The photos of our family are more than just a picture, they hold our dearest loved ones and memories for us.

My name is Claire, and I’ve been lucky enough to be part of Rachael’s team since June of 2022. I truly love her work and believe in the power of what she offers her clients. It’s not just about taking photos, of course, Rachael is amazing at that! What she does for her clients is design a beautiful, stress-free portrait experience that creates custom artwork they will treasure forever. Your images will never sit on a computer or flash drive forgotten or lost. They will become family heirlooms that your children and grandchildren will cherish.

Sadly, Rachael lost her dad in July 2022. Through a conversation catching up on business and life, Rachael shared how much she treasures every image she has of her dad, but that she really wished she had more with him. During this conversation, I realized how important it was for Rachael to share this story with others. She agreed to let me interview her for her own blog!

I hope you enjoy hearing Rachael’s story.

Can You Share About Your Dad?

My dad was very active. He was constantly doing stuff, always on the move and passionate about his work and family. In July of 2022, he passed away due to COVID-19, so we’ve been piecing together his life through photographs and memories. We’ve been having a lot of conversations about what kind of guy he was. It’s been very therapeutic, but also there’s been lots of highs and lows. He was born in England and his family immigrated to Canada in the late ‘60’s. Having pictures that his parents took throughout his younger years has been so amazing to see. Now that my dad is gone, having those pictures feels so significant. It’s helping us to make sense of my own kids and who they look like, and where they get certain traits from. It’s really neat to see what kind of person he was.

How Many Images Do You Have WITH Your Dad?

I don’t have that many, and it’s not anyone’s fault. When we were growing up, it was just less common to take pictures. It wasn’t as much of a thing, growing up in the 90s, having professional photography was reserved for for so-called “special occasions” like weddings. I do have a lot of pictures of my sister and me, but as far as me and my dad hanging out, I don’t have many.

*The classic Sears portrait, circa 1984.*

My sister and I with our “fancy” hats on. This is the kitchen in our house near Kincardine, ON. I love seeing the dirty dishes stacked up and that imperial margarine container in the back. It looks like Mom baked a pie that we all enjoyed (left).

*Dad fishing with my oldest and my husband on Lake Lauzon near Algoma Mills.*

I have a few favourite images from Christmas, where we were opening gifts, and my dad is sitting on the couch looking exhausted, assembling toys. Christmas was such a big deal at our house, and now, as a parent, I can really relate to that picture, and how much work goes into making Christmas magical.

Christmas with McDonnell-Scapinello-Cocks family. Our family was unique in that my Dad’s parents spent Christmas with my Mom’s parents. Because my Dad’s side of family was from England, they didn’t have any extended family here in Canada, so my Grandparents on my Moms side welcomed them to dinner for holidays. That meant I had both sets of Grandparents all under one roof on Christmas!

One of my other favorite pictures is from my wedding day. I have this really beautiful picture of us hiding out behind some bushes because my husband and I didn’t want to see each other before the wedding. So it was me, my dad, and bridesmaids, and you can just feel the happiness and nervousness. I remember that time so well.

What Do You Wish Others Knew About Taking Photos with Their Loved Ones?

Even if you’re not booking a session, just get the photos printed and enjoy them. We live in this digital era where everything is sitting on our phones, and sometimes you lose stuff even if you’re saving to the cloud. I’ve heard more stories about people losing their images digitally than losing them to a fire or flood.

The reality is that you’re more likely to lose them digitally. Take the pictures, don’t worry about them being perfect. In the day to day life, take as many pictures as you can.

Thanksgiving at our cottage. We often hiked through the woods up to a high point on the rocks where you can see 5 lakes. My Grandpa (red coveralls) and Dad have both now passed. So lucky to have my 85 year old Grandma (left) with us still.

When your little ones are small, and you’re afraid to get in the picture, think about the photos as something your grandchildren or great-grandchildren are going to treasure. Have them printed. There’s something more special about opening an album because it draws you in. Remember, the photos are valuable to people you haven’t even met yet.

What Advice Would You Give to Someone Wanting to Take More Photos with Their Parents/Loved Ones?

Make a point of taking those pictures in the moment. It can be a lot of work to take pictures, but more so, it’s the organizing of them afterwards. We’re going through this too, and we have a lot of candid shots of family, and things got backlogged. My Aunt & Uncle have been amazing and have been making scans of prints so we have the ability to make more copies of the many many images shot on film.

Obviously, a professional shoot is amazing, but taking those photos on your own is a beautiful thing too. You might want to set aside some time to look through everything and organize it because, down the road, the pictures become real treasures, especially if you’ve lost someone in those pictures.

What’s Something You Want to Remember About Your Dad?

The number one thing I want to remember is his sense of humour. When he found something funny, it was almost like hanging out with a 13-year-old boy. If he found something humorous, he would tell that joke to everyone he knew. He wouldn’t be able to stop himself from laughing before he got to the punchline, either. I miss his laugh. I’ll also miss the fact that he was the kind of guy who would do anything for anybody. He was a hard-working guy and he’d always whistle happily while he worked. I used to LOVE hearing the sound of him whistling while he paced around. I knew he was pleased with what he was doing. If someone needed help with a tricky project he’d always be the first one to lend a hand. I have a lot of pictures of him with a shovel moving gravel, putting in bridges, pylons, building sheds, decks, etc., and he’d always have the biggest most genuine smile on his face while he was working. He didn’t care for fanfare or recognition but was very generous. He also never missed an opportunity to give money to homeless people on the street.

Has the Importance of Being in the Photos Come up with Clients?

When I first started out, I would do newborn sessions with just the baby. A lot of times what would happen would be that the babies would be hungry and would need to feed. The mom would feed the baby but not want her picture taken because she wasn’t prepared. So what I did was end up taking their pictures but called them “outtakes” at the time because the plan wasn’t to include the mom, but you know what, when that child grows up and has kids of their own, they’re going to love having that picture of mom, even if she wasn’t styled perfectly.

Us moms are always so worried about how we look, so I’m going to make sure mom looks camera ready. One of my past clients, because she wasn’t in her first child’s newborn photos, has not been in any of her other children’s newborn photos because she wasn’t in the first. It breaks my heart, and I love the fact that she’s created individual albums for her kids, but she’s missing from her photos.

There was another maternity shoot client about 10 years ago I called, and I said that even if you don’t book a maternity shoot make sure you have someone take pictures of you. She ended up calling me back the next day and wanted to do a shoot. We went out to the lake, and the pictures turned out so beautiful. It was very casual, and we got some really good photos of her. She ultimately decided to be in the newborn photos as well.

For those who don’t think they’re photogenic, take the pictures now because life is moving forward fast. You can enjoy it today, or you can keep waiting to take the picture next year until you think you’re ready. I love the quote, “start how you want to finish.”

We have a tendency to think the only people who do photos are models, but those models have a whole team making them look amazing, and I have a team that will help you look and feel amazing too. I work closely with the hair and makeup artist, and we have beautiful clothing to help you make and feel your best. We all have our insecurities about our bodies, but our kids don’t see that.

It’s such an act of love to have portraits taken for your children.

To put forth the time and effort and the vulnerability to document your life because you will forget things, but photos have a way of waking you up to things that might be tucked away somewhere.

Is There Anything Else You Want Your Community to Know?

We feel a lot of pressure to show up perfectly online, and we want to put our best foot forward, but when I was looking through the old photos of my dad and his childhood and my childhood with my dad, what struck me wasn’t the Sears portraits, but the candid photos. Don’t worry about how you look, but just take the picture. Your grandchildren and great-grandchildren will be grateful to have your family story captured.

Please send me a message here if you want to chat about family portraits!

The Importance of Photography | Rachael’s Story