Sandra + Jammie // San Gabriel, CA
I get asked all the time why I shoot weddings. There’s a lot of generic answers I could list, but the real reason I photograph weddings is because it is really about the only time in a couple’s life where you are going to witness those first real, authentic moments between them, their siblings and parents, and those invited. Sometimes it is messy and I learn truths about family and friends I didn’t know. Inevitably I see the sober and drunk side of people. Always, I see love.
I don’t photograph these couples for other vendors, other photographers, or for even those attending. I don’t photograph for what I see on Pinterest. I photograph for myself. I am never going to be that photographer who tells people where to stand and how to act. I’m never going to be the photographer who submits styled, posed, editorial images to publications. It’s just not me.
I am not afraid to embrace the challenges of a wedding day. I’m not afraid to bend over backward to get the photos that make me happy. I'm not afraid to throw away the playbook and just go with the way the wedding goes. And inevitably they make the client happier than those styled, “perfect” moments we see all over social media.
In the end, I was hired by a couple who saw my work and trusted me to take that deeper, introspective look into their wedding and photograph those authentic moments. So, no, I’m not the person who is going to tell you where to stand, how to sit, and how to act. I’m not your selfie photographer. I’m not going to take a photo of you with your phone. I am going to take the photos I want to take.
And you will love them all the more.
