Family photographers night ends in flames | Batavia NY Family Photographer
/LeFort Family
Many who know me, know that I am not a religious person. I don’t attend church. I don’t pray often, but I will say, the last time I prayed hard for something my prayers were answered. That said, I do believe there is something greater that us out there. What that is, I’m not sure. I don’t know if it’s a sixth sense, an angel looking out for us, the universe sending me signals, but there’s something. I’ve experienced, on multiple occasions, messages sent to me. Once it was a blip of the future that I saw and then shortly after it happened but I was able to save this person from any injuries. Another time it was a feeling. A feeling to be extra cautious before I backed my car out of my garage. This time it was a thought. See, on Tuesday I photographed this very sweet family. They were so laid back and fun to work with. I really enjoyed my time with them. Their session was to be held the Sunday prior but the weather was less than ideal (especially for a 5 month old). I also knew they hadn’t had luck with past sessions. I really wanted their experience with me to be perfect so I asked to switch to Tuesday instead. They were more than accommodating! Mom’s email reads as follows……
My husband and I just had our first child, a little girl. She is currently 3 months old and we have no pictures in our home. Our wedding photographer lost half of our films so not much to choose from there. Tried newborn session but she screamed cried through two attempts. So, third time is a charm right? Lol. Fall is my absolute favorite. Im hoping to hang some magic on my walls. We live in Attica and would likely need location ideas and wardrobe suggestions. :)
Because of the day switch, mom even offered to have her family come to Batavia instead. I chose this really beautiful location out in Dale. I had never shot there before and wanted to use it, so we kept that as our location. The day of their session arrived. It was beautiful just as expected. The location was amazing. They were amazing. At the end of our session together my last words to the family were “Drive safely home. There are a lot of potholes on this road. Have a great night!”
My night on the other hand, did not end as I had hoped……
Photo Credit: Doug Yeomans
I don’t know what happened. At this point it’s all just speculation. I pulled off to call a tow truck, and before I went to run down to the intersection to see what cross road was ahead of me, I decided to grab my camera. I NEVER leave my camera bag in the car, but this time as I went to grab it I thought “just leave it. You are in the middle of nowhere. Who is going to take your bag?” I decided I should take it anyways. See, I think the people who are most receptive to those underlying messages are the ones who are given them; those are the people who listen to their gut every time!
As I was on the phone with the tow truck company, my car went up in flames. In the moment I wasn’t thinking about how grateful I was that I had grabbed my camera. In fact, it didn’t even dawn on me that I had it. Within about 30 minutes I noticed my back was starting to hurt so I shifted my bag because it was weighing on my shoulder. This is when I said, “Oh. My. God! That family’s photos are here with me!” I then remembered mom’s email and how important this session was to her (insert tears). Out of all the sessions to have saved on that day, it was theirs! I legit have the chills. You see, the photos I document for your family are not only special to you but to me too! I remember every single session I’ve ever shot. Every frame I look at I can remember the exact moment. Your story is also mine. This is a day I will NEVER forget. Look at that beautiful little face. That makes this all worth it for me.
