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I Document My Children’s Connection To Nature In Moments Of Photographic Poetry
From a very young age I felt a strong connection to nature. I grew up in Lisbon, a beautiful capital city, very privileged in terms of location and surroundings. Yet, it is a city, and I remember being a child and absorbing all the little bits of nature I could find in it. I loved its gardens, looking at the skies through the windows, watching sunsets fall over the river. The tiniest details of nature would call for my attention and I would often daydream about living in the country side.
Quite a few years on, I might not live in the wild countryside, but my Madrid-born husband and I are now lucky enough to raise our children in a much smaller place than the ones we grew up in ourselves: the town of Llanelli in South Wales. Living in a smaller place means a lot for us: less stress, more time to enjoy our children’s childhood, easier access to natural locations. And as a bonus, we are surrounded by absolutely stunning natural locations.
Being an outdoor photographer, with a strong orientation towards childhood and families, photographing my children growing up became second nature to me. It sounds like a cliche but it’s actually true: for my two kids, nature is their playground and they are being raised with the freedom to explore it, to enjoy it in their own imaginative way. They are allowed to climb trees, get dirty, get wet, get messy. When the weather is nice enough (and by nice enough I often just mean not chucking it down) we take them outdoors. And as they go and explore and live, I step back, observe and capture.
Are all these photos totally spontaneous, you might ask. Not all, no. I do sometimes elaborate from what they are already doing and gently prompt them to take it a step further. Creativity is part of my relationship to my children and they, too, sometimes get to hold the camera and photograph me. But that would be the subject for a totally different article!
Looking at these photos makes me really happy. They’re both artistic creation and memories for me. Artistic creation because this is the way my eyes see their world. Memories, because they will always remind me how free my children are, how they are learning about the passing of the seasons, about respecting the world around us, about the importance of natural spaces, about listening and seeing and smelling and investigating the world with their senses. About being present here and now and not needing much to be entertained and happy.
For more about my work and my outdoor photography sessions visit The Wind and the Sun Photography website
More info: windsunphotographywales.co.uk
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