I have a studio photograph of my parents as a middle aged married couple, a posed portrait with her best outfit on, leaning on my dad’s back, both with pleasant, fixed smiles.
This is the same pose we always have of ourselves through school, printed in the yearbooks, and remembered by friends.
But years later the children have only these photographs to recall their fathers, mothers, and beloved partners. What is remembered of their sparkle and vitality?
It is no accident the photograph of my parents my sisters share the most is one of them as childhood sweethearts in their youth and energy, graceful in the naturalness of that candid, immediate moment.
And it is kismet that years later, I find it is the seed of my creative technique in my search to capture real emotions for the romantic parents I love to photograph.
It stems from my desire to capture livelier, more engaged and energized portraits of mothers and fathers, photographing parents as the childhood sweethearts and lifelong soulmates they are.
My portraits are moments between two people in love, showing tenderness and affection. Glowing from true feelings inside for life and each other.
This intimate portrait is a gift that keeps on giving.
Dorothy Perry is a Chicago portrait photographer specializing in custom family portraits, modern headshots, & personal branding for women and executives.
