Kicking off the new year with a travel documentary family photography session!

When I began photographing families in Taiwan in a documentary style a couple of years ago, it never occurred to me that a majority of my clients would be people visiting Taiwan, not people who live here. There are probably several reasons for this, but the fact remains that most of the families who contact me about scheduling a session are coming over for a short adventure that they want documented.

I love noticing and making art out of the rhythms of home life because “home” is a story we all know and are shaped by, so I’m as surprised as anybody by how much I love documenting these adventures that families go on when they come to Taiwan. There’s still so much to notice—relationships, touches, glances, rolled eyes, actions and reactions, exhaustion, wonder. People are who they are even when they’re not in their usual environment. If home is a story that’s more about the characters than the setting, then it’s a story that can be told anywhere.

I recently got to accompany a really fun family on their adventure around the north coast of Taiwan—an adventure that involved four generations! What a privilege this was! Most of my favorite photos from this session were from the journey rather than the destinations. I’m not going to lie, photos of kids losing it in the car will always have a special place in my heart.