Photographing your kids can be a challenge.  As a photographer, I always want a memory card full of those perfect shots. In reality, I may get one GREAT shot for every 25-35 clicks. I have walls (and a computer) full of “pretty shots” of my girls. You know, the ones where their smiles are perfect, their hair is styled, and their boutique clothing is shiny and new.

I realized the other day that all of my shots of them pretty much look the same. While my youngest daughter is very much a “fashionista”, my oldest daughter is happiest in t-shirts and leggings. I have hundreds of photos of my girls just being them…… everyday. I don’t show them online because many times, they aren’t technically perfect. We always want to show off our best work, right?

Well….kids aren’t little mannequins (at least mine aren’t!). They love getting messy with art projects, mud, dirt and all of the grime associated with kid-living. I decided I wanted to capture and celebrate more of those moments. They are my most treasured photographs of my girls. I know that 50 years from now, I can look back at these photos and remember exactly what they were doing.

While I’m not comfortable saying that bad photography is great, sometimes the imperfect is just better than the perfect to convey mood, emotion or an event. The artist in me is always striving to create not just a snapshot, but an artful telling of a story. Some of the photos of my girls don’t even them in it, but I smile and remember exactly what that moment was about. I am lucky, on occasion, to actually get that GREAT everyday photo, too.

So, I’m challenging everyone to celebrate imperfect photographs and embrace the purity of the moments captured! Here are a few examples of my FAVORITE  moments with my girls.

Photo 1: Here, as a photographer, my first thought is that her face is turned away from the light. As a mom, this is EXACTLY my baby and that trumps everything!

Photo 2:  Not one pixel of this photo is in focus, but it is my favorite of 2012. Seeing two sisters laughing so incredibly hard together is priceless, and again, trumps technical perfection.

Photo 3:  Another in-between shot, where not one bit is in focus. The imaginative twirling? So exactly her personality.

Photo 4:  Nothing spectacular about this photo, but the moment was such a great one!

Photo 5:  My girls aren’t even featured here, and it’s not particularly amazing, but come on! There are sequins and rocks. This definitely called for documentation.

When they are teenagers, I never want to forget that they shared one pair of roller skates to scoot around the living room (blurry photo and all). Get clicking and share with us on instagram with #TLSFPhotoChallenge! You can strive for perfection, but be sure to see the beauty in the imperfect!