A military couple separated by deployment got the chance to reunite through photography.
Veronica and Brandon Phillips are a married couple expecting their first child together. Though Veronica is home in Florida, Brandon serves in the Air Force and is currently stationed overseas.
So when it came time to do a maternity shoot, Veronica asked photographer Jennifer McMahon of Jennifer Ariel Photography to incorporate her husband into one of the pictures. The result is stunning.
McMahon used Photoshop to put two solo shots of Veronica and Brandon together into one sweet image.
“I had seen many photos where people were Photoshopped in, and I have Photoshopped siblings together before to look like one seamless photo,” McMahon told HuffPost. “After playing around with several edits for a few days and many hours of editing, I posted the one I thought told the best story and would evoke emotion in all who saw it.”
McMahon shared the edited photo on Facebook and Instagram, where it reached hundreds of thousands of viewers, she said. “I am so honored that my photo could do that. I know it’s not even the best photo, but it’s the story that it tells that means so much to people.”
The photographer said she’s happy her photo is touching people near and far and highlighting the separation military families must deal with.
“It is very common it seems for military husbands to miss pregnancies or births of their children,” McMahon told HuffPost. “It broke my heart when Veronica told me her story. I couldn’t imagine. And to think it’s a regular occurrence. This is what it means to serve our country.”
The Phillipses were also pleased with the image. Said McMahon, “Brandon said he was ‘happy my wife gives military women a voice through pictures.’”
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