While we lived in Massachusetts, I had the honour of volunteering with Hospice of Franklin County. Jane was my mentor there. She wanted a student photographer to volunteer with hospice to capture images for them to use in their community awareness programs.
I answered the volunteer want ad that was posted at Hallmark. I emailed Jane and we set up a time to meet. Jane asked me to bring some of my work with me, so I chose my recent favorites of my children and nervously headed out to my very first photography client meeting.
At that point in time, in my Hallmark career, I had yet to photograph anybody outside of my fellow students and my family. The only people to have seen the images I was creating then were my instructors and my family. I had been getting regular feedback on my images, always on ways to improve my work. At that point in time, I had not shown a single image to someone outside my support network. I was terrified I wasn’t good enough.
I walked into Hospice terrified. I was introduced to Jane and she gave me one of her winning smiles and immediately put me at ease. I could instantly see that this woman loved her job, believed in what she did and was such a bright personality. I showed her my work and she absolutely loved it and glowed over it. She then ran it around the office and showed everybody working that day at Hospice. My confidence level took a huge surge from her energy then! Here was somebody on the outside that wasn’t looking at the technical aspects of my images, she was just looking at the images and reacting to them. It was powerful insight!
Jane confided in me that what she really dreamed about was offering her hospice families the opportunity to have portraits done of the families with the patient. She told me that these families are usually too overwhelmed with what is going on in their lives to think about a family portrait. I asked her if the families would really want family portraits when their loved ones are ill enough to be under Hospice care. Her response, well why not? Death is just a part of life. A photograph should celebrate all of the family members in it, regardless of what stage in life they are in. I never thought of it that way before. When I got up to leave, Jane gave me a heart warming hug. I already knew I had a friend in Jane and we agreed to work together.
A few weeks later, Jane had her first family that was willing to have a portrait taken. Jane accompanied me and I was nervous. Afterall, it was very likely that my portrait would be the last image taken of this family. Was I good enough to do this? That is an awesome responsibility, to have a portrait and give it to a family that will be eternally grateful to have it. I was afraid of messing it up, but Jane believed in my work and my abilities. She told me to get to work, and I photographed while she interacted with the family and got them to forget about me, and instead, to focus on each other and their relationship. Jane made it easy for me to capture the love this couple felt for each other and I walked away with images that the family loved.
It was shortly after this, that my mentor and friend became ill. Regardless of her illness, she encouraged Hospice to find more families for me to photograph. The next family, I did on my own, and taking Jane’s lead, I got the family interacting with other and caught images that really showed who they were. It was awe inspiring for me. This family had a member dying, but they laughed, smiled and loved the entire time. I walked away feeling enlightened once again.
Jane felt I was doing her a favour, but in reality, Jane did me a favour. Jane taught me how to find the love and spirit of the family I was photographing. They were in tough times, but Jane knew how to bring a smile to their face and make them interact with each other. She showed me how much stronger my images could be when I went after the emotion, rather than just posing and catching pretty smiles. Jane showed me how to connect with the people I was photographing and she did it all without realizing she had done anything.
Shortly thereafter, I found out that Jane was dying. I was stunned, shocked and sad but she wouldn’t let me remain that way. She pushed me onwards, encouraged me to continue photographing for hospice, and continually admired my work. The last hospice family I photographed in Massachusetts was hers. At the session, I was blown away by her strength. She was terminally sick but I could still see the bright light that she was. Her smile remained as beautiful and full of life as ever.
On my last weekend before turning in my portfolio, I asked Jane if I could photograph her. I wanted this for myself, I wanted her portrait to have to inspire me to continue finding the connection with my clients. She readily agreed. At her session, I wanted her bright smile and so to get it, I do what I have discovered is a universal laugh generating tool – I’ve done it to executives, children, families and chef’s, and I peeked under my camera and did it to her……I stuck my tongue out at her. Nobody expects this and as soon as I do it, everybody laughs. But not Jane. She promptly stuck her tongue out right back out at me and made me roar with laughter. In response to my laugh, Jane smiled and I snapped the shutter. My instructors were wowed by the beauty of Jane’s portrait and encouraged me to include it in my portfolio.
Jane’s image became an important piece in my portfolio. My reviewers each stopped and commented on her beauty, they also wanted to know who she was. Whenever anybody asks me who she is, I tell them; she was my first client, my mentor, my biggest inspiration and the brightest light I have ever known. Jane taught me what photography could be. When you look at my images, you can see the connections. Jane taught me how to do that and for that reason alone, I will be eternally grateful to my friend. My photography is more because of Jane and she has given me an even better gift, the confidence in myself to make these images. Her encouragement and loyal support in my work helped me to discover that I was plenty good enough to make images that families would cherish forever.
Jane passed on to be with our Lord a couple of weeks ago. I was struck instantly with sadness but at the same time, I am so grateful I had even a short while to know her. Jane was only in my life for a year, but in that time, she inspired me greatly. Each portrait that Dragon Hare Studios creates, has Jane’s light behind it.
To my dear friend Jane, may you rest in peace forever more. Thank you for believing in me, even before I believed in myself. Thank you for your light. I will miss you always.