The Feruglio family reached out to me in early 2018 to let me know that they were to visit Korea for the adoption of their son, Jeong. Lisa was enquiring about something that used to be more common than it is now and I was really excited. We would document their first meeting, custody, and have a family session together after custody.
Several months later, I got an email saying that the Feruglios had received their travel dates and asking if I was available. We quickly sorted out the first date and got everything booked in for the first meeting.
We met up in the agency cafe a short while before the meeting was scheduled to start so I could get to know Lisa and Michael a little before we headed in. Young Jeong arrived with his foster mother a little earlier than expected and we ran out to meet him. Things started a little slowly as he was nervous around all these new people. However, as anyone who has worked with children will tell you, there are very few hearts that can’t be won by blowing bubbles!
Soon after, the family were playing cars, throwing balls, and rolling everything in the room down the slide together. Too soon, the meeting was over and we burst back into the street to reflect on what had happened. I parted ways with the family here and we promised to stay in touch as the custody date approached.
Adoption sessions are usually very last minute bookings for us as advance warning is not given to the families. This makes it difficult to plan. However, I am usually able to accommodate these sessions. Thankfully, when Lisa got back in touch, I still had the afternoon of their custody free. I would be rushing back from Nami Island to get there on time. But, there’s nothing quite like Seoul’s public transport to make sure you can get from point to point.
Custody was a short meeting and then a quick ride back to the hotel for some fun and games as Jeong explored his new space. And explore it he did. There were very few moments when he was still for long enough for me to plan a shot. He spent his time attempting to collect and play with everything in the room, including the mini bar. It was clear that our family session was going to be dictated by his curiosity!
Two days later, we met up nice and early at Gyeongbokgung before the crowds arrived and spent an hour together exploring the palace. We snagged a few beautiful moments, a couple of portraits of the little man, and a few frames of everyone together before heading back out so the Feruglios could catch their flight home for Christmas. It was a whirlwind session with so many beautiful moments.
A big thanks to the Feruglio family for having me be a part of their journey and a big thanks to you for joining me on this blog. To enquire about your own family session, please get in touch. Don’t forget to follow me on Instagram and Facebook for more! Stay tuned for more families soon.