Santa

“Go easy.”

Carmela Pantuso

I am so sorry for not posting earlier today…it was indeed a crazy weekend with back-to-back photo shoots followed by our final Santa session today.

I learned a lot throughout seven shifts of photographing Santa with children, and the most important lesson was to take my time.  The first session was incredibly busy and there was a steady line of families waiting for pictures throughout the afternoon.  I felt some pressure to keep things moving along, and I didn’t take the time to really connect with the families.  I still managed to capture some great photos, but the session was a bit of a blur.

In the next six sessions, I took my time.  I got to know the families, I encouraged them to visit with Santa before setting up the photo, and I didn’t stop firing shots until I captured something I was truly excited about.  There were times when I had several families waiting in line, but I hoped that they would realize that their children would also receive the same attention and time when it was their turn.

My Italian grandmother, Carmela, had a marvelous saying:  ‘Go easy.’  English was her second language, and instead of saying, ‘take it easy,’ she would say, ‘go easy.’   I think I’m going to adopt it as my motto in life, because it’s a lesson that keeps popping up for me.  I need to remember to go easy.  Everything works out better when I slow things down and take the time to really ‘be’ in the moment.

I appreciated working with so many beautiful families over this past month; I feel privileged to have been a part of their memory-making.

I’ll leave you with a snippet of overheard conversation between Santa and a young boy of around six years of age.

Santa asked, “Now have you been a good boy this year?” and the boy pondered the question for a good ten seconds before answering,

“Kinda.”

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas filled with laughter and love.