The Story behind this Award Winning Image

The image was taken in early February in 2020 right before the pandemic hit the US. It was a beautifully lovely winter afternoon where we were simply spending a cozy family time together at Grandparents' house. Grandpa loves to read and we often call him the walking human encyclopedia. You can ask him about pretty much anything and he knows it all and loves to share it all. Grandpa particularly enjoys spending his time in his library to read on for hours about the world and history. My daughter at the time was 8 months old. She loves sitting on Grandpa’s lap flipping through the pages together one-by-one. The gentle light coming from the window softly and elegantly wrapped them in the moment. I am grateful I had the chance to capture such a special memory of the two of them.  

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When I learned about the opportunity of the Birth and Beyond Award submission this image immediately came to mind and I had to share it without hesitation. In this unusually difficult and uncertain year how much we have missed these precious moments of grandparents and grandchildren simply spending time together. He misses seeing his children and grandchildren tremendously and we can’t wait for the moment we can be back to a new norm…together…reading!.

This December Grandpa turned 83 years old. We gifted him this meaningful photo of him on his birthday and had grandma capture him in the moment as he was unwrapping the gift. His genuine reaction spoke a million words as to why I love and am passionate about family photography so very much.  

I am utterly thrilled by the encouragement of winning two additional 1st place awards in Round 6 by @birthandbeyondphotographyaward