When my Dad’s wife Polly asked me if I wouldn’t mind photographing her childhood home and parents who still live there, I jumped at the chance.  I’d heard her speak fondly of the house itself, built in 1859 originally as a shoe factory, and the expansive land it sits on.  Her family had lived in the house and the one next door for generations.  If you know anything about me, you know this type of situation is exactly my cup of tea.

Boxford is a quaint little town north of Boston off of I95.  It’s the sort of town that might have one traffic light and has a population of less than 9,000.  Growing up in Massachusetts, I had never even heard of Boxford.  When she first mentioned the name my reaction was, “Oh.  Wait.  Boxborough?”  No, Boxford and it’s a gorgeous place to be!  It’s a woodsy town and the land her family home is on goes for acres.  There are large fields and back sheds, impressive huge trees, wooden fences and stone walls.  There is a family burial ground and a field that can serve as a soccer field in the summer and a hockey rink in the winter.  Basically, it’s what childhood-growing-up location dreams are made of.

The children have long since moved out and Judy and Clyde are the current occupants of the house.   They married in July of 1979 and are wonderful people to spend an afternoon with.  Clyde has an amazing 1950’s Ford Tractor that is his pride and joy. When I saw it, I understood why!  Clyde had never had his picture taken on the tractor, so he pulled it out from it’s resting place in a back shed and had a blast posing, and raising and lowering the tractor’s bucket.  Judy and Clyde joked with each other in ways only couples married 30+ years can. They were tender with their gentle teasing as they let me shoot their portraits.  Later Judy and Polly gave me a tour of the interior of the home, recalling stories from each room.  This house is a home with many memories.

:: Judy + Clyde ::

:: Family burial ground on the left, view of the barn + fields on the right ::

:: Clyde’s Tractor ::

:: Judy in her home of 40+ years ::

I’ve learned something very important while taking these photos. What I’ve learned is that I’d give an arm and both legs to have taken photographs of my Grandparents together in the home they shared for decades and where they raised their families.  I haven’t figured out what to call this type of photography session yet but this phase of life is just as important to capture as newborn, toddler, teenage and wedding photos.  I highly recommend it to anyone who still has the chance.