A year of travel, obstacles, progression and reflection. I’d say it’s the most important year I have had yet for many reasons. Probably the most important thing that happened was celebrating all the things I had the courage to not do. Opportunities are great, but you don’t have to take on all of them, especially the ones that don’t float your boat at all. I’m a wedding photographer. I shoot weddings, so that’s what I’ll continue to do.
There were a few instances at weddings where I felt like I had connected with exactly the right people and arrived at places I could stay in for an entire career. That’s a great thing from my perspective. I’m definitely moving closer to that place where I can do exactly what I want to do with exactly the right people in exactly the right places, exactly the right amount of times per year. Sounds like a pretty good job to me. In the last few weeks, I have really noticed that my approach is the thing that has progressed the most over the last 12 months. Wrapping your head around what’s in front of you and how you want to tell the story in a split second is not a skill that comes in a week, a month or even a few a years.
It’s always a work in progress, though it’s nice to look back every once in a while and actually see how far you’ve come. Weddings are mysterious beasts. They move fast and take unexpected turns in a heartbeat. They take your plans and throw them out the window when your head is momentarily turned. They can rise up and sweep you off your feet very quickly if you aren’t flexed and ready for ‘problem solving battle’ at every turn. I’ve always felt that wedding photography is as much about the experience as the pictures themselves. They are inextricably connected and the more that moves to the front of my mind on a wedding day, the more I surprise myself with what comes out of the memory cards at the end of the night. I think that’s one of the nice things about such a visual craft. You can actually see and feel your progression in a tangible way.
Apologies for the stupid long blog post but I like all of these images. It’s my blog, so they’re all staying! I hope you like them too! Please enjoy… Luke.
