Michele Tenney of Orange thought maybe she was the only one who saw a sparkle in the eyes of her third infant son, born with a rare genetic condition that caused severe health problems.
But when Mia M. Malafonte took Collin's photograph when he was 4 months old, she captured that sparkle, amazing his mom because it confirmed for her that she wasn't the only one to see that special something in her son.
"She puts on film what's in a person's heart," Tenney said of Malafronte. "Her deep, loving spirit is what makes her exceptional in her field."
Malafronte, an award-winning photographer and owner of Malafronte Photography, now is putting that heart into a project to raise money for the American Cancer Society in honor of her late father, Louis A. Malafronte, who died 17 years ago this month of brain cancer. He was 51.
She called the project, "A Picture for Hope," because it was hope for his recovery that got her through her dad's 10-month illness, though he didn't make it. Mia Malafronte is offering a 5- by 7-inch family photograph to be shot in her studio from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 26 for $30. Most of the fee, normally much higher, will be donated to the cause after costs.
"It's always been a bad month," she said of October, which also is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. "I thought to myself about how so many people have been touched by cancer and thought this would be a good way to remember him, because he used to say, 'Friends come and go, but family will be forever.'"
The fundraiser also is fitting because Louis Malafronte, a former U.S. Navy photographer, inspired his daughter's love of the art.
While he supported a wife and four children as a retail management adviser, Louis Malafronte spent hours in the darkroom in the basement of the family home in Orange, working at his hobby. As a Navy photographer, he accumulated an interesting portfolio, though he served during peacetime. His black and white shots from around the world include ship visitors Winston Churchill and Zsa Zsa Gabor, and sights like icebreakers in Norway.
The pictures for charity will be done in black and white because that will create "timeless" photos and it's how Louis Malafronte shot some of his best work.
The father and daughter always had a special bond. He rooted on his youngest child at every volleyball, basketball and softball game she played, from the time she was young, and took time to answer her many questions about photography and darkroom work. He shared many of his tips.
"Dad would say, 'You don't need props or a fancy background (to get the right picture). You get the light right and capture the look in their eyes," she recalled. She practices that simplicity in the studio.
Mia Malafronte said she regrets never asking her dad how his interest in photography began or whether he would have wanted it as a career. She'd love the chance to talk to him again.
Malafronte, mother of two and a former New Haven Register photographer, now has a niche photographing children, infants and expectant moms, but also shoots weddings, bar mitzvahs and sports events, including many years freelancing for the Yankees.
Faithful client Elizabeth Glatzel of Stratford knows too well how important the right photograph can be. Malafronte went to the Glatzel home in December 2006 to photograph Lillie, 2, and Helena, a few weeks old. "She really captured the essence of my kids," Glatzel said.
That became more important than Glatzel could imagine. Months later, Lillie died in her sleep for no apparent reason. Her death was determined likely to have been caused by a syndrome that hits older children the way sudden infant death syndrome hits infants. Glatzel called Malafronte, who made a huge image of Lillie for the funeral, declining to charge for it. It hangs in the family home, and Glatzel, pregnant now with another daughter, says, "It's so important to have these pictures to share."
Appointments are preferred for Family Photo Day at Malafronte Photography, but walk-ins are welcome at 2679 Whitney Ave. Call (203) 288-2880 or visit www.miamalafronte.com. To see more of New Haven Register, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.nhregister.com. Copyright (c) 2008, New Haven Register, Conn. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.
Copyright (C) 2008, New Haven Register, Conn.