Endless Stories To Tell

The importance of family has long been a pillar of the ideal human existence. Having someone to love and grow with while creating meaningful experiences is part of what makes life a bountiful and beautiful reality.

It is families like the McLeods that bring these ideas into fruition. The father and son duo of Todd and Dossie (Goose) McLeod conquer the world with their photography and passion for helping others.

When Todd started photography school at Randolph Community College in Asheboro, North Carolina, in 1983 he never dreamed he would be where he is now, creating meaningful images side by side with his youngest son, Goose, age 16.

In his youth, Todd enjoyed drawing and painting. As a natural progression, he found an interest in photography.

“It was like painting with light,” Todd says.

He mainly focused on local beach landscapes at first. After graduating from college in 1987, Todd explored his talents as a commercial photographer, but put the camera aside after losing his passion among the structured assignments from what he describes as strict art directors.

All that changed when Goose started showing interest in the same hobby that once excited his father. He enjoyed learning to use a camera and finding ways to take the best images. Inspired by his son, Todd once again picked up a camera and entered the world of digital photography.

Homeschooled since the eighth grade, Goose has been able to develop a broad set of skills that most high schools don’t include in the curriculum. He started a bicycle repair business called Current Cycles and launched a nonprofit called Current Missions that uses community donations to fix bicycles that are given to local children in need.

As he grew older, Goose’s interest in photography grew through the desire to relive important moments in his life.

“I would see a picture on the wall, and I wanted to feel like I was in that moment again,” says Goose.

The pair’s first big project centered around creating a lasting image of Goose’s grandfather Gene Smith.

“There was really no communication between Goose and I other than I was creating a moment with a conversation, and he was creating a moment with a push of a button, and the image came out absolutely perfect,” says Todd.

The resulting image is deeply cherished by the McLeod family.

After this success, they created a similar image of Goose’s great grandmother Betty Holloway. The grace and poise captured by the camera highlights the softness of her skin and the vivid scenes of life behind her eyes. The image portrays a woman with many stories to tell.

They have dubbed these types of images as transitions, the movements from one stage of life to another.

Their favorite project to date is a series titled “Preacha’ Man.” While on a fly-fishing trip in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, the McLeods met a man named Bob Ivans Jr. They became fast friends with Ivans and Todd and Goose created a set of images that depict Ivans’s work in ministry and bring out his character. The photos were taken with Ivans dressed in a Western thigh-length suit, Bible in hand, full beard on display.

The pair doesn’t stop at portrait photography. Goose, a passionate downhill mountain biker, takes images of his competitors at events. It requires a keen eye to track the movements and capture these speeding bikers.

Goose, who won the Downhill Southeast 2023 mountain biking race for his division, makes compilation and biography videos that competitors can give to sponsors. These photos and videos help develop a sports career for teens who like to be active and competitive. It also helps expand his portfolio.

Teamwork is a highly valuable skill, especially when working with family members.

“You are able to share your thoughts, give tips, and give advice without worrying about offending them,” says Goose. “We both have our opinions, but we are already in the same mindset. It’s like having another version of yourself taking the photos with you.”

Todd enjoys passing on something that is important to his son and watching him take off with it.

It is evident that there is a strong bond between father and son made more special by their shared passions and life goals.

“As long as we’re together, I see us continuing taking images together. I don’t ever see that coming to an end,” says Todd.

Goose’s plans include joining the Carolina Beach Fire Department and following in his father’s footsteps to Randolph Community College to study photography.

For young photographers starting their own journeys, they recommend studying masters of painting as they’re creating light with a brush. They also advise studying other photographers and incorporating their techniques.

Finally, they say to listen to all the advice you can get but test it out for yourself. You never know what is going to stick and turn into your next big project.