The Toil and the Rewards of the Wedding Photographer

One lesson life continually teaches me in my profession is that there are few things as difficult, as time-consuming, as maddening, and as rewarding as photographing weddings. They are completely in a class of their own.

I'm in the midst of sorting and post-production for the most recent wedding I photographed (one little rain-soaked soiree you may have heard of in the national news; the wedding of Grant Hetherington and Jyssica Lasco, which took place in Colorado during the epic crazy flooding in September...more on that whole adventure in a later post), and I am in the final prep phase for the next wedding on my plate. This one will take place a little closer to home in Lake Mary and I'm greatly looking forward to it...can't wait for it, really. It's going to be a great day.

Weddings are, to say the least, quite an undertaking. I don't know that the casual photographer or regular Joe understands the amount of blood, sweat, and tears that go into every single wedding; they are such a huge amount of work, from start to finish, and most certainly not an easy process. They can be super frustrating, but, if done well, they're also quite a lot of fun and some of the most gratifying work I take on as a photographer. I spend months prepping for a wedding, then spend roughly 10 hours (or often more) on the day of the event itself capturing the day for the couple, and approximately 60 full hours after the fact sorting, editing, and preparing the images for the couple. It's exhausting, quite frankly. But I love it. Like a masochist, I keep coming back for more.

But I beg you, don't take any of what I've said to be a complaint; I love what I do. There are few higher privileges in my profession than that moment when a couple selects me and trusts me to capture their day for them; this is a double-edged sword in that it is also part of the reason that weddings are stressful. I strive so very hard to deliver a good product to each of my couples, and I get very entrenched with them and attached to them. I cry with them and celebrate with them. I mist up when they see each other for the first time as the bride walks down the aisle. I laugh and cry with them during the toasts. And never for a second do I take for granted that I have been selected to be with them on one of the most important days of their lives together; it is an honor of the highest order. I don't take it lightly.

Speaking yesterday to my upcoming bride, I was going over a few things with her to assist her in ordering a matted print from her engagement session to have at the reception for her guests to sign, and making sure there was nothing she needed of me. I asked again (as I always do) if there were any questions she had or anything she needed me to do to make these last few hectic days before her wedding smoother, easier, or less stressful. She laughed a bit, and said the following: "Rachie, Jon (her groom) just said to me the other day, 'Allison, you've called the DJ twice, the caterer a few times, and the venue a few times to double check things, but I don't think I've heard you mentioning anything about calling the photographer; is everything okay?', to which I responded, "Rachel is the one person who I completely trust, and I just know she's got this. I've always known that she's got this completely under control and she's the one thing I have absolutely no concerns whatsoever about." This sentence may be the highest compliment I can hope to receive; knowing that what I do and what I fight for has given my couples the utmost of faith in me and my abilities is flattering, wonderful, intimidating but in a postive way, and amazingly uplifting.

Jon and Allison, I can't wait to be there with you as you become husband and wife. I sincerely thank you, as I thank all my couples, from the bottom of my heart for trusting in me to capture all the sweet, gorgeous, funny, heartfelt, beautiful moments of your day. My cup runneth over.

A Year in the Life of Olivia Jean

I am at the end of a year of incredibly rewarding photography--little Miss Olivia has reached her first birthday.

It seems like just yesterday we were waiting for her to make her debut, and now we're more than a year past that point, watching her grow, walk, learn, and change every day.

Capturing milestones for babies and their families is always a tall order and always special, and Olivia was no exception to this rule. From her very first session, I knew this baby would be a delight and a challenge...she was trying to sit up during her newborn session! She's always been a few steps ahead and a lively little bundle, and I'm thankful for every little moment during what ended up totaling 15 sessions over the course of her first year; newborn portraits, a session for each of her months one through eleven after that, two sessions for her twelve month milestone, and a sweet session we shot with a photojournalistic approach, cataloging a "normal day" with Olivia and her family, going about their day as we documented the proceedings in a more candid and casual way.

All of this led up to her first birthday party, where Olivia, surrounded by her family and friends (and her favorite photographer, naturally), decided it was high time she took her first steps. She literally started walking, with her adoring crowd watching and cheering her on, on her very first birthday. Never let it be said that this girl wasn't born to be in front of the camera!

It doesn't end here; we now get to watch as Olivia keeps on growing, learning, playing, and amazing her family every step of the way. It's bittersweet, in a way, to know that she's growing up, but in another way, it's so exciting to know we'll get to watch her as she continues on her journey.

Happy birthday, Sweet Olivia Jean, with love from your Personal Paparazzi. We can't wait to see what the world has in store for you next!