Have a restful Summer holiday, dear Readers. I’ll be back in two weeks time. x Alicja
Images by Alicja Pyszka-Franceschini, 2026. Without an explicit permission of the author nothing can be done with them. x
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I promised you a while ago a post with examples of photographs in which I do not show my children’s face or I partially hide it. Many parents prefer not to show their children’s faces and yet they would like to somewhat embrace that part of their life and publicly be happy with it. Here are a few examples of photographs that you can take if this is your preference. They are fairly self-explanatory. All photos taken below are of my family.
Example 1
Parental embrace.
Example 2
Obstructed by water.
Example 3
Head down with a hat that hides the face.
Example 4
Low light reading.
Example 5
Hiding in laundry baskets, laundry bags. Make sure that the face is low enough. In this photo my son’s face shows a little bit.
Example 6
‘Show me your hands!’ type of photo. This could be with a dough or play dough or paint whatever your child is playing with at the given moment.
Example 7
Show a landscape feature not your child. Make the child look away from the camera.
Example 8
Teenager in action at sea. The shoes always fly away there…
Example 9
Give them a funny hat to wear.
Example 10
You can hide them in one of those… This one was taken at Heights of Abraham, Matlock Bath, Derbyshire.
Example 11
Create silhouettes with a visible object in hand.
Example 12
Put yourself with a child into a shadowy corner the background is lit.
Example 13
Create close-ups while being on the side of your child.
Example 14
Take a photo in an outfit
Example 15
Run with her barefoot on grass.
Example 16
Create a layered image that uses a rule of third. Hide your child’s face partially in the middle or in the corners of the layers.
Example 17
Observe what you are giving to them and photograph the exchange.
Example 18
Help them engage in sensory play or simply playing with Lego Duplo and allow them to stay focused while you take a few snaps close to the window.
Example 19
Visit a nearby farm, perhaps.
Here are my Dad’s beehives that he created for himself to be busy with during his retirement. My daughter is not allergic to bee products and it was safe to be there for her. The beehives are quite far away from her. The purple of the flowers, i.e. the meadow, creates a lovely composition. Also, her simple hairstyle is an attractive feature in the photo.
Enjoy playing and having fun together.
I am a little tired today to be honest as my daughter has had shingles over the last 10 days and she has just returned to school. We did a lot of reading together though. We read through all hard cover books we had available in the house I think. I will tell you more about it in the next post with some of my reflections on children and photography.
I am looking forward to seeing your images. Which one are you hoping to take?
Have a regenerating weekend.
Speak soon.
If you have found a bottle, what message would be inside?
What do you need to read right now?
Text and photos: Alicja Pyszka-Franceschini
I regularly write in response to something; be it a song, a paragraph in a book or any other text.
Last Sunday, a priest from Ukraine sent me his sermon to listen to via WhatsApp. I had an immediate response to his work and I wrote this almost immediately after listening to his words.
I thought it is worth sharing it with you and I would be thrilled if you could write your feedback on this piece both in terms of your emotional response as well as my writing craft.
Were you also inspired by sermons in your childhood? It is a huge step into psychological integration when we absorb the wisdoms of our religions, I think.
Here’s the text:
I assume today that you need to hear that you are capable of mature reflection, that it’s good to long for reason and normality, that it’s good to give yourself a little oxygen.
I assume today that you haven’t sinned.
That you came here today to free yourself for a moment from the burdens of the day.
Welcome then. I’m glad you came, I’m glad to see you.
Don’t lose yourself in guilt. Understand the weight of your decisions, but don’t lose yourself in guilt.
I assume today that you have not sinned.
Let the pain in your limbs fade. You are here. I appreciate you.
Do not lose yourself in guilt.
That’s it. I hope this helps. x
Text and photography: Alicja Pyszka-Franceschini, 2026. All rights reserved.
It might be a bit counter-intuitive to share a photo of a frosty landscape here in the middle of Spring in the northern hemisphere, but I have been wanting to write about it for a while now primarily because it is in my opinion one of the images that allows the viewers to breathe. I took it near Repton, in South Derbyshire on a frosty morning during a week when the local river flooded and the fields were glistening with water reflections. The bended trees are interesting features of the landscape and it appeals to me how they are strongly supported by the ground and its unshakable structure. My support towards these kind of images come from the fact that they repeat the relief experience whenever one looks at the image and associate it with a welcome break. Being brought up in Poland, I find frost refreshing and altering and seeing this image again and again helps me refresh and also regain alertness. Is it the same for you?
Image and text: Alicja Pyszka-Franceschini
Do you have any photographs in your surroundings that do the same to you? That help you breathe?
Postcards Without Stamps 