This is a blog post I have wanted to create for a really long time now.  The topic is Emotional Connection and how Suzanne Taylor Photography out of Red Deer, Alberta captures the beauty in front of the camera.

Emotional Connection 101: What Is It?

Emotional connection could be one of the most important aspects that I consider when I am photographing anything.  It really doesn’t matter what I plan to photograph – if there is no emotional connection then it becomes just a photograph, and that is simply not good enough for me.  When I first began photographing as a new photographer, I photographed no end of terribly boring subject matter.  You can imagine how stimulating it was photographing water meters, plants, random things on the street, so many trees – and even a tooth brush.  I was learning just about everything to do with my camera and the art of photography, but how much Emotional Connection can you actually get from a water meter?  Short of the “mommy-goggles” syndrome where you think everything you shoot is a masterpiece when you first start photography, I doubt the pictures I took would have ‘wowed’ anyone with any creative mindset – or someone looking to hire a Red Deer photographer based on the images on my website.

I define Emotional Connection in images as an emotion you feel when you look at an image.  It doesn’t have to be any specific topic – you just have to be ‘moved’ when you view it.  Emotional Connection is not limited however to just feelings of happy and joyfulness – you can also be mad, sad, upset, confused or any other emotion you can think of.  I have created many images that have sparked rage, anger, and hostility in some, but the very same image has created emotions of love, pride, satisfaction and hope in others.  One such image was an image to bring awareness to Child Trafficking you can see HERE or this image that was created fairly innocently with one of my daughters showing her back towards the camera.  You can view that image HERE and read the backlash I received for that image on Facebook.

But what if you could have an Emotional Connection to a
photograph of a toothbrush?

When I was going to the University of Calgary getting my Bachelor of Social Work, I remember listening to a very long lecture about change and helping people change.  There is an old adage that “you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink”.  My professor however finished that statement off with “but perhaps you can make it thirsty”…

Huh.  Wasn’t that the idea of the century.

I always remembered that and now that I have been a Social Worker for the last 13 years, I married a lot of what I know about human dynamics to the profession of photography.  To take the vulnerability of a subject and use touch, lighting, mood, clothing and possibly many other factors to turn something as simple as a toothbrush into something you look at and have an emotional response is what drives me to create and make images that touch your heart, mind, and spirit.

Tanya and Andrew’s Emotional Connection Photography Session near Red Deer, Alberta

I had the pleasure to connect with these two amazing individuals last month for a beautiful Connection photography session where you could see and feel the emotional connection between the two of them.  Tanya is a friend I have had for many years despite living a few hours away from each other.  She has always had a jet setting style of career, so we never get together as much as I would like to.  It was a beautiful surprise however when she called me from Calgary, Alberta to book a photography session near Red Deer, Alberta with her partner, I was really excited.  Tanya had connected with me for photography session gifts before, but never for herself and this was going to be really exciting – I could tell from the very tone in her voice their emotional connection was going to be electric.

Feeling the Passion:  The Importance of Emotional Connection

When you look at this image above, how does it make you feel?  How does it make you feel when you look at an image of two people, lost in each other’s presence?  Have you ever felt so in love that the thought of that person catches your breath off guard and you don’t quite take a full one in?  I see that in this image.  I see love, I see a connection, I see presence to each other that isn’t faked – it is real.

To go back to my initial thought, you can take an emotional picture of just about anything in this world, but my goal is to capture the reflection of love between two people artfully and in a way that helps keep that electric moment alive for everyone who views the image.  Some of the most beautiful imagery was captured when this couple was just in tune with each other and not thinking about me, my camera or the cool water they were standing in near Red Deer, Alberta.  These are the moments that Suzanne Taylor Photography lives for and has a full passion for capturing.

Suzanne Taylor Photography has built a business upon emotional connection.  To take a picture and pass it to a customer is not nearly good enough for the high standards of my red deer family photography business.  Creating art out of these moments is the final goal I have with every session and I always approach every session with the drive for you to have your images proudly hung on your walls so that each and every person who sees them will fall in love with them as much as you love them.

If you are in the Red Deer, Central Alberta or Calgary area and looking to capture images that go beyond regular photography sessions, please contact Suzanne Taylor Photography so that we can chat about what you’re looking for.  We have such a limited time in this life, every day, every minute and every second count and capturing art in moments that make you the happiest is something that you deserve.  You can contact Suzanne Taylor Photography through the “Contact” form on this very website, as well as by sending me an email.  I would love to connect with you!

Warmly,
Suzie
XO

www.suzannetaylorphotography.com
hello@suzannetaylorphotography.com

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