I wish I could tell you all the conversations we have when I photograph people. I wish I could tell you the stories they share and their reasons why. I wish you could feel what we feel when we create in a space that is full of love and openness and joy. But some things are too personal, too special, even too sacred to share.
Tiffany is magnificent. She is in this beautiful state of becoming as she walks down new roads and balances new experiences in her life. "This is the first good thing that's come along in a while," Tiffany said when we were booking her photoshoot.
I always ask people how they want to be photographed and what they are drawn to. Some people want light and airy, some people want soft shadows with soft light . . . but Tiffany wanted dark and moody: "I've been running from this dark aspect of me. I'm 40 now, I have to face it. Embracing darkness was and is crucial for me to heal from past trauma."
So we played with light and shadow and darkness and black and white. Tiffany stepped out of her comfort zone and into something new and different.
"Life is still offering me something," Tiffany said.
Tiffany is quiet but purposeful. When she talks its always with a great deal of understanding and education. But never arrogance. Tiffany is humble to her core.
When posing Tiffany as I photographed her I noticed she had beautiful intuitive movement. I would have her sit or stand or rotate and her hand would fall in a beautiful way or her shoulder would come into perfect alignment- she just moved with beauty and confidence. Her ease in front of the camera surprised and delighted me.
Here is a woman who has faced devastating heartbreak many times over yet she continues on. She has faced pain, judgment, misunderstanding, and blame but she loves and cares despite the hurt.
Early on in our conversation, I asked Tiffany how she kept going amid so much difficulty and heartbreak. "As a mother," she said, "stopping is not an option."
And Tiffany does not stop.
She grows.
She embraces both and dark and the light.
She becomes.
I wish I could tell you more.
I wish you could see what I saw and hear what I heard.
I wish you could have been there with us . . . because things like this change you.
"The older I get the more I am drawn to peoples' stories more than I am to fiction." - Tiffany, Director of the Spalding Memorial Library in Athens PA.
Very special thanks to The Purple Iris Boutique in Horseheads NY for their beautiful dresses! I know you noticed how stunning those dresses are, go take a look! Very special thank you to Lindsay Whitney of Vitality for doing exceptional hair and makeup for beautiful Tiffany.
Love, Melinda
Photography Studio in Athens PA.
Serving Athens Pennsylvania, Towanda Pennsylvania, Corning New York, and Twin Tiers area.
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