As photographers, we’re constantly telling the stories of the people we capture through the lens of our cameras. But we want to take you behind the lens for a minute and share with you a very special story. A story of a mother who picked up her first camera when she felt that the “Big Box” Photography Studios weren’t capturing the beauty and personality of her child with Down Syndrome. Fast forward two years and Michelle Slape now owns a growing photography business. Michelle’s story…

Tell us a little bit about you as a photographer.

When my first born was a couple of months old, we took him to chain photography studios and he HATED it. He had the deer in the headlights look in most of his photos because of the flash. After a few months of photos with mediocre results, I decided I needed to do something. Thus, the faux-home studio was born.

When my second son was born in 2006, I made the decision to start a photography business.

Shortly after that, we had moved to Northern CA and I took a workshop with Me Ra Koh. The workshop inspired me to focus on a mission that was near and dear to me – photographing children with special needs. My 2nd son has Down syndrome and having him opened my eyes and guided me with the passion to want to share how beautiful ALL children are and that children are much more than their diagnosis.

How would you describe your style as a photographer?

I consider my style lifestyle photography with an emphasis on children and families with a specialty in children with special needs.

Do you have formal training, or were you self-taught?

When I was first starting out, I took a workshop with Carey Schumacher of Barefoot Memories. That provided me the basics of how to get out of “P” mode on my new dSLR. It gave me the foundation for starting my photography business.

The only other hands-on workshop I attended was Me Ra Koh’s  Confidence workshop. That workshop provided me the “ah ha” moment of shooting in Manual mode.

Do you shoot other types of photography, in addition to portraiture?

Portrait photography is definitely my preferred emphasis. I have photographed an occasional wedding, but portraits are my preference.

What do you do to learn and grow as a photographer?

To keep growing as a photographer, I enjoy reading my favorite photographers’ blogs and follow any exercises they may offer. Me Ra Koh is definitely a photographer that inspires me. Her mission to empower women through photography and artistry inspires and motivates me in so many aspects of my life, not just photography.

Is there a portrait session that stands out in your mind that particularly touched your heart?

There are so many of them that stand out for me. One in particular is that of a young girl with autism. Her parents had advised me that she may not participate in the session and that it has always been difficult to capture photos with her looking at the camera.

We met at a park for her session and I followed her as she explored, climbed and played. I enjoyed watching and capturing her expressions as she discovered new things or found a structure that she enjoyed.

What made this session so touching and memorable for me is that she completely opened up to me! She would look at me, smile at me, and watch me to make sure I was following her. The really moving part was when, for the first time ever, she climbed to the top of the jungle gym. At that point, it became hard to take photos while tears were streaming down my face!

What does helping families preserve memories through photography mean to you?

Preserving memories is the reason I happened upon photography. I love to scrapbook and the in between parts of my family are what I especially love to photograph. Moments where most don’t take photos, I grab my camera and capture the moment. I want to do the same for other families. I know families come to sessions with the expectation of smiles and poses. I like to remind them of the smaller things that children outgrow – the pout of not wanting to be photographed, the cry of a hungry newborn, the arm crossing of a toddler that wants no part of my session, the stuffed animal that is lovingly carried with them everywhere they go. Those are the moments that I want to capture. Those are the moments that the parents will miss and treasure.

One of my favorite photos of my boys is when my then 6 month old baby was hospitalized for respiratory distress. We were worried about how his brother (then 3 years old) would react to seeing his brother attached to tubes, on a ventilator and sedated. His first instinct was to walk up to his brother and hold his hand.

That kind of moment is what I want to capture for families.

What do you love most about your work as a photographer?

My favorite part about the business is meeting amazing families. My second favorite part is being able to have a child open up to me and allow me to photograph them. Because many of the children I photograph are children with special needs, I like to make sure that I gain their trust and that I make sure they’re comfortable with my photographing them.

A fun part of being a photographer is the after-the-session time of editing photos and creating wall art for some of the families. Photoshop Elements is my go-to for all things photo related (even for my personal scrapbooking and wall art).  I love walking into a client’s home and finding one of my photos (or photo art) enlarged and on their walls. That tells me I am doing my job.

What is your favorite thing about Photoshop Elements?

I love the versatility of Photoshop Elements and that I can easily transition from using it for personal use to professional use. I have been using Photoshop Elements since, I believe, version 3 and with each upgrade it gets better with more ease of use, more editing tools and more creative features.  I use it for personal creativity (cards, scrapbooking, wall decor) as well as for photography (photo editing, promotional materials, and customer art work).

If I had to pick just ONE thing about PS Elements that was my favorite, it would have to be the Smart Brush. It makes minor adjustments easy with just the click of a button!

And why is this your go-to software?

Photoshop Elements is my go-to software because it is a reliable software that has many of the tools at my fingertips.  I seldom (if at all) find the need to use any other software for my editing or promotional material creation. It makes my life easier to have just ONE software to rely on for my needs.

What are your hopes for the future of your photography business?

My hope for the business is to keep focusing on photographing children with special needs and for that to continue to be my avenue for building awareness. I don’t necessarily want to be a “famous” photographer. I just want to be a photographer that makes a difference. I would love to see the photos of these amazing children in magazines and advertisement for the sole purpose of showcasing them and their abilities, not their disabilities.

Connect with Michelle!

Visit her Blog and Facebook page. You can also find her @mrsphotog on Twitter. Stop by and tell her you saw her on Love that Shot!

Now, we want to ask you: What does preserving memories through photography mean to you?

Tell us in the comments below…