Childhood is a time of innocence, friendship, constant change and questioning, a collection of moments that slip by quickly but remain with us forever. Allie Morrison, a mother of four, works hard to preserve her children's memories in a visual journal of quotidian stories.
Allie is a stay at home mother of four little birds aged 7, 4, and 1, who have become her muses. They are the inspiration behind her 365 photo project, a long year journey that she’s started as a way to pass down to her children the stories of their days together.
“I often worry about them, as mothers do, and wonder if when they are older and I am gone, will they be ok? Will they remember how much I loved them? These photographs help keep that anxiety at bay.”
Completely self-taught, Allie got her first DSLR camera three years ago. With interest, dedication and the help of some talented friends, she became the expert photographer she is today.
“I eat, sleep and breath photography. Making photographs is my creative outlet in this house full of wild children and dirty diapers.”
Her equipment consists of a 50mm f/1.8 lens, a 24mm f/2.8 and a 35mm f/1.4L wide-angle. To be able to complete her 365-photo-challenge (publishing one photo per day for an entire year), Allie carries her Canon 6D camera everywhere.
Taking photos of children can be a challenge as kids tend to move around fast and have a short attention span, but that’s not always the case.
“I am lucky to have very cooperative kids who like to see me smile,” Allie said. “I am also not above bribing them with candy when I want them to sit a little longer than they are willing.”
She likes to talk to her children about the process of taking pictures and what she does.
“They often get as excited as I do when they see a bright pocket of light or interesting shadows and I almost always indulge their photo ideas – which are usually hilarious.”
By turning her children’s ideas into timeless memories, Allie hopes to come up with a photo book, something to hold on to over the years, something that will help the kids remember their childhood days.
She has the ability to transform ordinary, everyday moments into beautiful portraits characterized by the use of low light and deep shadows.
Allie’s advice for people who wants to learn to take better pictures of their children:
“Shoot daily! Create a project for yourself and enjoy the process. Take some online workshops to keep yourself sharp and motivated and find someone to share your work with. Flickr is the perfect place for that. There are so many wonderful groups and photographers here to inspire you and help you.”
Be sure to follow Allie Morrison for more sparkling photos of her four little birds. You can also find her in the Kids Life Group on Flickr.
