 1/100 sec, f3.5, 80mm, ISO 200, Elinchrom Ranger AS with 39″ Deep Octa fired with pocket wizards.

Basket camera info: D700, 80-200mm AF-S @ 1/80 sec, f8.0, 200mm, 1 stop trigrip diffusion panel to cut the suns harshness.