Behind the camera

In spite of an almost five-year battle with cancer that began when he was 4, Sam Guinane, 8, has spent the past few months behind the camera, taking pictures of the places and things that make him “say cheese,” the popular expression a photographer uses to get the subject to smile, Those things include the ocean and sand at the beach in Corona del Mar.

Local photographer Barbara Higgins is one of six photographers who became a mentor/photography teacher, and in her case, developed a special friendship, with a child fighting cancer.

“I just feel like a really good friend of the family. This makes you think twice about kids and illness and how important each day is,” Higgins said.

The memories she’s helping create, and the idea for the project, “Things That Make My Face Say Cheese,” came straight from the heart of a man who is a photographer himself, with a talented pool of photographer friends to draw from.

Al Nomura, owner of Reflective Images Studio in Santa Ana, came up with the idea to give kids a camera, catchy theme and their own personal photographer when he was required to complete a community service project for a leadership and development class he was taking.

Deciding to specifically focus on kids with cancer came about because Nomura remembered a Christmas card he received last December, designed by a child with cancer, then sold as part of the fundraising arm of the Pediatric Cancer Research Foundation, a local organization based in Irvine.

“Part of the process of creating the project was to find something that would move, touch and inspire people to join,” Nomura said.

Getting the photographers was easy.

After making a call and connecting with Scott Evans at the foundation, so was bringing the children on board.

Six children, ranging in age from 5 to 14, were chosen.

All the cameras, including extra digital cards for each child, were donated, as was the developing, matting and framing of five photos from each child that have been selected for an exhibit that will be shown in a variety of Southern California venues through the end of the year.

An added bonus is that all the kids get to keep the cameras they were given.

“These kids have gone through more than most of us ever have, and we wanted to focus attention on something joyful that makes them happy,” Nomura said.

The beach has always been a special place for Higgins, who was thrilled to discover Sam shared her love of the sea and sand.

She didn’t want to overly influence Sam in his choice of locale, Higgins said, but he was as eager as she was to point the lens at the twin beaches in Corona del Mar.

“The third shoot we did was at sunset, which is my favorite time at the beach. As a mentor, it was about showing and teaching Sam about photography — the lighting, reflections and shadows, or how to hold the camera,” Higgins said.

Sam said being the one taking pictures, and knowing what it’s like to be a photographer was fun, especially at his favorite place.

“I’ve always liked the beach, and taking pictures of the water, some with waves and some without,” Sam said, although he prefers the calmer waters for his pictures because you can see more stuff that way.

“The sun can be going down, or there could be a little boat passing through,” he said.

Sam said he learned things from Barbara that he didn’t know how to do before.

“She taught me about putting more stuff in the picture. Like if there was a person and a duck next to the person, how to move the camera to the side so that both are in the picture,” Sam said.

Sam may have learned a lot about photography, but Renee Guinane, Sam’s mom, said her son also learned a lot about himself.

“Barbara taught Sam about other things out there that he wasn’t in touch with, that he appreciates now.”

Like any kid, Sam was interested in the Internet, TV and video games.

After his photography sessions, Renee said he realized how much he likes the ocean, the birds and being outside.

“Sam’s always going to have these pictures and remember those two days at the beach, documenting life,” Higgins said.

EXHIBIT DATES

The official launch of the “Things that Make My Face Say Cheese Exhibit” will take place Sunday at Reflective Image Studio, 211 E Columbine Ave., Santa Ana. The show will travel to Children’s Hospital of Orange County for the month of June, be at the Orange County Fair from July 11 through Aug. 3, and at The Festival of Children at South Coast Plaza from Sept. 6 through 28.

For more information on the Pediatric Cancer Research Foundation, go to www.pcrf-kids.org

SUE THOENSEN may be reached at (714) 966-4627 or at sue.thoensen@latimes.com.