Before it Changes
Meet me where life lives—because the everyday is everything
Before it changes—before the way their hand fits in yours feels different, before the routines you’re tired of quietly disappear—I want to meet you where life lives.Not in perfection.
Not in stillness.
But in the movement of ordinary days.This idea was born from a season that reshaped how I understand time.
Last October, my 10-month-old niece, Finley, passed away unexpectedly. She hadn’t even learned to crawl yet—though just the week before, I was on the floor with her, trying to coax her forward. Knowing there are entire chapters of her life that will never unfold made me painfully aware of how fleeting each stage truly is.Every fall, I photograph my sister’s family. It’s tradition. It’s a given.
Except 2025.
That truth still sits heavy. I carry a quiet ache for my sister, her wife, my nieces. There’s no need to explain how devastating that reality is.I hadn’t picked up my camera for fun since October 21st. The first time I did was out of obligation. I hate admitting that. A week before Finn’s accident, a friend/client reached out with devastating news: her son had passed away unexpectedly. I had photographed his birth in 2024, and not even a month before his death, I had photographed their family.As I packed my camera bag, fear and anxiety settled in. The camera in my hands felt unfamiliar—almost like a fragile responsibility I wasn’t sure I could carry. I asked if I could play a little. And each time since, when I’ve asked for that same permission, my clients have smiled and said yes.As a creative, thinking outside the norm is life-giving. Releasing expectations makes room for a new perspective to emerge—a voice so clear it needs to be shared. Experimentation is the heart of art.
Every parent understands the quiet ache of time passing too quickly. One minute your child drops everything and runs toward their favorite song playing on the speaker. Before you know it, that song is out, replaced by a new obsession.
Remember when they used to scrape their knee and come running to you? There’s pride the first time they don’t—but it’s quickly followed by the realization that they’re growing up.I also learned something about myself recently: I have aphantasia. When I close my eyes, I don’t see images. I see black.Photographs give me access to what my mind can’t recall. They allow me to relive and feel memories—stages of life that would otherwise slip away. For me, life is made up of millions of tiny snapshots, waiting to bring those memories back to life.From that place, this concept took shape—a way of storytelling that honors genuine life as it’s being lived.
Before It Changes is an invitation to capture your life right now.
Not in a few months.
Not later.Because sometimes, a single day can redefine your new normal.What these sessions look like
Before It Changes sessions are designed to honor the stage of life you’re in—before it shifts into something new.They take place in your home or a meaningful location and are built around your family’s rhythms and routines. Simple, real activities: building and knocking over block towers, twirling in the living room, backyard games, dress-up, making lemonade, gardening, messy joy.Capturing genuine smiles and laughter in still photographs may sound impossible—but when you let an image speak through movement, imagine the stories it can evoke.Because life isn’t still.
And neither is love.These sessions aren’t about perfection or posing. They’re about proof.
Proof that this season existed.
Proof of how it felt to love each other, here.
If this season matters to you, I would be honored to document it—before it changes.
