Looking back...with gratitude.

I was so excited to find a comment on my blog recently from my very first bride. Photography has brought me so much joy and stimulated a creative side of me that I didn't know existed for the majority of my life. When my husband bought me from first non-point-and-shoot camera (film of course) back in 2003, I could not have possibly imagined where that gift would take me.

There were a couple willing volunteers who allowed me to practice on them and shoot some engagement pictures, but I never would have imagined that someone would take the chance on me and ask me to photograph his/her wedding. I mean, it just doesn't sound very enticing when a bride-to-be asks you, "How many weddings have you photographed?" and your answer is....ummmm, well none. Elizabeth and Matthew had to change the date of their wedding due to Matthew's early deployment and their original photographer didn't have their new date open. It was my lucky break!

I think I appreciated the gravity of the task I had accepted. But by the same token, I knew I had to start somewhere and both Elizabeth and I knew that I would do the best job I could with the equipment and skills I possessed at the time. The time between leaving the wedding, driving home, trying to sleep that night, driving to take the film to be developed and waiting for the film to be done was one of the most stressful times of my life. I had a new appreciation for wedding photographers. For all I knew, every picture might have been horribly over or underexposed, blurry and for lack of a better word...stink. It would have been the end of my very short stint as a photographer.

Fortunately, they did turn out. Matthew, Elizabeth and their families were a pure joy to be around and I am glad I could capture some of their wonderful memories. Thank you Matthew and Elizabeth for giving me my start, for trusting me to preserve such a special day in your life and for showing your love for each other so openly that day such that even a "first timers" wedding images shine!

I'm not going to lie, as my skills, equipment and experiences build, I often wish I could go back and re-shoot some of the events I have been lucky enough to cover, if for nothing else to improve the images technically. I hope all of my clients know I do my very best with every event I document. I can only hope our paths will cross again to share in other joyful events in the lives of my past clients...babies anyone?

Here's a few film scans from Matthew and Elizabeth's wedding and my very first wedding back in 2004. (Going through old film scans from 3 years ago isn't the easiest thing in the world, so instead of looking for my favorite shots, these were from the first 3 rolls I grabbed.)