Orsolya Boncser is a storytelling photographer based in Hungary who considers family the most important thing to her and seeks to make that the main theme in her photography.

You can see more of Orsolya’s work on her website, Facebook, and Instagram.

Lisa:  You’ve captured some really amazing moments! What goes through your mind before you press the shutter?

Nothing. Any other time, there’s usually a lot of thoughts running in my head. When I take pictures there are no thoughts, I just try to find that decisive moment when every piece of the picture is together.

Meg: Your images are from a range of perspectives. Do you take multiple focal lengths surrounding each final image or are you just deciding to make the images wide or cropped in as you shoot?

For years, I had only used fix lenses. But it was always a big dilemma which lens to choose when shooting families because I don’t want to miss anything. Children are hoppers so they are constantly moving and I usually work at family homes where I can find myself in the most diverse situations out which I have to make the best.

My main lens is therefore a Canon 24-70mm 2.8 lens. I usually use this one during the family sessions. I rarely crop. The child, the situation, and the environment determine how close I am and what kind of picture is being made. 

Jessica: I love the humor and the surprise element in many of your frames. How do you approach photographing for clients vs your own children?

Taking photos of my daughter is more complicated: when I take photos of others, she wants me to photograph her and when I shoot her, she suggests to shoot others. But otherwise, there is no real difference in my attitude.

I like to work with kids because the communication is easier with them than with adults. Children are straight and honest: they show me when they are fed up and also when they are having a good time. From then it’s very easy to react (or not to react) to a situation.

Kids are born to be free and funny, and I (mostly) understand humor. 

I think one of the most important things in life is humor: that we can laugh at ourselves as much as we can laugh with others. 

Lacey: What do you turn to for inspiration when you feel stuck?

Difficult question. I have high expectations of myself, and I work mostly alone, so I often feel stuck, but fortunately I’m not one to stay in a pit for a long time. I have always a lot of ideas, the problem is usually that my working time is limited. 

The greatest inspiration and support is my family, they are the ones who carefully listen and make me laugh when I am dissatisfied. A good exhibition, photo project, or book can inspire me too, and I like practicing ukulele or snuggle with my fluffy cat.

Erika: I feel like so many of the images you submitted are such great moments in a larger story. Which of the images you submitted is your favorite? And tell us a bit about the story behind it and what prompted you to make that image.

I’d like to tell the story of the picture of “the hunters”. We were at a kite festival in Zebegény (in Hungary) this summer. My 6-year-old daughter was really disappointed because she couldn’t fly her kite like others. I really love kites so I tried to help and calm her down when I saw the family with these extraordinary boys in the crowd. The boys carried not kites, but plastic guns on their back. I had  feeling they would use it. So I crossed my fingers and I was waiting for the perfect moment –  while I was holding our kite in my other hand with the crying kid. The weather was perfect, windy and cloudy so my kite flew high quickly, the tears suddenly dried up for a moment and the boys shoot. 

That was only a second and I felt really lucky and happy to have caught the moment.

*****

Want information on how you can be a featured artist? Check out our submission page for all the details.

Frederikke Brostrup is a family documentary photographer in Copenhagen who has been working in this field for eleven years. She loves “real life and all the everyday-poetry that’s all over childhood and family life.”

You can see more of Frederikke’s work on her website, Facebook, and Instagram.

I think that documentary photography is growing worldwide. More and more photographers are drawn to real life more than the constructed and posing photos. And I love the way we feed families’ courage to see their family as they are, instead of what they want it to be or look like. Real life rocks 🙂

What I like least….is difficult because what’s not to like about this transition? If I should mention one thing, it is when photographers not doing documentary are calling their work documentary. And it’s not because I am snobby about it. Everybody is welcome to work documentary – but we have to be aware of what genre it is… and it really takes time and courage to get there. Like all other kinds of genre! Most of all I hope, that when we talk about documentary photography with our clients, they are not expecting posing pictures where the family are wearing matching colors. Nothing wrong with that – but it is not documentary photography!

Heather: What moments are you drawn to while shooting?

I am especially drawn to the feelings! And the children!  All the feelings that are not told but shown is fantastic to capture. It can be anger, jealousy, shyness, sadness, joy, peace…..  And often the feelings are so strong that I feel them too. That’s crazy but that’s when I know that I got a strong moment…. and if the light is perfect too, I can’t help slipping a small sound of joy! 😉 It’s magic!

 

Jessica: What do you feel are your greatest strengths as a photographer? Your biggest opportunity for growth?

 

That’s a difficult one…I think it is that I am kind of fearless. Meaning I am not scared of getting close, not scared of the families feelings. Not scared of conflicts, anger, grief, bedrooms, naked kids crawling on me, breastmilk in my face, dads snoring half naked in his bed and all these funny and recognizable moments! And then I think that I have a good feeling about other people’s limits and my own limits, which is important when you work that close. I will work till I can’t walk anymore! 😉

 

*****

Want information on how you can be a featured artist? Check out our submission page for all the details.

Grayson Morrow used to shoot fashion and commercial based photography but felt like something was missing. That eventually led her to documentary photography. You can see more of her work on her website and Instagram. Here is what she had to say to our contributors:

Lisa: Are there any skills/experiences from your fashion/commercial background that you feel benefit or hinder you in the documentary field?

Benefit: Learning how to shoot people with natural lighting.

Hindrance: My desire to pose people in natural light because I just get oh so excited about the certain way lighting hits peoples features. (However, now I actually don’t like posing people).

Carrie: What is it about documentary photography that made you fall in love? What have you found here that wasn’t in your previous work?

I saw a question recently that asked: “What do you want to study behind your lens?” and maybe that’s a different way of reframing what made me fall in love and search for something that wasn’t in my past work.

Maybe it’s because I’m in my early 20’s and yearn for childhood occasionally? Or maybe it’s because the older I get the more fascinated I become with love and relationships? Maybe it’s both. All I know is that I want to study people, family dynamics, and the love that people have for each other.

Fashion was missing this. Fashion was missing the flawed and complex parts of life that people don’t always show.

Michelle: Fashion work is often about delivering a perfect version of a specific vision. This work – documentary family photography – is very much about leaving things be and being ok with that. Have you found it difficult to accept the “flaws” in your images with this type of work? Or has it been freeing?

I love “flaws” and imperfections – I’m actually drawn to them. There is a quote by Robert Glover that explains this way better than I ever could:

“In general, people are not drawn to perfection in others. People are drawn to shared interests, shared problems, and an individuals life energy. Humans connect with humans. Hiding one’s humanity and trying to project an image of perfection makes a person vague, slippery, lifeless, and uninteresting.”

Jessica: How do you interact with families during your shoots? Is it a challenge for you because your photography background is so different (not as intimate and personal with the subjects)

I wouldn’t say that fashion isn’t intimate, it can be at times. No matter the genre of photography, hopefully some sort of intimacy is present because you’re engaging with another human.

The way I interact with families mimics my day to day life photography. When I’m around friends or family, my mind is always searching for lighting and moments to capture. You’re guaranteed a solid 15+ pictures of yourself after being with me. People that I’m close with have just accepted that it’s part of the package when they hang out with me.

The main difference when shooting families is I don’t know them prior to stepping into their home, so I try to come in with a warm embrace and start it off with a hug. Other than that, I feel like I’m just hanging out with my friends for a day and taking pictures.

Erika: Of the images submitted, which is your favorite and why?

The kid in the bathtub with the dog – it simply makes me happy.

*****

Want information on how you can be a featured artist? Check out our submission page for all the details.

Angela Douglas is a mom of four and a documentary photographer in Virginia who is in the middle of her second 365. You can find more of her work at her website, Facebook, and Instagram. Here is what she had to say to our contributors:

Jenny: I love your images! And your compositions are incredible! There is so much happening in all of your images with your amazing use of layering. It certainly doesn’t seem to be chance, so do you set out to capture layers in your frame and just wait for the right moment when everything comes together? Do you have any advice in using layers?

First off, thank you so much for the compliment. Both my husband and I come from large families so I’ve really been forced to learn how to shoot with lots of layers and complex compositions. I find that I’m drawn to the chaos of that though. Once I learned how to utilize micro-composition in my photography (from a class at Clickin Moms), I started using that technique much more often in my images. I find myself hanging out where the scene seems to flow the best and waiting for that perfect shot. My advice to you all would to be patient and shoot a lot more often. The more shots taken, then better your chances are of that one perfect image.

Jessica: You do a fantastic job of capturing your family life and the feeling of your kids’ childhood. Having four kids myself and three of them being teenagers, my shooting of them has changed. Do you find that your kids’ attitude about you making pictures of them has changed at all? Do they mind you documenting their lives? How do you respect their privacy and still follow your heart (and eye) as an artist?

At the moment, the only child of mine who gets upset and sometimes asks me not to post something on InstaGram or Facebook is my 7-year-old son. My daughters really don’t seem to mind at all, I guess you can say they are well adjusted to being behind the lens. I do my best to stay cognizant of the fact that my older girls are on Instagram and I wouldn’t want them to feel embarrassed about something I posted. I sometimes will ask them if they approve of me posting before doing so. And I do still make it a point to photograph them when they’re upset or displaying their quirky habits, I just choose not to post those ones for the world to see. There has to be some privacy, right?

Gemma: There is so much quirkiness and personality jumping out of your images! I love how you have honed into the feeling of the moment and representing the characteristics of each person over all else in each frame. Is there something that has helped you develop this style as you approach a scene? Any tips you have learned along the way to achieve this level of authenticity with your older children?

I love to find the humor in our everyday lives. The normal day to day activities. When the kids spill milk all over the dining room table, instead of getting mad or upset, we laugh a little then clean it up. I do my best not to sweat the small stuff. I feel very fortunate to have children who are very comfortable in their skin and are not afraid to be goofy. They help me create these images by having these larger than life personalities. My older girls have grown up in front of a camera and don’t seem to mind being photographed all the time, although I keep waiting for the day when they finally decide they’ve had enough and fuss at me about it.

Meg: Your photos seem to tell the story of the love your family shares. Do you feel like your kids are able to see that in your photos? What do you think is your biggest reason you take these types of photos of your family?

I hope they can. I want my children to not only see the love I have for them but the love they have for each other when they look back through our annual family albums we create. My biggest reason for doing what I do is the memories, I get to capture all these memories of my children growing up that I can look back on and they will be able to look back on as well. Growing up, I was always that child that loved to look through old photo albums….wondering about the families in the pictures and what their stories were like.

Kym: You capture such great action; how many frames do you tend to take before you get THE ONE?

Some days it feels like I’m taking thousands and thousands. For example, this week we’ve been camping and some of the days I have 300 frames and others, I actually do have around 1,000. I shoot so much that I recently had to get the shutter replaced in my camera. I told you, the more you take the better.

Robin: Since this is your second 365, do you find yourself shooting differently than from your first 365?

Definitely. This time around I am more relaxed about it. With shooting a 365, I’ve realized somedays I feel more inspired and others not so much, so if I miss a day, I don’t let myself feel guilty for it. Right now I am also doing a monthly Day in the Life, so sometimes I take a break the day after so I don’t feel burnt out. The camera and I need a breather too sometimes.

I also consider my street photography as a part of my 365 where as before, I had rules in place for it, that family was all that I was allowed to shoot. I’m learning to let go and not sweating the small stuff.

*****

Want information on how you can be a featured artist? Check out our submission page for all the details.