A College Assignment, A Passover Seder, and Why I'll Never Stop Documenting Family Gatherings
How It All Started
College was a time of exploration for me. I had two minors, switched majors after a semester of some poor choices and a bit of a reality check — but that’s a story for another day. I ended up as an elementary education major, and the semester before going into a full year of student teaching, I had some extra space in my schedule. I ended up taking a digital photography class, borrowed my dad's camera, and one assignment changed everything.
My First Documentary Session
Each week, we had different assignments to practice different compositions, photography styles, and editing styles. In looking back at the photos I made in that class, my favorite assignment to look back on was the storytelling photo book. We were tasked with creating an entire photo book that told a story. At the time, I didn't think as creatively as I think I might have done with that assignment now. But I was getting ready to go home for spring break and knew that I'd be going to my aunt's house for Passover. And I thought 'the story of Passover! That's what I'll tell…' Looking back at the photos now, I realize that this was my first true documentary style photo session - capturing the real moments as they happened, not asking anyone to pose or smile. And that is just so freaking cool to look back on now.
A note: these photos were taken and edited in 2012 during a college photography class. My editing style has evolved a lot since then — but my approach to documenting real, unposed moments hasn't changed a bit.
These photos feel so nostalgic. The edit, the details, the people. Maybe more so for me, because I grew up going to this house for Thanksgiving and Passover year after year, but I think an outsider would say the same.
When I look at these photos, I see details of the different elements of what a Passover seder looks like - the haggadahs, the seder plate, the hand washing station, the kippot, the matza. I see the interactions between everyone there - my mom checking in on Grandma to make sure she had what she needed, and explain to her what happened when she wasn't able to hear across the table, my cousin goofing off, trying to bring some level of entertainment to the monotonous reading of the story of Passover around the table, my uncle focused hard on delivering a meaningful seder and being greeted with rambunctious behavior across the table (including my grandma throwing a soup nut across the table at my cousin… that will go down in history as the single most funny thing my grandma ever did at the dinner table), my aunt trying to keep things lively as she's ready to sit down and eat after tirelessly working in the kitchen all day long. I see the food and the way we share it together. I think it really tells the story of how my family celebrated Passover together.
The Approach I Still Use Today
That's the same approach I bring to all my sessions as a documentary family photographer in Northern Virginia. I'm looking for the details, the connections between people, the moments that show what happened and how, the way things really were, not the way we curated them to look. Purely real, authentically you.
Why These Photos Mean More Than Ever
Looking back, these photos feel even more meaningful now than ever before. My aunt is the one who hosted all of our Thanksgiving dinners and Passover seders. She used to be a teacher as well, and when I was little we'd always talk to each other the night before snow was coming and make our predictions on whether school would be closed or delayed together. She called me Mellie Bellie and always seemed interested in chatting with me about the things I was doing or interested in. At seders she was always so busy and we didn't get to talk as much then as other times we got together, but I liked going to her house and the way she brought everyone together for the holidays. I'm not sure how much she loved, hated, or love-hated hosting... but you could always count on her to do it.
Since this Passover seder, my grandma has passed, and last summer I lost my aunt, too, to pancreatic cancer. During her last days, she was able to be at home with the ones she loved most, and we were able to make a visit out to see her, have her meet my son, and say our goodbyes. It had been a few years since we celebrated Passover together in that house - covid kept us apart for a few years, and we started to grow our families, you know how it goes… it gets harder to find time to get together with kids and when you don't live so close by. You never know when the last time is going to be the last time you spend time together like this. And I'm grateful to have these photos to look back and remember exactly what our holidays were like together. I can share this with Eli and talk about the new traditions we come up with on our own as a family. And that's pretty special, and really cool to be able to share this part of my experience growing up with him.
Don't Wait for Next Time
You never know when the last time is going to be the last time, and I promise you that no matter when it comes, you won't regret having gotten the photos.
A multi-generational family get-together is the perfect time to hire a documentary family photographer in Northern Virginia. Enjoy the time with your family and be fully present in it. Don't leave saying, "we forgot to get a picture together!" Don't push it off until next time; you never know when or if the next time will come.
Ready to document your next multi-generational gathering? Start here.
