Today I’m so happy to share this shoot with Candace. I photographed her branding / headshots a few years back and was absolutely thrilled that she wanted to return for the full portrait experience to celebrate her 50th birthday!
She is an author, a podcast host and an absolute survivor!
Unspoken by Candace Sanchez, available on Amazon
Follow her podcast, Unspoken: Conversations with Candace, available on Spotify, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts, and Stitcher
www.candacesanchez.com — website for more info
Now a bit about her experience, directly from Candace:
“My name is Candace Sanchez. I am a daughter, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, niece, cousin, and devoted friend to many. I have been in Healthcare and Information Technology for 30 years. Additionally, I am an Author, Life Coach, Motivational Speaker and Podcast Host. I have a passion for people so relationships are at the center, the very core of my personal and professional life.
I wanted to be photographed because this year on July 11th, I celebrated 50 years of life. The journey of life is never easy. It has it ups and downs; however, I firmly believe it is the people that you surround yourself with that make the journey worth it, every minute of every day. We go through this journey of life but once. And so, for me, having this experience allowed me to embrace and love myself by capturing images from a moment in time to celebrate this life milestone. Photographs have huge significance and serve as a reminder of precious moments in time.
This is my second experience being photographed by Jennifer and every time, I have the time of my life.
I feel special.
I feel valued.
I feel worthy.
I feel empowered.
But most importantly, I feel loved.To love one self is difficult at times. I too can struggle to look in the mirror and wonder if I what I am doing is making a difference and you know what? I am!
The experience Jennifer provided, from beginning to end, helped me to reconfirm the strength and power I have within me. We are not alone. Sometimes we all need a little bit of validation and confirmation to stay on the course of life! Why? Because, I matter! You matter! We all matter!
I absolutely enjoyed being pampered that day. Katrina ensured that what I wanted with hair and makeup would be “true” representation of me. And it was!
Once the camera stopped, I could not wait until the reveal.
The day of the reveal was an emotional one. I just returned from Los Cabos, where I celebrated my 50th with a small group of family and friends. While on my trip, my Godmother/Aunt had passed away. She was 79 years old and was married for 60 of those years. So again, as I reflected on my life, and her life; we turn to photos to remember our loved ones.
So, when Jenn rolled the slideshow and presented the images to me, I immediately cried. Happy tears; tears of love and victory. I felt so “Empowered”. Empowered to live in my purpose. Empowered to speak my truth by using my voice. Empowered to love all my gifts and talents. Empowered to help others.
I was proud of who I saw in those images. Those images had a huge impact on how to embrace the self-love I have for myself. I am far from perfect! We are perfectly imperfect people. And I have learned to heal from the inside out. The pain of the past no longer serves me. It is in this moment that I will continue to be fully present with every moment of every day! Life is a gift that I will never take for granted. I have regained a new profound zest for life with complete self-love. I have to love myself, first and foremost, so that I can love others.
Thanks, Jenn, for capturing the images of that little girl, Candace, who rose from the ashes of her past. She is living her best life! She is healthy, happy, and loves herself more than she ever has before in her life. “Strength and dignity are her clothing and her position is strong and secure; she rejoices over the future.” (Proverbs 31:25)
You and Katrina made me feel so beautiful on that day; both inside and out.” – Candace
