This year was hard and filled with adjustments. But it was also transformative and gave us the space to focus on what’s most important. I entered the month of April postponing my own wedding and deeply empathetic to what my couples were going through, allowing me to truly be compassionate and understanding but also helping them know that whatever celebration were to come, it would be just as incredible as the one planned. And why I was so sure of that, is because at the end of the day, what is most important, will be there, present and evident.
Weddings turned into intimate weddings, those who secretly wanted to elope all along, got the chance to without shame or guilt. Days that were unintentionally filled with fluff and choices others made for you, were simplified into days that were strongly roaring, less is more. And it was felt. How much more and deeply and rich these simple and humble days were. I still believe in holding out to celebrate big with your people, but my goodness is having a day to yourselves and focusing on the both of you is so, so big too.
I can’t tell you how many times this year I heard, “This is what we wanted all along, even when we didn’t know it yet.”
I also entered April with the expectations of not photographing a single wedding this year, but with safe precautions and creative ways to celebrate at a distance, I was able to still be a part of and capture a handful of incredibly special and intimate weddings. I do not take the privilege lightly of being one of the few present on your wedding day when so many couldn’t. I wanted to deeply capture the day so that those who were not able to be there could truly feel like they were.
Note * All weddings and sessions presented here, I was in a mask and at a distance, choosing longer lenses to help still capture intimacy while maintaining my distance. Any weddings larger in size or any photographs inside were taken before we were all aware of what was yet to come, the quarantine, and the shelter in place.
Thank you to every one who kept me afloat this year and who trusted in me to be a part of such meaningful moments in your life. And to all my couples who have had to sacrifice a long awaited day, who have to wait to celebrate, who have chosen safety above all else, who have had to shift and adjust so many details of your day that wouldn’t be right during a pandemic, including details, vendors, every aspect of it, I’m sorry if your day looked vastly different, but I commend you all for growing, adjusting, and focusing on what’s most important in any of these situations you have chosen. Allow yourself the space to acknowledge the day that would have been, and when you’re ready, move forward with the gratitude for the day that will be, or has already been. If there is one thing I’m truly thankful for this past year, is the shift in this industry and the mindset surrounding weddings, and wedding photography. Letting go of expectations, of perfection, of the fluff. Focusing on the people, the brevity of fleeting moments, and truly holding each other close. All while allowing the space for me to photograph those things exactly.
Enjoy the handful of weddings, sessions, and people I have gotten the true pleasure to still continue documenting and capturing even after a year like this. I feel so incredibly grateful. Thanks to all of you.
(Only if you were viewing on a computer - ideally these songs would play one after another while you’re lost in this journal post, or the second ideal would be that you would hold your place right where you are, scroll up when the first song finished and then press play on the second one and head back to your saved mental spot and then continue on, but alas I imagine you won’t play the music at all, but a girl can dream.)
(Arc-en-ciel means “rainbow” in French. These images are a beautiful example of the sun’s light after a storm of a year like this one.)
This year I am also so grateful for the many ways of slowing down, and in the process, I was able to shoot a lot more film during wedding days and during sessions. Although personally shooting film for years, this is the first time that I have brought it into my wedding work, offered it as an option and gave myself the space to create with it for others. There is a lot of film intertwined throughout this post, and will always be indicated by a white border. I do believe in ensuring film not get lost in the mix, and giving it a honed in view. Shooting film for my couples also gave me the ability to create an imperfect, honest, and true to life image for them to fall in love with. Because how can you not when film reminds you to let go and trust the process. To love the story the image tells, not just how it turned out. To love the imperfections and nostalgia it brings because it’s shooting for the reality of our human experience. And that, is something to truly fall in love with.
And lastly!! If you love these types of posts, here is last year’s which I absolutely love as well. Head over here.
