El Dorado Hills Family, Senior and Children Photographer, Lynn Greene captures the true personality of everyone she photographs. We asked Lynn what inspires and motives her to capture Award Winning images.
LHM– What is your inspiration when you photograph a family?
LG– The family. Every family has their own dynamics and their own personal relationships. I watch for small subtle things when I first meet a family. I look for who has a more intimate relationship with each child or which child is going through a struggle with a parent at that moment in time. Because I’m a Mom, I understand these dynamics and I capture the moments that I know each parent wants to treasure and remember when their children are grown.
LHM– We see a lot of people owning high end cameras, like yours, who try to take pictures of their children and get frustrated because they can’t capture what you do. Why?
LG– There is a saying among Photographers, “I can capture moments of your children, but not my own.” This is so true. I can’t get my own children to take holiday portraits unless I pay them! It’s like getting your child to behave at the dinner table at the end of a very long week– they won’t do it for you, but if they were at a friends’ house, they would be the perfect child!
LHM– Talking about great cameras, what do we need to look for when buying a new camera?
LG– You are not just looking for the camera, you are looking for a lense. 
You can buy the a Rebel XTI, but make sure you are buying a great quality lense. Spend your money wisely such as a 28-200 lense, this will give you close up images and enable you take photographs of your children playing soccer. But don’t stop there, make sure to research! Go to photography websites and blogs and read photographer’s reviews on certain lenses and equipment before you buy. Just because your friend has a camera and lense, does not mean that same camera and lense will work for you and your goals. Most importantly be careful when buying on-line! You may spot a great deal from a manufacture in China but many of these “deals” do not come with USA Warranties, which means you will never get your camera fixed. But keep one thing in mind, you can spend all the money you want on equipment, but spending time to actually learn how to use that equipment is key! Read your manual and practice and when you think you have it mastered, go back and do it again. Professional Photographers spend thousands and thousands of dollars on training every year and sometimes weeks on just one piece of equipment to learn how to master it.
LHM– We’ve heard as a new photographer to always photograph in the shade, is that true?
LG– Light is key and how you use light is what makes an image average versus extraordinary. Photographing in shade is “safe” and depending on the sun direction, adding a little flash is safer. But I can’t answer this question in one paragraph or article. I have spent years in classes with Master Photographers to learn light and while I have a pretty good handle on it, its an art that I will never stop learning.
LHM– If you love to take pictures, is there anything else you can do outside of photographing your family and friends?
LG– YES! The love of photography is a gift you were given and should be shared. We share our gift by working through an organization called Moment By Moment. As a photographer, we provide portraits of children with life-limiting illnesses. 
Sometimes these children have months, sometimes days. But we give the families memories to hold onto forever. I have learned more from these children and families then I have ever learned from any single life experience. These children and their families are my inspiration everyday to be grateful for the little time we have and to make the most of it.
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August 6, 2010