Within these blog posts, I’d like to share a few excerpts from some of the mothers and children I have worked with, while I continue to tease out the final form and eventual output. I’ll focus here on some photographs created with my dear friend and fellow photographer, Lily (@argylestreetstudio). I deeply value the close friendship we’ve carved out over the years despite our geographic distance, and I love that I’ve been able to capture so much of her journey with her third babe, Alice.

Initially, Lily reached out to me during her third pregnancy – but it took some months before we were able to arrange for our paths to cross. The first time we met, I stayed with Lily and her family for the weekend – I was pregnant myself at the time and we spent the days allowing for the natural rhythms of domestic life to take over, talking about motherhood and photography, and exploring the local surroundings with children and cameras in tow. Lily spent some time photographing me, too – a mutual vulnerability and reciprocity that I felt naturally allowed for a deeper understanding of one another. It is a dynamic that has endured, and sharing our mother-gazes with one another has been a gift and a privilege. 

Staying with those I photograph for longer periods of time is by far my preferred way to work, and I’m really looking forward to returning to this way of working as my children grow and rely on my overnight presence a little less. The foundation of my practice does hinge upon that deeper level of vulnerability, genuine emotional connection and trust, and some of my closest friendships have formed via my photographic explorations. I often think about just how essential photography is to the way I relate to others and the ways in which it enriches my connection with the people in my life.