I had my sweet sixteen at thirty-five.
This November, I visited my brother and father in Washington, D.C. I had flown in from Vancouver; my father had come from St. Petersburg, Russia, by way of Turkey, and together we spent one week catching up over US Thanksgiving, sharing stories of our life’s triumphs and challenges before loving the discovered parts of one another all the more. I was reminded from where most of my traits originate—my family—after spending an entire week together, under one roof, and across the new floor my brother had installed in the week before.
I am fortunate to be part of this particular family, The Riabov Clan, which, after spending a long Thanksgiving together, had its members return home exhausted from the symphony of laughter and chatter—an apropos hallmark of relatives convening in closed spaces.
We had not seen each other for longer than ages, and I was prepared to document my family’s reunification: as part portrait, part street photography of my family.
Documenting one’s family is a labour of love, and a joy of discovering what type of gear works best for you. Would you cram all of your aunts and uncles into your studio as did photographer Masahisa Fukase, over the course of twenty-five years? Or take Polaroids at your next holiday party and hide them in the coat pockets for mother-in-law to find? I deploy boredom to my advantage; I linger in spaces with the people I desire to photograph, holding my camera as an extension of my body. I wait long enough to be forgotten about, often peering through the viewfinder, observing the scene as if I am filming, long enough to become invisible (for the most part).
I stand and chat up sweet distractions as my father brushes his hair with my comb, or as my brother prepares an espresso shot—all in an effort to document how they are in the world.
Garry Winograd is famous for his technique of fumbling the camera. Joel Meyerwitz “photographs [his] own curiosity.” Their work is spontaneous and that is what I try to emulate in my family work.
The New Year is around the corner; perhaps you will be in the company of friends. Go ahead, take their photo. Put your phone away. Wait, pay attention, study their body language, look through the viewfinder, the scene will unfold. You will be part of it because you chose to be, and you will document it, because you’ve decided to do so. And I urge you to decide to do so.
I hope these pictures of my family will inspire you to take pictures of your loved ones the next time you all spend time together.
Treasure everything, the bad jokes, the poor choice of words, the leftovers, the lineup to the bathroom.
If you shoot film, try your hand at Flic Film’s Aurora 800, perfect for low-light, indoor gatherings. If you’re all mirrorless, rent a wide-angle lens to cover a lot of family members in cramped spaces.
And if you want to learn how to use your camera more effectively, we also offer workshops. We’ll explain the basics of exposure, focusing, depth of field before offering invaluable tips on how to take shots for keeps.
Save a toast and take a picture. It may be of a moment that was once an unimaginable future.
Boris Riabov
