Papa-razzi.
Matilda is pretty used to having her picture taken at this point, having had a camera pointed in her direction almost every day since she was born. However, this week has been particularly invasive as far as the camera is concerned. I've been capturing almost every moment from the mundane to the exciting (she's still carrying around the pink ball). My camera has either been at my face or within reach whenever I've been with her this week.
We were playing outside this afternoon and I hadn't taken any photos of her yet, so I was following her around, capturing her at play. I got some cute moments, but nothing made me say "wow". I moved in closer when she was standing in some nice light and started taking some close-ups. I was a probably only 3 feet from her face and she decided she'd had enough. At the moment this photos was taken, she was saying "no." It was said with a smile, but I knew it was time to stop. I took a few more frames while the light was good and she was ok with that, but then she pointed to my camera and said "boop-boop" which, in Matilda-speak, means "get it out of here" (it can also mean "move over" or "out of my way"). She didn't need to say anything else. I put down the camera and enjoyed really playing and interacting with her without the camera in front of my face.
While I love many of the photos I've taken of her this week, there's something to be said for knowing when to put the camera down and really just enjoy playing with my daughter rather than trying to capture the fleeting moments of her playing by herself. I know I will never capture every moment, but trying to capture a moment at the expense of actually experiencing the moment is not worth the photo.
As a photographer, it's always my inclination to pick up the camera when something cute or exciting is happening, but this week has been a good reminder that there should always be a balance, especially when it comes to photographing my favorite subject.
