It never ceases to amaze me how I can meticulously set up a shot, get the lighting just the way I want it, the posing just right and the mood perfect in my studio near Robinson, Illinois, and my favorite shot ever is the one I reached down for my camera in the crappiest midday light ever and just clicked.

I call it the happy accident and it's the most fun and most aggravating photo you'll ever shoot. 

You know it's special the minute you see it on the back of the camera and then you lament the fact that, as hard as you try, you'll never be able to duplicate it. It's just so pure.

When I think of happy accidents, my mind always comes back to this one. 

Everyone who has seen this photo of my now 7-year-old daughter has a definite opinion about it - they love it or they hate it. 

People always try to figure out "the story" behind this photo. (Isn't that what a photo is supposed to do?) Is this child hungry? Is she alone? Is she in need?

So what is her story. Pretty simple: I had just purchased a new lens and was playing with it at a parade. It was the dead of July and miserably hot. We found some sparse shade and I called her name, she turned to me and I shot the photo. No planning at all, just instinct.

I think I'm the only family member who likes it and so it hangs by my computer for me alone to enjoy. I'm OK with that. 

Think of your favorite photo. What story does it tell? Does it have a story only you know? What storyline would an outsider attach to it?

Interesting....