The Nelson Family | Maui Day in the Life family Session

May 4, 2020 The Nelson Family | A Day (or Two) in the Life | Documentary Family Photography

Posted in Day in the life session by brea 1 Comment

Back at the end of January, which now feels like a lifetime ago, I visited the island of Maui for a wonderful week in my favorite place. Despite living half a world apart, over the last few years, Angie has become a close friend of mine. When she offered to open her home for me to stay with her family, I knew I wanted to do something for her in return. And I knew exactly what I wanted that something to be.

I wanted to give them the gift of a Day in the Life session.

Photography Matters, it becomes more valuable over time.

Angie captured the significance of this blip in time better than I ever could on her blog. I’ll share some of her words here:

The images dropped in my inbox today and, to be honest, I was totally blown away. And weirdly emotional. Because things are going to change. Not right now, not tomorrow – but slowly over time.

The day-to-day of our lives as a family of three are numbered (don’t worry, this is NOT a pregnancy announcement) and knowing how time is a thief, I’m so thankful to have these images.

My buddy Brea of Photography by Brea/Life by Brea came out to visit a few weeks ago. Eddy was instantly enamored with her. She has green hair, she played the ukulele often, and can sing every Disney song way better than I can. Brea endured toddler meltdowns, lots of naked-baby-scootering, beach days, sunsets above the clouds, and the general antics of the Nelson household. For six awesome days, she became the fifth member of our family.

She gifted us with these images. As a photographer, I know the value of photography. I truly understand what a gift these images are.

And someday, we’ll look back on these images and they’ll remind us of the good times and the hard times.

This week on Maui was unlike any other week I’ve ever spent on Maui because I got to be a member of their tribe for the duration. We watched the sunset from the side of Haleakala while we Anthony cooked up a delicious dinner on the grill. We watched whales breach from the beach while Eddy played in the sand. Many of those things sound extraordinary to those of us on the mainland. And they were really special. But what made this week so wonderful was the time with Eddy, Angie and Anthony. Having a front row seat to the beauty in their everyday chaos was the best part of my trip. And being able to freeze a small fraction of “normal life” for them was a huge honor.