I've known Emily via flickr and blogger (and her other blog) and facebook for several years now.  She and Kelly used to ride together, and oh the stories I've heard!  Emily is so spunky and has and an undying commitment to family and her passionate causes.  She's impossibly fun to be around (as well as a bit of a ham, which actually helps a lot in wedding shoots!).

When she contacted me last year about shooting her wedding, I had to reminder her that I had 1) never shot a wedding by myself before and 2) am not a professional photographer.  She assured me that she had been an admirer of my work for a while and was looking for interesting, photo-journalistic photographs.  She wanted to pay me to shoot the wedding (she's a stanch supporter of her artist community) instead of working with a complete stranger.   I consulted Kelly (my artist guru) and Joel and after several back and forths, I decided to go forward.  We agreed on the terms, and there was naught to do but wait for the big day.

For the next 10 months, I spent several hours of several days pouring over how to pose weddings, asking any and everyone for advise, researching equipment, buying equipment, testing equipment, practicing on friends, post-processing, and working on my anxiety level.  Nerves took over several of those days and I wanted to bow out at least 25 times. However,  I instead reassured myself that Emily was the one who sought me out and had already seen my work and loved it.   I was immensely nervous the week before the wedding, and way over-prepared in terms of lists and sample shots (funnily enough, I completely lost those lists in the moment and had to wing it).  I completely dreaded the exhaustion and the inevitable awkwardness of my introverted self trying to tell people where to stand and how to act.  Once the day arrived and I had Kelly in my back pocket shooting 2nd, I daresay I actually had a good time.

Though I am an introvert, I am quite well-practiced at commanding large groups of people (ex high school English teacher here).  I had completely misplaced this information, and thought I would stumble all over myself.  I imagined the worst, but it ended up not being a problem whatsoever.  In fact, there was a point in the reception where Kelly was looking around for me and to her surprise (and mine) found me schmoozing all the tables, going to each one and snapping away.  She teased me about it when I sat down to eat, but in the end - we both were proud of me for embracing something I seriously doubted I had the ability to do.

Human personalities are so multifaceted! I very rarely take the opportunity to express parts of mine that don't feel as natural and comfortable as others...or too often let those around me dictate my personality.  There is a fine line between adapting to people and repressing oneself for the group's sake.  I learned that even I can surprise my own self!

Forsooth, we are capable of SO MUCH MORE than we give ourselves credit for.

I don't see wedding photographer in my future, but if I ever did - I would hire Kelly and we would rock the business.  For now, I am happy to keep it low-key for friends and family.

So happy to finally share the finished product of Emily and Scott's wedding.  Hope you enjoy!

I returned Sunday afternoon from shooting Emily's wedding with Kelly in the lovely San Francisco.  I was  exhausted, but I was really rather excited about the end result and overall experience of my "first rodeo."  I don't see being a professional photographer in my future, but if that ever changes - I would most definitely want THIS GIRL in my back pocket. As with everything Kelly touches with those gifted hands and imaginative mind, she brings a faithful eye, calming presence, and deep commitment of quality to any artistic endeavor.  On top of that, it's just downright fun to work with your friends.  We basically played all day.

I am working on my edits for the 1500+ photos I took, but in the meantime, I thought you might enjoy a few candids of Kelly and me working together.

Kelly standing in for the bride so I could test the light.

I love this little series of "Where's Kelly?"  If I were a professional, I would know where my second shooter is at all times.  I think it's kinda cute how she keeps popping up in my frame.

Here, Kelly shows off her incredible powers of inhalation.  Even Emily's earring cannot resist!

So nice to "work" for your friends, eh?  

A little sippy-sip on the side never hurt anyone.