Celebrating Eid with family in Dubai always brings a mix of emotions for me. It’s a time of celebration and togetherness, but it also reminds me of the importance of family and the moments we share. For you, this might be Christmas, Diwali, Hanukkah, Easter, the Chinese New Year, or any other festival where your family gets together. It’s during these times that the concept of ‘Saudade’, that bittersweet longing for our dear ones, becomes extra powerful. My mentor and long-distance photographer friend Michelle couldn’t have explained this word better:
As a parent of an almost 8-year-old, I know this nostalgic longing will hit me once she is all grown up and perhaps no longer living with me. Scratch that!! I can already feel an overwhelming sense of saudade as I think about her toothless grin upon seeing her Eid gifts in the years past. Or thinking about her skipping from one room to the next, bubbling with joy, barefooted. You know what I mean, right?! We pine for what’s never going to be again!
But here’s the thing: photographs – authentic, natural, non-posey photographs – have a way of making us live through our experiences again and again and again.
So, as you read this, whether you are living in the UAE or traveling the world making fresh memories with your loved ones, do think about this word and whether you would like to commit to keeping a photographic record of what makes your little ones unique. Because if you have those photographs, it is so much easier to keep coming back to the memories whenever Saudade hits!
And if you would like to book a lifestyle or documentary family photoshoot with me to help with that, please feel free to contact me to check my availability.
P.S. Below is a micro-story from a documentary family photoshoot in Dubai I recently shot. It documents a princess tea party that took place on this family’s balcony in Palm Jumeirah. I particularly adore how the littlest ones went off to one side to sneak some fairy bread to her dog!! (More from this session here). Also, if you’re wondering what fairy bread is, here’s a short video you can watch with your kids and make some yummy, sweet, 2 min snack that the kids would adore!
Hey, I'm Scheherazade Shahid and I am a licensed family, maternity and newborn photographer based in Dubai. I love adventure, scary rides and taking photos of little humans. My lifelong wish is to jump out of an airplane with a parachute on my back but alas I still need to loose a couple of pounds to be able to qualify for that ride 😭
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