08/09/2026
What an honor!
Sincerest gratitude to SOMD Photography for the Spotlight 💗
⭐Photographer Spotlight: Lori Goodbody📸
~ Some photographs capture a moment. Others carry love forward.
Not long after Lori lost her son Sergio in 2020, something began appearing near her Valley Lee home.
A small Eastern Bluebird.
It would perch quietly on a fence post, a wire, or the branch of a nearby tree. Lori could not remember seeing bluebirds around the property before, but now one seemed to return again and again.
For Lori, those visits became more than ordinary encounters with nature.
They became moments of comfort.
“Now, whenever I see a bluebird, I’m reminded of Sergio,” Lori shares. “Whether others see it as coincidence, symbolism, or something more, those moments bring me comfort and a sense that love continues beyond what we can see.”
Bluebirds are cautious, and photographing one required patience, silence, and trust. When Lori finally captured an image that reflected its gentle spirit, she realized she had created more than a wildlife photograph.
She had preserved a feeling.
That experience changed the way Lori understood photography. It taught her that the most meaningful images are not always the largest, rarest, or most dramatic. Sometimes, they are the quiet photographs that carry a story no one else can fully see.
Photographing under the name LoriBella Originals, Lori has always been drawn to the beauty people often pass without noticing. A historic churchyard at sunrise. Light filtering through the trees after a summer rain. A reflection on the water. A changing season. A familiar Southern Maryland landscape seen from a new perspective.
“For me, photography is an invitation to pause,” she says. “In today’s busy world, we often rush past beautiful moments without really seeing them.”
Lori’s connection to photography began long before she considered herself a photographer. Her parents were always taking pictures, leaving behind family albums filled with moments that could never be recreated. Her two sisters, both talented artists and photographers, also helped inspire her creative journey.
About 25 years ago, Lori became fascinated with photographing clouds and skyscapes. In recent years, that interest became something deeper. She began intentionally developing her technical skills, artistic eye, and her own creative voice.
She describes her style as natural, thoughtful, and story-driven. She prefers available light, authentic moments, and the quiet details already present in the world around her.
But learning to trust that vision was not always easy.
“One of my biggest challenges has been learning to trust my own creative voice instead of comparing my work to others,” Lori says. “I’ve learned that authenticity is far more important than perfection.”
Photography taught her that growth takes time. Every outing teaches something. Every mistake carries a lesson. Every image becomes one more step toward understanding not only the camera, but herself.
It has also given Lori something she deeply values: connection.
Through photography, she has documented local events, supported community organizations, celebrated Southern Maryland, met fellow artists, and crossed paths with people she may never have known otherwise.
“One of the greatest gifts photography has given me is connection.”
That connection exists between Lori and her community, between the viewer and the image, and between a mother and the memory of her son.
Every photograph Lori shares is created with genuine appreciation for what stands before her lens. She does not try to manufacture beauty. She looks for the beauty already there and invites the rest of us to notice it.
“If someone smiles, feels peaceful, remembers a special place, or simply takes a deeper breath because of one of my photographs, then I’ve accomplished what I hoped to do.”
Lori’s story reminds us that photography can do more than document where we have been.
It can help us slow down.
It can help us remember.
It can connect us to our community, to the world around us, and to the people we continue to carry in our hearts.
🤝Connect with Lori Goodbody:
📍LoriBella Originals
📧 [email protected]
📞 410-726-5342
🔗 Facebook: LoriBella Originals
♥️Featured Quote:
“There is beauty in all that surrounds us. Sometimes the most extraordinary beauty is found in the moments we almost overlook. Photography reminds me to slow down, look closer, and appreciate the world with gratitude.”
