Mum and baby having a cuddle. Rebecca Morgan Photography

The Importance of Meaningful, Authentic Photos

In an age where we have social media, it’s easy to get caught up in the fakeness of the world, the superficial, the unrealistic. Finding any authentic photos on social media is like trying to find a needle in a haystack!

We are constantly being bombarded with how we should look, what we should eat, what we should buy and even how we should parent

Life is about taking risks, trying things out, making mistakes, learning from them. If we are to go by everything social media says then we should all be doing the same things, the same way with the same results. What kind of world would that lead to? What would the world be if we didnt take our own risks, make our own mistakes? We would all be the same, it would be BORING!

Celebrating Different Personalities

What makes a person unique and different is their own personality, the way they view the world, the way they live their life, the mistakes they make, the lessons they learn and how they grow from all of this. This is where the magic of life is.

I love meeting new people, I love learning about their views on everything however big or small. I don’t necessarily agree with what other people think but that’s ok, I can either take it or leave it, I can learn from it, or it may strengthen my already established views.

I am constantly trying to learn new things. The thought of never learning anything new again terrifies me. The thought of never growing myself further terrifies me. What’s the point of life if I am not going to become someone better tomorrow?

I am in no way a perfect person but that’s the ideal way for me to be. If someone told you that you could meet the ‘perfect person’ would you actually want to? Do you think you would actually find them interesting? Do you think you would agree with everything they stood for and believed? I’m sure I wouldn’t.

Authenticity In Children

Authenticity to me is trying to live your best life no matter what it takes. You don’t necessarily agree with the majority, you don’t do things the way that social media tells you to. You do what works best for you now and for your future. 

This is pretty much how young kids live their lives. They don’t worry about what other people think, about whether they should or shouldn’t be doing something. Nor do they even worry about whether what they want to do will benefit anyone other than themselves! 

Children are out to live their best lives in the most authentic way possible. If they are hungry they will ask (possibly even scream!) for food. They want to pick their nose? They will dive straight in. They want to wear a pretty summer dress on a freezing day, they will wear it. 

This all continues until the pressures of adults, peers at school, the media etc, force them to stop. Ok, so there are some things that common sense and dignity overrule, I for one don’t want to see a load of adults picking their nose as I go about my daily business nor do I want to sit in a restaurant full of people screaming for the dinner to arrive. But what about the little personality quirks that children start to hide as they don’t think it’s ‘normal’ or ‘right’ or ‘proper’. What things do your kids do or love now that could stop as they grow older?

One of my boys loves jewellery, fashion, cars and football. I’m pretty sure as he gets older only 2 of these things will last.  It’s not the social norm to love such a broad combination. 

Northants Family Photographer. Authentic Photos from Rebecca Morgan Photography

The Short Years Of Parenthood

As parents, we share more years with our children in their adult lives than we do when they are young. This really hit me hard when I first heard it. When we are parenting young children we feel like we have years of them being so little ahead of us. But really the baby years are only 1-2 years, the toddler years only another 2 and then the childhood years only last 9 years before they become teenagers and then adults. And think how much they change in that time? These tiny pockets of life go fast and the younger the children are the quicker they develop.

Have you ever looked back on a photo of your child from just a year ago and thought, ‘wow, look how much they have changed since then’? I know I have, many times. Or have you looked at a photo and thought, ‘oh, yes, I remember how he/she used to do that, I had totally forgotten!’? I have done that many times too. When our child has a cute, strange or unique habit, at the time we think we are going to remember it forever, but one day it suddenly stops, a new habit may start and the old one can be quickly forgotten. 

Some of these things for me are the way my eldest used to tip his head to the side and smile when I looked at him, his face full of love. My middle son used to walk around the house in just his nappy, a sunhat and shoes. And the way my youngest used to suck his thumb to go to sleep. There are loads more of these cute quirks each of them had but I remember these in particular as I photographed them. Many that I didn’t photograph I have probably forgotten and that breaks my heart a little. 

The Biggest Mistake Parents Can Make

As parents we have a long to-do list, I get it, mine only gets longer, never shorter too. And having photos is something that often keeps getting pushed down the list and other seemingly more important tasks get added above. This is such a mistake I see parents make. Imagine if you had a selection or album of meaningful, authentic photos from every year of your child’s life that showed what was special and unique about them at that age. It showed the funny, cute and strange things they were doing that year. Over time, these meaningful, authentic photos would become a story book of your child’s life. Imagine giving them that on their 21st birthday?

Another big mistake I see parents make is not being in many of the photographs themselves. Smartphones are amazing to be able to take photos on the go, but unless you have it permanently attached to a selfie stick then it’s rare that you get yourself in the photo too (besides, who looks great in a selfie?!). And what about those magical moments that involve both you and the child? The way they stroke your hair when they give you a hug? They way their tiny hands sit in yours as they learn to walk? The way their mouth opens ridiculously wide as you aim a spoon of food in their direction? One of the biggest parts of your child’s story is that you were there, for the good times, the fun times, the sad times and the tough times. These need to be remembered too. As an adult I love seeing candid authentic photos of me with my parents and now that I no longer have grandparents I feel a swell of emotion when I see photos of me at different stages of my life with them.

Mum and daughter laughing. Authentic Photos from Rebecca Morgan Photography

What’s Wrong With Traditional Photography

The trouble with traditional family photography is that it doesn’t capture all this. When you look at a photo of a family all standing nicely, perhaps under a beautiful tree or in a field, do you ever ask questions about it? Do you ever ask what the story was? Did that tree or field have any meaning to the family?

If you have your own set of posed photos, perhaps you might say, ‘right before that photo was taken, this funny thing happened’. So where is the photo of that? That special moment between your family, a moment you shared that made you all laugh? Why is it just a fading memory in your head and not an image you can look at to make you smile and share with others?

Sure, posed photos are nice, but are a bunch of these going to provide evidence of the meaningful, magical moments of your family in years to come? Are they going to remind you of the funny, unique quirks of each family member? Are they going to be unique to your family? Or are you just going through the same poses that the photographer uses for every family they photograph? 

Imagine…

Imagine having authentic photos in your home that captures the attention of guests who then ask what the story was? The image is so unique to your family that it’s different to what they have ever seen before. It catches their eye and makes them smile. 

What Would You Rather?

 A set of beautiful images of your family all smiling at the camera, in a set of poses 100 other families have stood in? Or, a set of meaningful, authentic photos that capture the uniqueness, character and special bond of your own family? Which ones will you appreciate more in 5/ 10/ 20 years time?

If you are interested in having some authentic photos of your family then check out my other post: How to choose the right Northants family photographer

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