Gotta start somewhere.

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Look at us!  We're blogging!  Finally...

So here it is, the first of many.  But what to say...what to say?  Anything, right.  That's kinda the point.

The beginning.  Jamie and I started "Through The Lens" in the fall of '09 as a way to do something together...something thing that was work-ish but felt like play time.  Between jobs, rambunctious kids, Jamie's grad school, my mild addiction to quoting Will Ferrell movies, my infrequent trips to the gym, our kitchen counter's complete inability to clean itself, and don't even get me started on the laundry; our creative/fun sides took a backseat to all of the "life" that was happening to us.

We started slow...one or two shoots on a weekend...our nieces and nephew, a young couple, and kids.  Lots and lots of kids.  I absolutely loves shooting kids!  It is a challenge, big time.  Babies are easy, they just kind of lay there and look all baby-like and sweet and you just have to make sure they are in focus. High school seniors are simple yet highly enjoyable.  Its like, you tell them to stand a certain way...move here...go there...smile...and they do it.  The the images always look sharp and you have a sense of accomplishment.  And then there is the 16 years in between...oh boy.  I was that age once.  My kids are that age now.  I can't even get my kids to eat all of their hot dog without throwing it across the room, so how the heck do I get kids I don't know to sit still for the 1/500th of a second it takes for the shutter to open and close?  Think like them.

Easy for me.  I've never been accused of being mature...ever.  Classy, yes.  Good looking, of course.  Mature, get out of town!  Acting like an adult will always back fire when dealing with kids.  Check that, other peoples kids.  I get to be that crazy cool uncle the kids see every now and then, but whenever they do see him, he is always fun.  Case in point, the Adams boys.  I've known mom, Jen, since our days at UMaine.  Jen and I used to act like 12 year olds together in college, and nothing has changed.  And it seems Jen has transfered that energy to her three sons...in the best way possible!  Eli, Jaxson, and Zander are exactly what you think boys ages 17 to 2 you'd expect to be...high energy.  Just like me at any age.  I took a risk, I took them to the Marginal Way in O-Town.  Boys / Rocks + Cliffs x Ocean - Personal Safety = Awesome!  Turned out to be prefect.

The goal of any photographer it to capture the true spirit of your subject.  So how better to capture the manic energy of a little boy then put that in a situation that allows them to be themselves.  We spent the first 10 minutes climbing, running, jumping, giving Jen an aneurysm, and having fun.  Playing like boys.  And then, they stopped, literally for 1/500ths of a second.  And that is all it takes.  In that 1/500ths of a second, the boys took a break from their boy-ing, and gave me a bunch of honest images.  Jaxson up there, he just stopped, stayed, and smiled for about 3 seconds.  Zander did his best Jesus impression on his own, and Eli, on the right, was a split second from hurling himself over the tidal pool and sticking the landing.  I hope Jen's panic attack was worth it...I think the images came out great.

There it is...blog number 1.  And now I'm torn, do I start on blog number two, or do I fold clothes and watch Anchorman.  Bed it is!

-- Jason