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InspirationPhotography

Dad Time: A beautiful photographic exploration of fatherhood

Fathers take centre stage in this new personal photography project by Chicago photographer Callie Lipkin.

Written By:
Via direct submission

Via direct submission

Inspired by her own husband and his role as the primary caregiver for their two young sons, aged two and four, she wanted to explore a role that used to be more a mother's territory. Something that is increasingly shifting as more women opt to work and more men choose to take a career break and stay at home to raise their young children.

Entitled Dad Time, the series of images shows glimpses into an everyday fatherly world. The moments captured, from banal to fantastical, are easy for anyone to relate to and connect with.

Speaking of the project, Lipkin said: "The Dad Time project started a couple of years ago more specifically as a hipster dads project, inspired partly by my surroundings and by my new role as a parent. The first image I made was the beach dad with the mermaid tail – it was an incredibly lo-fi production shot near my parent’s house in Minnesota, and is still one of my favourites within the more stylised genre of imagery from the series.

"One of the more recent images, for example, is of a dad juggling two toddlers at his desk – something I often do with my two and four-year-olds when I’m in my home office if they are missing me during the day. As much as the project is inspired by dads themselves, I consider many of the scenes to be self-portraiture with the dads playing me."

To keep track of the ongoing Dad Time project, follow Lipkin on Instagram @clipkin. Or visit her website at www.callielipkin.com.

A tattooed man in a grey vest holds a baby in a car seat on a basketball court while other people play in the background
A man lies on a grey sofa holding a baby while a young child in a red top stands beside him playing with a feather boa against a brick wall with papers pinned above
A man lies in bed with two young children reading picture books together under a canopy in a brightly lit bedroom
A child in bright green shoes sits in a shopping trolley in front of a supermarket refrigerated dairy section, with spilled groceries on the floor below
An adult in a blue shirt and black trainers guides a toddler in a red and yellow toy car along a concrete path outside a brick building
Young child in grey cardigan pouring orange juice at an outdoor table with another person visible to the right
Man with young child at desk surrounded by colourful artwork and toys beneath illuminated "doodoo" sign on brick wall
A man in black wetsuit stands on a paddleboard with two young children in red lifejackets on a calm, misty lake
A man and toddler lie surrounded by colourful toys and cushions, playfully interacting together on the floor
Child's hands squeezing green leafy vegetables during food preparation
Adult wearing tartan shirt holds a young child with messy hands in a kitchen, blurred appliances behind them
Man and young boy wearing matching black t-shirts flexing their biceps together against a white background
Bearded man wearing glasses and a black jumper kisses a toddler he's holding, who wears a white long-sleeved top and blue jeans, against a white background
Man wearing glasses holding young child in front of chalkboard with colourful hand-drawn photography and creative designs
Father and young child walking through a sun-dappled field of dried wildflowers and grasses, with evergreen trees in the background
Man in plaid shirt and cowboy hat lifts a young child above his head in a forest of evergreen trees
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