The holiday season is one that most of us cherish and look forward to each year. It is a time for many of us to spend time with family and friends, and celebrate those things that we hold dear.
Since we were first married my wife and I have used the decorations on our Christmas tree as mementos of special occasions, and remembrances of our three children as well as of our extended family and friends.
Our tree topper is still the original one that the two of us made as newlyweds almost 40 years ago. A cardboard cut-out of a snowman to which we glued felt crafted in the shape of a hat, scarf, eyes and mouth, with sequin buttons and pupils.
My wife still hangs a small, felt Christmas stocking that she received more than 50 years ago from one of her brothers. The coin that was put in that stocking all of those years ago is still inside it today.
Budgets being very modest back then, most of our original decorations were things that we made. Many have survived over the years and we place them on the tree each year.
When we were fortunate enough to be able to travel we looked for souvenirs that we could use as decorations for the Christmas tree.
Our children have carried on this tradition and we have received a number of travel souvenirs from them that now adorn our tree during the festive season.
When the children were small they produced all kinds of crafts that they proudly brought home from school, and which found a place on the family Christmas tree. Regardless of how simple the design, or how suspect the quality of the handiwork, each was deemed to be a treasure.
Whenever possible my wife would dutifully put the date on the back of each treasure that the children produced. And, if she couldn’t put the date on it, she made notes about each piece so we’d always remember where and when a particular tree decoration originated.
This has been a tradition in our household for almost 40 years. A few years ago I began photographing each and every ornament on our Christmas tree and my wife and I prepared a digital photo album complete with notes on each decoration. When the time comes, this will be passed on to our children in both digital and printed forms.
This year we became empty nesters. The time had come for us to share the family legacy that had been growing for the past 4 decades.
My wife went through our collection of ornamental treasures and gave each of the three children a selection that would have special meaning for each of them.
Not only that, she was able to tell them where each piece originated and when it had been added to the family collection. The reverence with which each of those ornaments was handled was a joy to behold.
Often we think of our cameras as tools for our businesses, or something that we pick up to capture family events. One of the most important things that we can do with our cameras is to create a family legacy through our images. Something that can live for generations.
To all of our wonderful readers at Photography Life, we wish you a safe and healthy Holiday Season!
Technical note
All of the images in this article were taken handheld using a Nikon 1 V2 equipped with a 1 Nikon 10-30mm f/3.5-5.6 non-PD zoom lens.
My V2 was fitted with a Vello CB-510 Dual Shoe Bracket with Silicon Rubber Grip. Lighting was produced with a Genaray LED-7100T 312 LED Variable Colour Light. Post processing was done with my usual process. RAW files were processed through DxO OpticsPro 10 with additional minor adjustments done in CS6 and Viveza 2.
Article and all images Copyright 2014, Thomas Stirr. All rights reserved. No use, reproduction or duplication including electronic is allowed without written consent.