Oh, Iowa....

This is what it looks like off and on here lately. This is actually a photo of a road I was about to drive on... those tire tracks are mine (I drove forward and then reversed a bit to take the shot).

It's so beautiful and serene and peaceful at times, but other times it blows my mind a bit to be driving on roads that seem all but invisible in the snowy fields that they run through.

A Snowy Red Riding Hood [Super Girl] Story

Some of my time in the winter is spent dreaming things up – often thematic sessions that I would love to do out in the snow. Of course, few of them are realistic, due to the cold temperatures, but I have ideas. Being new to the Midwest (and apparently to winter) I have been surprised to see just how much the weather can make us want to stay indoors and not to go shooting sessions outside. Living in Portland there were always rainy days that created challenges, but it wasn’t so biting cold this time of year.

We have had several big snows already this winter (I know. I know. Relative term, but to me they were decent sized snow accumulations.) and every single time I felt a tension in myself as I was waiting for there to be a moment when I could convince my little girl to go and play in the snow with me (and my camera with its giant lens attached!). She loves to play in the snow, but I have had my fill already of photos of her all bundled up like little Randy from the Christmas Story (Ralphie’s brother). I wanted photos of her. Of her beauty. Her spirit. Well…. it finally happened.

Now, I will go ahead and give full disclosure here. This session was about 5 minutes long. It consisted of her and me running all over the place. Some parts of it were me chasing her like a crazy woman and her getting away from me. The point of that is that she had tons of fun. She thought we were doing a “Red Riding Hood Super Girl” session.
After taking the photos we ran back to the warm car and I bundled her in her coat and a blanket, wondering if I was a crazy mom for letting my kid run around without a real coat on in the cold snowy weather.

You’re thinking that I perfectly executed the shot I had been dreaming of, right?
Heck no, I didn’t. 
What’s funny is that the shots I love the most are completely not what I wanted. Her making “wings” with her cape turned out to be the most beautiful image. As a friend pointed out, she looks like a snow angel Red Riding Hood. I actually remember wondering what in the world she was doing because I wanted her to keep the cape close to her for warmth. It didn’t matter what I wanted, but what I got was priceless. I got her.

I guess this is a good lesson for me (and maybe for us all) in planning out a session.
It helps to have a plan and a willing participant. It helps immensely to have fun with your “subject.” And in the end, you have to embrace what is happening in front of your lens. Whatever plays out naturally is very likely going to exemplify the spirit of your subject(s) much more than whatever contrived scenario you imagined. My daughter kindly reminds me of this point all the time. If I just want a cool set up with a smiling kid (fake cheesy smile, mind you) she can be coerced to do that any time. If what I want though is a beautiful image that captures something of her. I have to let her (or any subject) show me that.