Shooting children can be a challenge, but often the most rewarding. I always want to get a few of the kids sitting calmly for the parents because that’s what the parents want and those are nice, but I can get the best gems from letting the kids be kids. Let them run wild, let them dig, let them interact with a tree; they’ll let you into a world you’d long forgotten.

My eyes go to the foreground, then up to the girl; white shirt on silhouetted trees. Up to the bright sun. You can feel the heat of the day (never mind that it was only about 60 if that). The smoke catches my eye on the left. A small crowd of people are laughing and talking. The ball is in front of them. That’s right, the kids! There they are again. I can hear them laugh. Back to the foreground afternoon light evoking nostalgia.

It’s the discovery of that one photo you make after chasing people around clicking wildly and praying that once again you caught lightning in the bottle of your camera that makes this so worthwhile. For a moment there was life preserved in time in black and white.