13 Years And A Stroke Of Luck

Something very interesting happened the other day. I got a wedding inquiry from the telephone. I was shocked. Turns out a gal I went to high school with has an amazing memory.

Denise called and left me a message inquiring about photographing her upcoming wedding. I called her back as soon as I could. She asked if I went to Ballard. I said yes. She remembered me from way back then. We discussed her photography budget. It was not much, $700. I told her I had a package but it was very, very basic. For $500 she got me for 6 hours and 200 pics on CD, edited and organized. She liked it but said she had to confirm with her fiancé.

A few days later I got another message from her, she wanted to book me. I was ecstatic. I am not doing any advertising this year. I have already met my financial goal of the year. Another wedding? Ummm, yeah!! After some phone tag we met up in person to talk details.

Her and her fiancé are getting married at the Seattle World Trade Center. It's very basic but modern. Sort of small and mostly family. She wants a photographer to cover the important stuff like her dress, the formals and the two of them. I had to ask her how she found me and asked if she really just remembered me. I got the answer of a lifetime.

She did just remember me. I was the girl who was into photography, who edited the year book and the newspaper. She said she initially did a search online for wedding photographers but was quite discouraged at their prices. Her fiancé tried to talk her into not getting a pro. He suggested disposable cameras. She insisted on a pro. They actually got into heated arguments over this. He tried to thwart her by showing her expensive photographers who took candid pics. She remembered me and after a few failed attempts got my name right and found me. With my package price and the quality of my work they both found someone who would work for them. That's why I love this package and offer it. 

Now, do not ever get disposable cameras in place of a pro and just don't ever get them. Let me tell you why. 

1. They are actually pricey. You pay for them, you pay to develop them. You get maybe 1 good picture. That is one expensive picture.

2. Guests get drunk and just take pictures of the ducks. Honest to God. I photographed a wedding where they did this. No one was using the cameras until ducks started showing up. That poor couple paid all that money for drunk pictures of ducks.

3. Your guests are not pros. Those cameras are poor quality. It's a disaster in the making.

4. Everyone has a cell phone that takes pics. Best thing to do is create a hash tag on Instagram and have guests load up pictures that way. 

You may wonder why I offer such a crazy cheap package. I will tell you. I am a cheap person. When I married my husband our photographers were free. Sort of. I assisted the best wedding photographer I know. I told her that she didn't have to pay me for a gig if she came to my wedding and took portraits of my husband and I. She agreed. I have the best wedding portrait I have ever seen. Several of them actually. Our whole wedding was DIY. If I am such a budget conscious person I figured I had to offer a budget friendly package. There are tons of cute weddings occurring all the time on small budgets and I want to be there. Call it paying it forward.

So I am delighted to shoot Denise's wedding. She is getting her Masters, he is getting a PhD. She just wants the security of knowing that for this once in a lifetime event she is going to have something tangible that perfectly and beautifully reflects the day. I am so honored to do that. 

Arrogant

I will be the first to admit that I am arrogant, cold and un-friendly. I am this way to "photographers" at weddings I photograph. The couple is not paying me to tell you how to do what I do. I am being paid to take pictures they are going to look at for the rest of their lives. So please, leave me alone and let me work.

Yesterday I had the pleasure of photographing Dan and Nicky. A refreshingly funny, cute and adorable couple. I fell in love with them within minutes of our consultation. They were very down to earth, very excited about getting married and just wanted me to do what I do best. Since I liked them so much it was important to me to do a great job.

That job became threatened the minute I got to the ceremony. There was another man, who turned out to be a family friend, that started asking me questions about what I was doing for them. The catholic ceremony had started. I was rushing to the top of the church to get a shot of the guests. He was right behind me talking shop. I gave him quick, one-worded answers. I didn't look at him and I didn't stop moving. He asked me if I was giving them my disk after the wedding. I balked. I answered with a half hysterical half appalled "NO". That shut him up until the reception.

Once at the reception I was working frantically to get the lighting right. It was my worst nightmare. An extremely dark reception area. With vaulted ceilings. My stand by bounce lighting strategy was out. So there I am, in a corner, trying to focus and get the lighting right. Up behind me comes Mr. Nosey. He says to me "Well if you aren't giving them the disk do you have some sort of package deal you are giving them?". By this time I am super frustrated. I say yes. I tell him they hired me and they are getting a package deal. He then does the weirdest thing to me. He looks at me in hysterics and asks "Well what am I supposed to do with my pictures?". I flat out did not know how to respond. I fumbled over my words but finally got out I didn't care what he did with his pictures and to give them what he wanted to give them. I then turned back around and went back to shooting. He left me alone after that.

I always tell couples at consultations that I will be aggressive with other photographers. I will get in their way. I will refuse to move when asked. I will fight for the perfect shot. I was sort of thankful for this experience. I now have a better story to tell future couples about why I am so adamant about getting good pictures for them. My previous story was about a Mother of the Bride who was video taping and wanted me to move. I always thought it made me sound too rude. This one is better. Even though this gentleman wasn't interfering with me getting my shots he was interfering with me taking my shots. He was also fishing for information that I thought was confidential between my clients and I. It reminded me of Patient and Doctor confidentiality. I did not want to discuss with him the terms and price of the package we agreed on. I knew he was headed there and I had to cut him off.

So in conclusion let it be known that you do not interfere with a working photographer. As you photograph an event don't feel pressured to talk shop with the up and comers. There will always be someone in the crowd that wants your job. Do not let this intimidate you and above all, do not let this interfere with doing a great job.

So, your kids won't look at you anymore.

That's tough. Especially because this picture you are *trying* to take is for the annual Christmas card. Baby is crying and cold, toddler is getting into everything BUT picture taking. Here is exactly what you do: You go with it. Instead of making your voice hoarse and your nerves snap, just go with it. It's not going to work every time but I bet it does 99%.
Be sure to have someone with you who can stand behind you and be a distraction. Sometimes the kid will like to look at them instead of you with your camera, especially if your accomplice can make funny faces. It's far more entertaining for them than "Will! Hey Will! Smile! Look over here, smile dude. Why won't you smile?"
Another trick is to tell them to look for something that isn't there. For instance "Hey Keely, who is behind momma?" They look, you snap. Probably not going to get a smile but perhaps she shows her natural beauty which is plenty for the pic. It could even be better, sometimes smiles are cheesy and a serious shot is more captivating.
Finally and lastly, promise them something if they look. It could be a treat, food or a peek at the picture. If they know they are going to instantly see it kids often give a good look for the picture. Whatever look they give is going to have personality in it and that's what you want to ultimately achieve.
Remember to not stress out about it. Kids read into that and feed off of it. If its just not working, drop it. Go play. Go eat. Go somewhere else. Try it again after a few. Or, hire me.

Not The Official Photographer

This is going to sound so odd coming from a wedding photographer... I have photographed close to 50 weddings, yet I have never been invited to one. I know. The first wedding I ever went to was a job. I finally went to my first wedding as a guest. It was awesome. Now, there is a twist to this story. It's sorta of a "that doesn't really count" thing but whatever. I was supposed to be the photographer at this wedding. However, the couples date was 2 weeks after my daughter was born. As much as I really, really wanted to do it, it would have been bad and wrong of me. I had to turn the wedding down. Actually I had to turn down 6 weddings this year because they ALL fell within 2 weeks of my daughters due date. I now know when the peak of wedding season is in Washington. So, my husband and I along with our 2 year old son and 2 week old daughter went to the very first wedding I have ever been a real guest at. With my teeny tiny daughter being hand held against my chest I photographed the whole ceremony with my iPhone. I had to act cool when the real photographer stepped right in my way and ruined my awesome shot of the kiss. It turned out to be okay though. The bride is currently using my picture as her Facebook profile picture while she waits 3 weeks for her pro pictures. That's a win for me. It was fun to watch someone else work. It was fun to not stress about getting the best shot. It was fun using my iPhone. It was a ton of fun watching my gorgeous son dance on the dance floor. It was even a beautiful place to nurse my daughter. So I wasn't the official photographer, I was still damn good and still got some winners.

How To Capture A Moment

This is what sorta kept me going in photography. People said I could just "capture a moment". My dad said this a lot and somehow the way he says it makes you feel so special like you are performing miracles. So I kept it up and really focused on what moment I was trying to capture. It sounds a little odd, capturing a moment. I mean, no matter what when you take a picture you capture a moment. The beauty of the image lies in capturing the perfect moment, that 1/60 or 1/1000 of a second you held your camera open. Honestly and sadly not (most people) everybody can't do it. With me, I foresee the future when watching a scene I may photograph. Sounds freaky but you have to understand how human beings operate. It's like guessing the next scene in a movie and getting it spot on. Capturing a moment is not about taking 10 pictures in a row in hopes you will get "it". It's about planting that eye in the view finder, finger ready to push the shutter and watching until it happens. You really have to anticipate it going to happen because as the moment is happening and you haven't pushed your shutter button, you lost the moment. You are now not good at capturing a moment. I am not going to lie, it is really hard and I do watch a lot of moments go by that did not get captured. Also I have captured moments that were blown because the composition was wrong, someone in the back photo bombed the scene or it wasn't in perfect focus. Also and interestingly enough you can actually create a moment by post production. That's right, sometimes all a regular picture needs is a turn into black and white and suddenly you have this image that stirs the heart. My biggest suggestion though is when you are with your family and you are trying to capture that wonderful, says it all moment. Stop. Put the camera away. Your family is going to remember you behind the camera, not interacting with them. That is sad. So go ahead, take a few pictures and stop. If you can anticipate the moment coming up, go for it, but then put it away and spend your time with them. Those memories will last longer than the pictures, trust me.

Eldridge Gravy and the Court Supremes

I did something the other night I have not done in years. I stayed up late and shot a band. Yes, it was glorious. I photographed Eldridge Gravy and the Court Supremes at the LoFi. It was a huge band on a tiny stage. The band was fun, the crowd was fun, the shots were fun. Lady Gravy did a rendition of Sweet Child of Mine, it was truly epic. My favorite song now. It was so nice to get back in the swing of things and to run around a bar with authority. When you have a massive camera at a bar, people don't question, they pose. You have every right to be in front of the stage. The crowd lets you move. People aren't hostile when you are trying to navigate through the mass. They figure you have a job to do and your not trying to be rude by getting that killer vantage point. I also love going to secret places of a bar that only people with the band are allowed to go. My stuff has a safe place and I have a place to go that isn't jam packed with drunk sweaty dancers. Also, people come up to me and talk to me. Normally I am not an approachable person, my husband says its because I don't smile. Fine by me. But when I am at a bar taking pictures, people are comfortable enough to approach me and ask for copies of the images. For instance, Eldridge Gravy was wearing a sweet hat. A gal in the audience also wearing a sweet hat that would have made the entire royal wedding jealous, came up to me and asked if I got a good picture of the hat. I told her I did. She told me she made the hat and had no pro pics of it. I took her name and will be sending that pic along. Network, network, network. Hire me to shoot your band.

The Tulips Are Awesome, Photographers, Not So Much.

I have to admit that for years I hated the Tulip festival in Mt. Vernon. Why you ask? I thought it was a joke. Photographers and amateur photographers flocked up there and thought they took the best most stunning pictures and people bought it. I mean come on, seen one, seen them all. So in rebellion,I never went. Last year though, James and I went. Not sure why we went but we had a blast. I took the cliche pictures, with my crappy cell phone and loved them! Not because I thought they were some of my best work but for the memories they invoked. We were freshly pregnant and had no clue. I found two bulbs that had been cast aside in the dirt and I took them. FYI, I am a clepto. We had oyster shooters. We just hung out together.

This year I insisted on going again. I had a better cell phone camera and we had our boy. James had seen a picture by someone he works with, an amateur photographer. He thought the picture was awesome and he wanted to take me to that exact location so I could take a similar shot. We went to the location and there it was in all its glory. Fabulous tulips everywhere and photographers, everywhere. I actually loved walking around snapping pictures with my camera phone and getting glances from people with mega cameras looking at me like I was a joke. If they only knew. What exactly are they going to do with their tulip pictures? Make bank? Doubt it. They have these high quality pictures that are going to sit on a storage space and rot. While mine are going into family calendars, photo albums, slideshows, maybe make some cards out of them and then they will rot. I don't need high res images, I am not doing anything spectacular with them. I love them for their beautiful imagery and low quality.

While James and I were walking around we encountered a couple having engagement pictures done. I was a little stung, I was supposed to photograph Spike and Grace this month for their engagement pics in the tulip fields. As we walked by I heard the photographer tell the man that he looked like a fish. She told him he was making fish faces. She says out loud " What is that? You look like a fish. You're making fish faces!" Then she tells the woman " What is he doing? He is seriously making fish faces! Hahaha!" The woman laughed nervously, the man cast his eyes down. I felt so bad for this guy. Never, Ever, Never make fun of your clients. Ever. Coach them instead on what faces you are looking for. They are paying you to photograph them, not make fun of them. I was so horrified as I walked by. My husband was too. We couldn't believe what we had just witnessed. That adorable couple should have gone with a pro, like me!