ALEXIS + ELLELEIGH | FAMILY

anyone who spends a considerable amount of time with me will end up hearing about where i grew up.  if asked, i will gladly talk to infinity about my family’s farm in Kansas, about wheat harvests, driving tractors, riding horses, and growing up in small towns that are full of good people who work hard.  i was on a recent trip back to visit family when i was contacted by Alexis to do photos of her and her baby daughter, ElleLeigh.

i decided to shoot right right where Alexis lived in Glasco, a small town that i had spent a considerable amount of time as a youth.  Glasco is not what many might consider a photogenic location, but i knew that it held a tremendous amount of potential if only because it felt unique to me.  many of the town’s buildings and shops are now shuttered or abandoned, and i had originally thought to use them in juxtaposition to Alexis and ElleLeigh.

however, what really caught my eye was a small but well-maintained park snuck between two old buildings.  if you blink, you would completely miss it.  its presence there reminded me perseverance– something living, verdant, and thriving in the middle of a community that has seen and experienced both hardship and decline.  i think that Alexis and ElleLeigh’s photos took on a somewhat poetic symbolism for me.  to see their laughter, their smiles, and their beautiful faces continue to remind me that no matter how grim the world outside may get, there’s always a hope for a better tomorrow.  like flowers growing up through a sidewalk, or a park thriving off a deserted main street, glimmers of hope appear when and where you will least expect them.