So what do you do when it’s a pandemic, your parents really want family photos of the four of you, but you’ve been away at college and you’re worried about endangering your parents’ health?
You find a way to make it work.
The last two times we photographed the Fine family, it was for Alex’s bar mitzvah in 2012 and Sam’s bar mitzvah in 2015. Needless to say, these boys have GROWN UP, and this family is as fun as ever. For their family photos at Portola Valley Town Center in California, Alex, who had just arrived home from college for the holidays, stayed six feet away from the rest of his family for the entire shoot.
When Alex was close to Ben’s camera for one photo, and the rest of the family was way back behind (again, for social distancing), Ben saw an interesting tattoo peeking out of his shirt and asked about it. Alex turned around and said “oh yeah, Mom, I got a tattoo!”
I love that Leah got the photos she wanted, but with a twist. They are hilarious, fun and authentic to the unique time we are all in. But mostly, these photos show the love in this family… how their son cared so much about them that he wouldn’t get physically close to them even for family photos. The restrictions and constraints of the Covid-19 life led to more interesting photos because the Fine family (and Ben) had to figure out how to show the family’s dynamic without being able to put them all in one spot. There were lots of laughs, lots of love, and a surprise tattoo reveal. What more do you need, really?