Favorites from 2023
Some of my favorite photos from a busy 2023 as a family and lifestyle photographer in Worcester.
Last year was a real hectic year here at Tom Godfrey Photography and for Tom Godfrey general life. My daughter, Eejin, was born in the last weeks of 2022 so 90 percent of 2024 was climbing the often sheer face of the first-time parents learning curve. I also entered into my last semester of graduate school which was great because they saved the most intense work for the end. In October, by far the busiest time of year for any family / lifestyle photographer in New England, I was also trying to conduct interviews, research, and write a 60 page paper on the connection and value of diaspora as seen by second generation Asian Americans. There was not much sleep involved but it’s done! My degree is currently sitting at the top of a pile of stuff in my office that I have yet to sort. Then my wife SiEun, Eejin, and I went to Seoul after the holidays.
This is all to explain why I am posting my favorite photos from 2023 in almost-March of 2024. Here are some of my favorite non-commercial photos from this past year.
2022: A Year in Review
2022 in Photographs
This has been a busy, busy year. In a lot of ways, my business has changed more this year than it has in any year before. This became apparent to me while grabbing photos for this post when I realized just how much of what I photograph is now commercial, real estate, or editorial. Families and family moments, like weddings, are still a huge part of what I do and I am proud of the photographs that I came away with this year. Here are some of my favorite shots. I let a few headshots and houses slide in there but for the most part there are a lot of families and a lot of genuine love. The last two are of my daughter, Eejin, who is one of the reasons why this year was so busy. Here’s to a happy and healthy 2023!
2020: A Year in Photographic Review
2020 was a strange year but I took a lot of photos because life goes on. Check out my favorite photo from every session that I shot last year. From family sessions to a bride and groom jumping into the pool in full dress. It’s all here.
I always try to keep things pretty optimistic and cheerful on my site so forgive me when I say that 2020 was a big pile of garbage. I think that sentiment is pretty universal. It was a struggle to just stay afloat for a lot of us who were forced to close up shop for long periods of time. Businesses that were run by people smarter than me didn’t make it through because of things that were beyond their control. Lacking a ton of overhead and being married to my second photographer, I was able to survive by curling up into a fetal position with my camera popping up as regulations allowed. The efforts to support small businesses like mine were huge.
A few days ago I started going through all of my sessions during 2020 and I was reminded of why I do this. Life goes on. There was the pandemic, yes, but there were also marriages, adoptions, trips to the park, and engagements. Silver linings in the cloud are what you live for during hard times, right?
Very often my favorite photo from a session will not be the one that gets printed and framed. It will be a moment of tenderness when nobody knows that the camera is on them or it will be some hilarious moment when a kid crosses a line and is just done with the session. Photos without a story can be pretty but that’s not what I am into. If people wanted that anymore then we would still be loading into the car and going to Sears.
Below are my favorite photos from every session from the last year that was not a studio headshot or real estate shoot. I have a lot to be thankful for even during a year that went so so wrong for everyone. Thank you to all of my 2020 clients!
Class of 2020 Senior Sessions: Zack from Shrewsbury High School
The vast majority of my portraits take place in parks. For the most part these spaces feature great trees, forest-lined paths, waterfalls, old barns, and other quintessentially New England things. When Zack was open to moving somewhere a bit more urban for his senior portrait I knew exactly where I wanted to go: Worcester City Hall.
The vast majority of my portraits take place in parks. For the most part these spaces feature great trees, forest-lined paths, waterfalls, old barns, and other quintessentially New England things. When Zack was open to moving somewhere a bit more urban for his senior portrait I knew exactly where I wanted to go: Worcester City Hall.
I met Zack a little bit before the sun dipped down beneath the horizon. The Common at Worcester City hall was still full of life- people were walking around, sitting on benches, skateboarding and riding BMX. I knew that I wanted to take full advantage the backdrops of Worcester City Hall and all other buildings of Downtown Worcester but I also wanted to include some greenery. The balance here is awesome and in no time at all Zack and I came away with some great portraits that really took advantage of the setting- including that great golden hour! Check out some of my favorites from my senior session with Zack at the Worcester City Hall Common. Click here to learn more about my senior session packages!
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Pictures are worth a thousand words but check out what goes on behind the scenes during my sessions.