When I went to get my portrait taken, my little 6 year old daughter, Hannah, came along. It was a nice little “daddy” date. I find my kids to be so inspirational and fun. Any chance I get to go out and be with the family I take it! My family are the coolest people I know. Hannah and I skipped and sang all the way to the studio. Yes, even grown men can sing and skip with their daughters! Hannah likes to help out at the studio and wants to be doing what daddy is doing much of the time.

Every now and then, when I can devote my complete attention, I’ll let her take videos and pictures of the family. I am always amazed at her focus and determination to get a good image even at this age! She starts to direct her little sisters and brothers and tries to get them “in frame”- albeit awkward and a little unnerving, but hey, teach them when they’re young to enjoy making art and it will stick with them for the rest of their lives. It’s always interesting to see what subject matter she chooses. Sometimes, it’s a favorite book on the shelf. Sometimes it’s her Thomas The Train set or her sisters playfully yelling and screaming and running around… (“Hannah… be careful with that expensive camera!!!)It gets me excited for the future when one day, if she really wants to, she could be one of my assistants and eventually ,maybe, a copartner in the company. It’s a dream of mine to have a family run and owned Videography company. We’ll see how it goes…I’ve got three other little ones as well. Little Nathan (10 months old), Elsie (2.7 years old), Saidee (4.5 years old).

Needless to say, there is never a lack of interesting photographs and video to take of all of these wonderful stages in life happening before mine and my wife, Misty’s, eyes. I’ve always got the cameras on the mantle ready for action. If I can’t grab the camera right when I need it, I may loose the moment.Our lives are a series of a trillion moments laid out in time. Each second, each frame, comes and goes. Tick, tick, tick, tick. You can never get them back. They are gone forever.My wife and I have made a very concious decision to be with our kids in “the now”, and not let the moments slip by without truly living in them. I think I carry this same sense of urgency into my work. When I’m shooting a wedding video or capturing a live event, I know there is a lot riding on my abilities to capture this time right now. I love this challenge! -Tim Danyo