Whirl wind weekend [and it was windy too!]

So the wedding was interesting. The couple did 'hire' a cousin on her side of the family to do the wedding photos. However, the groom's parents asked me to go ahead and shoot whatever I wanted.

This first shot is the rehearsal. 

Compare it to the wedding ceremony.

I took shots from behind the pastor.  It was fun to see the couples' face as they read their vows to each other.

Afterwards, the groom came up and asked me if I wanted some shots. I took family photos for his mom in the fall of 2018 so we do have a history together.

I told him what I'd thought of in his Grandmother's shade garden that I'd worked on the past week. He was excited about taking some shots there.

Of course as I was getting another idea together, the bride's friend came up with her pocket camera and had some ideas of her own. Note---> nothing against the pocket camera she was using, it could have actually been a very high end camera.

Friend person had some great poses and ideas for the couple. I decided to assist the other photographer and learn a few things. As she posed and talked to them, I took a few shots of my own.

My shot of the kiss by the pole barn. 

Yep, I liked it best in old 'timey' black and white.

I'm an Old Photographer so....as I was helping Friend Person, I tried to hold something for her and stay out of frame. Friend Person just quipped out "Don't worry, I'll just edit you out."

I think that comment startled me quite a bit. I'm the one that learned compose, compose, compose and watch your background. I'll just edit you out. [LOL like I don't exist!]

My guess is that wedding photography these days are heavily dependent on AI assistance. I know there is a way you can drop any subject you photo into a different background...I think.

Probably my favorite shot of the day was of the Ring Bearer.

This little girl walked down the grassy isle so carefully.  I swear, she must have held her breath for the entire walk. She took her job very seriously.

What did I learn once more at a wedding as a photographer? 

The after photos with posing are very creative. I doubt I could do it.

Plus, being bossy with people to get them to pose is a trait I don't have.

AI is the new helper. 

Bridezilla's still exist. The bride's mom was a Momzilla in a black sequined dress. 

I'll stick to nature and toys. I enjoyed the candid shots. My father was a master at candid photography.

Later on, I walked back to the shady garden and watched people from a distance. I only knew the father and mother of the groom really. 

I guess that's when it hit me that... oh yes, I was now a widow. A Widow with a capitol W. 

I went home and met up with my Grandson who just returned from fishing all day with Steve.

We watched the moon come up, chatted, and the next morning we took a nice long hike to chill out.

Weddings

Well the big day arrived. Daryl and I left the house at 6:30 AM and grabbed some KwikTrip breakfast. We knew we were in for a long day.
We'd discussed strategies for shooting the wedding.

We'd gone over the list of 'must have shots' by the bride the night before. We both had our lists.
We went over indoor strategy and out door bright sunlight shooting...it was going to be a challenge for sure. A wedding photographer's nightmare can be bright sunlight and deep shadows on faces.

Daryl likes shooting landscapes and water. Well we both love 'water' shots and macros of anything we can find to 'shoot'. Bugs and spiders or fungi and flowers. It is a fascinating world of little things out there.

But this day was going to be his first time at a wedding.  During our ride we sort of talked about things and tried to envision obstacles we'd run into. It was nice to have someone to bounce ideas off from.

I have a love/hate relationship with wedding photography. I love it while I am doing it and obsess about the photos I'm taking and worry about it so much that I really sort of hate it.


Because if you have ever been involved in a wedding you know that nothing really goes as planned. And if you try to follow a rigid list you will end up tied in knots.

Fun things do happen. We had come early so that Daryl could meet the family and they could get comfortable around him.
I've known the father of the bride for 9 years. We worked together until about 5 weeks ago.

We started with all of the shots we could of the Venue and the bride getting ready.  We had some fun with the children that were going to be in the wedding party.

Daryl was so patient and good with the kids. 
There was the moment when the bride got upset over something and I followed her outside. 
We talked and I reminded her that this day was hers, that she and her husband to be were the main focal point of the day.
That no one would recall what someone else in the wedding party may or may not do.

In the end, those who came to the wedding ceremony would only recall one thing. How beautiful she looked walking down the isle to meet the groom.

I knew that once the wedding ceremony started that the best laid plans would fly out the window and it was going to be a 'shoot' hard, shoot fast, shoot like crazy. Run around in the heat and dodge people to get that shot.

Duck and weave. 
Wedding photographers have the hardest jobs. They dodge well wishers and cell phone photographers as well as anyone else with a camera.

I once did a wedding where I turned the camera on the audience.
There were about 7 people milling through the audience with long lenses and various types of DSLR's. 

A word about having a second photographer. This is a godsend. I choose Daryl because he is from a different generation [nice way of saying that he is young enough to be one of my own kids..and that I am an old codger...] and he has a different perspective on things than I do.

He comes up with unique ideas that I would not have thought of.

Daryl stacked two long folding tables together and then took all the table clothes we could find and we made a make shift 'studio' for the shots of the dresses and the rings.
The following is a merged shot of the veil and the rings...both of these shots also done by my partner.

I should have moved the tables when I took a shot of the bride and used the table clothes for an appropriate back round...however. Best laid plans and all of that...

The room was busy and everyone was rushing around. I grabbed some more shots.
However...

She was pleased with the edited version.

I had told Daryl that he would most likely get done with the wedding and decide he would never ever do another one. And then after he had forgotten the pressures of the day and how tired we were at the end of it all, well he may think about doing it again.


And of course we couldn't help ourselves but include something fun.

Did everything go perfect? Oh gosh I don't know. I do know that I enjoyed every second of the hours we put in. I had a great partner. That made all of the difference in the world.

Would we do it again? Oh yes, I think so.

Wedding Photos and such...

I've been working hard on these photos from the wedding.

It is a labor of love.

It isn't easy figuring out which photos you know the bride and groom are going to want.
I'm in the process of sorting and creating artsy stuff for the Wedding Book.

I used PicMonkey for creating collages.  It was great fun to do and consolidates pictures that are worth having, but not as full page spreads.



 I have so many favorites that it is hard to choose!






Well, I must be off, I've got laundry to do aside from working on the editing of the shots.

Full view of the gallery can be seen at:
Jer and Sam's Wedding

Too wet to ride...so I may as well do this!