I care very deeply about families.  Children need the stability and love of their family to thrive, whether it be a traditional family, a blended family, a single-parent family, or a same-sex family.

After my father passed away when I was 11, I was raised by my mother, who never remarried.  We relied on extended family for support, and I grew up to become a successful professional with a degree in engineering.  It could have gone much differently had I not known the stability and love of my mother and our extended family.  My story is unique because of the path I followed.

Our son has a blended family that started out with two bonus children when he met his bride.  After welcoming Isabella, now three, they have a very active home with extended family as far away as Argentina.  Those three children are dearly loved are well cared-for, growing up in a multicultural environment.  Their stories are each unique and reflect the complexity of life in a blended family.

As long as I can remember, my mother had a box of old family photos that chronicled our lives.  Pictures of relatives, family picnics, holidays and birthdays connected us all in a way that no other medium could.  If a picture is worth a thousand words, that box contained the encyclopedia of our family history.

As generations pass down traditions, it shows the love they have for their families.  Each member has their own story to tell, adding up to the family history.  Each family member from the patriarchs down to the babies makes each family unique.  Each family has a rich, interesting story, and that story deserves to be told.  It’s a keepsake unique to each family.  No two stories are the same, and they need to be memorialized and handed down to successive generations. 

What are the challenges to memorializing our families in photos?

- The busyness of our daily lives makes it hard to find time for family pictures.  If we wait, we might miss our opportunity but finding time is so difficult.

- Our families are scattered and getting everyone together in one place isn’t easy.  The longer we wait, the greater the risk of our elders passing on, and our children growing up and leaving home.  We want to take pictures, but making time and getting everyone together isn’t easy. (Can I help set up a family reunion?)

- The impermanence of digital images risks the loss of our precious memories.  Cell phone pictures are easy to take and share, but they are just a few clicks away from being accidentally deleted and you need to look them up to enjoy them.  A nice, high-quality canvas or metal print that you can hang on the wall is permanent and can be enjoyed every time you walk by.  It can also be handed down as a keepsake and can be shared with your children and grandchildren.

- A series of family pictures at different ages as the children grow can tell the family history in a way that isn’t possible without them.

At David Rothermel Photography, I am committed to helping families capture important moments in a way that can be passed on to future generations.  Whether you need a simple photo of your immediate family or a generational portrait, reach out today to find out how I can help you build that encyclopedia of memories for the future.

Below: Four generations of my daughter-in-law's family enjoying the sunshine during her grandfather's visit from Argentina.