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samson smiles

8.25.2012

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august 20121
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you learn a lot about a person by photographing them. and this is little brother's turn. he reached for my hand as we walked down the gravel lane to a clearing under some trees. the greens glowed against his dark skin. the afternoon sun glistened in his eyes. as an aspiring photographer, i constantly attempt to capture truth. posed and perfected and staged are not what i shoot for. i yearn for genuine emotion, for what is real. spur of the moment reactions. my desire is to have a reflection of the inside. samson smiles. and there is a childlike joy, appeal for life. he closes his eyes and i watch as a million thoughts race through his mind, he lifts his hands, feels the wind. i watch and wonder what he could be thinking. he laughs at me, ducking in and out of the branches hanging low around us. a simple game of hide and seek among the trees, kindles laughter. a sound that carries far into my heart. a face that was once thousands of miles away in africa, is staring back at me. feet away. i let the memories rush in all at once. years of waiting and praying, seeing this little one for the first time, having him complete our family. i let them pass. and capture a glimpse of his sweet grin. beautiful boy, i love you so much.

16 comments:

  1. When I saw the title of this post I got all excited. He is so sweet.
    LF

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  2. madison, this is so beautiful. your best work yet, honestly. your photos and words are so beautiful. xo

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  3. So beautiful. Love the photo of him with his eyes closed! Truly precious!

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  4. This is so beautiful, Madison. I love these pictures. Samson's smile is just so precious. These are the best. Really.

    Blessings!

    -Madi

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  5. He's so beautiful! I can't believe how grown he looks in some of these. :)

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  6. Such a sweet boy. Little brothers are the best, no?

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  7. His smile is precious! They're my favorite shots. :)

    xo.

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  8. he is precious! i love his smile. (:

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  9. literally some of my favorite images from you. he is precious, and his eyes are like....chocolate. by which I mean they're beautiful. (:

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  10. this brought me to tears. love love love.

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  11. Your words are just spectacular, and your pictures are breathtaking! I agree, the photos that we should go for are the genuine emotions, and Samson is just lovely. He really is, wonderful post! :) x
    - Jianine

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  12. He's beautiful and so are you, for capturing that beauty and loving that sweet, sweet boy.

    Anna x

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  13. He is absolutely adorable. And love your description of him - beautiful. :)

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  14. He's so precious, honestly. Beautiful.

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