How Do You Photograph Mom? We Asked, You Answered. (Part 2)

Everyone has their own unique story with Mom. And this year, with so many of us physically apart, Mother’s Day 2020 now has a unique story all it...

Everyone has their own unique story with Mom. And this year, with so many of us physically apart, Mother’s Day 2020 now has a unique story all its own.

Last week, we asked you to share your favorite photos of moms, and your response was an outpouring of love. You shared incredible chance encounters in the wild, heart-wrenching memories about the past, and touching stories telling us why these photographs capture her spirit and spunk.

Below, we’re sharing more of our favorites. (If you haven’t already, be sure to check out Part 1 here.)

We know these photos only scratch the surface. If you have more to add, please share them with us by tagging @photoshelter on Instagram or Twitter.

Happy Mother’s Day to all!

Cover image by Tom DiPace.

Daniel Gillet

Silhouette of a Young Mother, Daniel’s wife, holding her daughter in her arms at dusk.

Wendy Marijnissen

This is Zameera, a former fistula patient, who just returned home and was reunited with her two children in their home village. Surrounded by her family and people of the village, they celebrated her safe return and the successful surgery, being declared dry. Obstetric fistula is a complication after childbirth causing women to permanently leak urine or in some cases feces. Women often live with this condition for years in shame, hiding or being shunned because of the smell, making them paraias in their own family and communities. Being declared dry is a major thing and literally gives these women a new chance of a decent life. Seeing her reunited with her children and the incredible joy and smile captured exactly what this means to her.

Dennis Whitehead

Attached is a photograph of an iPhone photo taken on May 6, 2020 by Sandy Steeves, a staff member at the Westminster senior living facility where my 97-year-old mother-in-law, Dorothy Cook, lives in Virginia.

We have been unable to see her since the facility was closed to all but staff (an early decision that, no doubt, saved lives), but they keep us regularly updated with pictures and calls.

Dorothy is holding a book produced by our daughter enabling her grandmother to see her first great-grandchild, William (named for Dorothy’s husband), born into the pandemic on March 22.

We are, needless to say, heartbroken not being able to hold our first grandchild hundreds of miles away, as well as not being able to visit our mother nearby, but this book means everything to Dorothy as she carries it everywhere.

This is a photograph of just one aspect of the state of our times on Mother’s Day 2020.

Tom DiPace

Marina Cavazza

From the series “Lost in Switzerland”. In this self-portrait, I see the synthesis of many feelings that belong to maternity: fear, playfulness, strength, wonder, bareness, imperfection, beauty.

Gyaneshwari Dave

This photo is of my mother’s mother, who had raised me and who is no more.

I had clicked this photo one quiet afternoon as she was deeply engrossed in her prayer, her eyes closed. Her right hand held the beads while she kept her left palm on her lap, fingers pointing skywards.

This photo is extremely precious to me because her hands not only inspire me as I recall her beautiful enlightened persona, but the sublime wrinkles on her hand also reminds me of everything she used to do for me over decades.

Right from when I was a kid, thousands of times, this hand must have taught me crafts, patted my shoulder, touched my cheeks, wiped my tears, made ponytails of my hair, cooked my favorite dishes, packed my lunch-boxes, and put sweets in my mouth…

Lauren Grabelle

A newly born calf is greeted by her mother on a remote ranch in NW Montana, on April 10, 2020. Life on the ranch has changed little during the pandemic although there is more time to observe the bonds shared by the animals.

AJ Stetson

These are two of my favorite images I’ve captured of my mom, near her home on windy days! She’s one of the most radiant, resilient people I know, and inspires me to stay strong, even when winds are blowing hard in the opposite direction!