Project 52 Favorites | My Own Family Photography

In April 2013 I started a year-long project of my own family photography, Project 52. Project 52 is one photograph a week, one for each of the 52 weeks in a year. I’ve been lucky enough to work on this alongside some amazing professional photographers from all over the world, each of us documenting family moments in our own unique way. We’ve been energized by some of the themes, dumbstruck by others and on occasion, completely changed the theme mid-week. But we made it and I’m so thankful for these memories. My family would like you to know that they too are excited it’s over. Shhh . . . don’t tell them I’ll just do it again or replace it with something equally fun.

As I uploaded the final shot this morning, I couldn’t restrain myself from picking a few favorites. Here are my Top 10 in order from most recent to oldest along with a story behind each.

week 51: {in} awe | april 17, 2014

This was taken during Spring Break at Muir Woods just outside of San Francisco. Muir Woods is home to old growth Coast Redwoods, some of the tallest trees in the world. The tallest tree here is 258 ft. In this shot, we were approaching the area of the forest known as Cathedral Grove. It stopped Jay in his tracks … which is hard to do. Muir Woods was George Lucas’s inspiration for the Ewok village in Star Wars. Jay might be in awe of the trees or simply looking for Ewoks.

week 49: peace | april 2, 2014

This was taken at Squirrel Lake Park here in Matthews, one of my favorite places to shoot. I wanted to evaluate the spring blooms for several upcoming family sessions and my kids were happy to come along. After we scouted the foliage, I sat down and let them play. Luckily I still had my camera out when I thought, “this is peaceful … they are playing nicely, even cooperating, no one else is here, it’s beautiful today and you are relaxing.” Peace.

week 45: sweet | february 28, 2014

Jay didn’t want to take this shot. I had to give him two gummy bears (hard bargain) to do it right. The light in this corner of our playroom that afternoon was just perfect and the neutral tones were so gorgeous together – the camo shirt, the shadows, the wall color, his skin, his hair, the freckles. I got a “sweet” deal or depending on how you see it, he got a “sweet” treat but the bottom-line is that he is “sweet” … most of the time.

week 41: cold | january 29, 2014

We had two major (for Charlotte) snows this year. This one was less than an inch but miles of fun. Kate asked me to try this shot … as if I’d say no. It’s so her. I love the bold colors and polka dots against all the bright white snow. You can see more of this snowy day in my January blog post.

week 37: low light | december 24, 2013

One of my best friends hosts an annual Christmas Eve gathering. She’s an awesome hostess and chef. I, on the other hand, am not. It’s all good. I’m at peace with my strengths and weaknesses so I brought my camera. I’ve wanted this shot for a long time. It’s rare that I plan an image that far in advance . . . a lot of times I don’t plan them at all as in the case of the next shot. But this night, I knew what I wanted when I walked in the door. I knew this because it happens every year . . . kids glued to the Santa tracker, running around wildly announcing that he’s in Germany, insisting that we go home now so that he doesn’t miss us. I knew that for a good 2 to 3 minutes on every half hour, they would be mesmerized by the update. I hoped the glow of the computer screen would be enough to light this low-light image properly. It was and I love it. And yes, my biological kids aren’t even in this shot but these kids make up a big part of our Charlotte family.

week 30: boys | november 9, 2013

Two of my boys – Ryan and Max – in the backyard. Max (the dog) is a mama’s boy. He rarely listens to Ryan but on this day he was all about hanging with his dad. I was actually shooting our Christmas card picture of the kids when I saw this. Surely Ryan had treats in his hand.

week 29: {halloween} eyes | october 31, 2013

For the first time (and hopefully the last) my kids were scary this year. Scary requires “dramatic makeup” according to Kate, so we said go big or go home. They were awesomely scary little vampires. You can find more pictures in my Halloween blog post if you want nightmares (kidding … they are the cutest vampires ever). It wasn’t until I was editing the Halloween shots that I remembered the weekly theme “eyes.” I got lucky.

week 14: memories | july 8, 2013

Apparently we had never shared our wedding album with the kids. While they did look adoringly at it as pictured here, they also laughed hysterically to the point of falling off the couch at times. We had a blast taking this trip down memory lane. I only heard “wow you guys look so young” 99 and a half times. We were young!

week 7: girl | may 27, 2013

My girl is part sassy, part spunky, part sporty, part rock star. She’s a girly girl and a tomboy all rolled up into one. We planned this shot. She and the shoes were meant to be. Love at first sight and well worn by the time of this picture. They went with “everything” … and they really did add a certain energy and boldness to everything she wore. This day we paired them with her girliest skirt. This is so her style … scab and all.

week 4: {birthday} morning | may 8, 2013

My boy is part sweet, part sly, part silly, part stylin. He’s all boy on the playground and all 5th Avenue when it comes to dressing up. He has always had a love of ties. This morning he woke up and announced that he was wearing a tie to school for his birthday. I snapped this shot for the theme “morning” just before we headed up the hill to the bus.

Thank you for taking the time to learn more about my personal project. I encourage you all to pick up your cameras and start documenting life too. There will be days when you have no idea what to photograph until you see it. There will be days when you shoot too much and can’t pick a favorite. But in the end, just one moment a day/a week/a month makes a huge difference and you will forever be grateful you made the time. Remember, I’d love to know if you have a favorite too!! Please comment below. If you want more inspiration, check out my iPhone-only 365 project on Instagram #abbemccrackenphotography365.

Abbe McCracken is a natural light, on-location portrait and lifestyle photographer serving Charlotte, NC and the surrounding areas of Matthews, Ballantyne, Weddington and beyond. She specializes in family, child and event photography.