Espinoza Family

I got an email from Chuck early October with the subject "Family Portraits" which isn't out of the ordinary since I assist him once in a while for some portraits. But the content of the email wasn't the usual "Are you available on …. to assist?". This time it was "We'd like for you to shoot our family portraits." which made me really nervous more than usual. You can ask Amado and he will not deny it, I'm always nervous before a shoot. It's gotten to the point where I'm not able to differentiate excitement and nervousness.

But what's the big deal, why be extra nervous with this one? Chuck was the very first photographer I assisted and 2nd shot for. Since meeting him at my cousin's wedding, he's been my go-to person for any photography related questions. Let's see if I can apply the things I've learned from watching him work. There's more to photography than camera settings, light and location (still working on those btw). How you interact with the subjects whether it be a solo portrait, a couple or an entire family and things you say can affect the turnout of the shoot (especially with kids). I've witnessed him handle those situations with ease and now it was my turn to practice it with his family. I knew him and Robin just wanted a good photo of their family but in my head it was like an exam.

Set aside the mini panic attacks I had in my head, their shoot went really well. It also helped that he was a photographer himself and his family is so used to being in front of the camera.