There are only a handful of photographers in our industry who have achieved the public recognition of Lisa Jane (aka Lisa New).  Her images and licensing agreements extend throughout the greeting card industry and have been spotted in many Carlton Card Shops and when she teaches a program on children’s photography you can count on the room being packed!  However, her success as a photographer and marketing guru pales in comparison to her enthusiasm, passion for photography and loyalty to her friends.

I spent a week on the road with Lisa Jane during one of the early Hasselblad University programs.  Her dedication to the quality of every image and her quest to NEVER compromise has become her signature.    She sent me the following blog with the comment, “I decided to go ahead and send this image and story to you since I think it would work so well for the day before & Halloween. It is from my new book, Angel Kisses, which is available in any bookstore or signed from my web page. The only thing I did for the shot was to add a Nik’s glamour glow @ 60%, to soften it a bit.”

I’ve saved it until now, just after Halloween, but quite honestly, it’s a great story no matter when it’s told!

I had once seen a photograph of a beautiful grieving angel, a statue at a local Cemetery. Wanting to capture that magnificent image in photography, my assistant, Tessa, and I went there to seek her out. We only had an hour before we had to be back at the studio, but we found her just in time.

It was a cloudy day, and the outdoor light was really flat. But as we approached the angel statue, we saw a soft light gently begin to backlight her. Tessa looked at me, stunned, and said, “Do you see the light on her? Where it is coming from?” It was a mystery.

The angel’s hand had broken off, so I reached up to a magnolia tree to pluck a flower for her, and a flower fell right into my hand! Another small miracle. I gave our angel the flower, laying it over her hand to soften the image. We only had about ten minutes to photograph her, and as soon as we finished we both noticed that her beautiful light was gone. We immediately left the cemetery, feeling strongly as though we had been part of a beautiful, spiritual experience.

Back at the studio, I started developing the images that we had taken of our angel, whom we had begun to call Grace. And when I saw what became my favorite shot of Grace, I started screaming, unable to contain myself. Within minutes, my entire staff had run into the room to see what was the matter.

Grace Image(2)

Speechless, I could only point to the tiny angel, made solely by God, that appeared in the trees above Grace’s head. I was so excited and moved that after twenty years of photographing angels I had finally been chosen to capture a real one! I could not wait to e-mail a copy of the image to one of my best friends, Rebecca, who is a very spiritual person and a photographer herself. I wasted no time sending her the picture of Grace and the amazing story behind it.

What I wasn’t prepared for was Rebecca’s reply. I had known that years earlier Rebecca and her grandmother had been in a terrible car accident. Her grandmother did not survive, and Rebecca could not escape the feeling that she was somehow at fault. Every year on the anniversary of the crash, she would pray for God to send her some sign that her Grandmother did not blame her, that she was safe in His kingdom, and that the accident was part of a divine plan. I didn’t know that the day that Tessa and I photographed Grace and I emailed the image to her was the anniversary of the terrible accident.

Also, her grandmother’s last name was Hill, and if you’ll look closely you’ll see the name Hill engraved at the bottom of the statue. Rebecca also told me, being from Louisiana, she always said her favorite flower was the magnolia.

Rebecca was so relieved and thankful that her grief could now become acceptance and that her heart could finally be at peace. More importantly, she knew that her grandmother was at peace as well, shining her light and love on Rebecca. God had spoken to her, and I believe that if we’ll open our eyes and ears, we can all hear His gentle whisper even in the darkest times of our lives.