Joe Buissink

Becoming a professional photographer was not something I chose. Photography more or less chose me. Many years ago, on a day like any other, I witnessed a very touching, intimate moment between a mother and son. The moment had a profound affect on me as I felt this sudden urge to capture it, to freeze the moment in time, so I could return to it, hopefully share it with the young child some day and keep it alive and within us over the years to come. I picked up my camera, clicked the shutter and what developed transformed my life. As the image revealed itself to me, I suddenly grasped the inherent value and enormous power within the photograph as well as the infinite possibilities for me as a photographer. The ability to stop time, to preserve a memory and to share an experience with someone else was so priceless. I was struck by this feeling of honor for being present and a part of such a significant experience in these two individual's lives and I had this sudden and consuming desire to fill my life with these rare and precious moments. In an instant, I became aware of this passion for photography building inside me.