PRIDE Guest Blog: Family Photos, Gender and Performance

By: Mel Z. Worthington, Family Photographer and Storyteller, KK’s Family’s Beloved Family Photographer

From Colleen: This week, we link to Mel Z. Worthington’s blog, which is focused on family photos, gender and performance. Mel has been our family photographer since we moved to Virginia 7 years ago.

I have always appreciated Mel’s “come as you are” spirit. Over the years, she has freed our family, and me, especially, from the performance of family photos. When I look back on some of the earliest family photos we took with Mel, I recall how KK did not like dresses, and that I coaxed her into wearing one by “allowing” her to wear her favorite burgundy books with the dress. It was in looking back at these earliest photos, which did not look like KK or capture her true spirit, that I made the decision to no longer coordinate anyone’s outfits but my own—everyone wears what they choose (as long as it is weather appropriate and clean) and brings their full self to the 30 minute photo shoot. We show up with everyone in their favorite clothes, with their favorite stuffies, toys, etc., and I know that Mel will capture my children just as they are in that moment—goofy, sweet, kind, silly, annoyed, awkward, loved.

Now, as I look back on our family pictures taken by Mel, I am able to recall how much KK loved Batman when she was 4, and how she wanted to be Simba during the summer after Kindergarten, and that she loved dragons so much when she was 8 that she wanted to be a dragon. I am reminded of the wands that II loved when he was 4…and just how goofy my oldest, who is generally reserved, can be during these photo sessions.

Thank you for supporting us on our journey towards complete authenticity, Mel.

KK (age 4) wearing her favorite Batman shirt and cape. (Photo Credit: Mel Z. Worthington)