Life and Times of An Upcoming Photographer
I’m still in Wisconsin, and while I miss certain aspects of my Washington, DC life, being with my good friend and his family – plus shooting a wedding again – has been a very nice distraction from my every day life. While I still believe I’m a city slicker through and through, it’s been refreshing to get away from DC. I’m starting to get a little suspicious of the feelings I’ve been coming away with during each trip. It’s getting to a point where I’d much rather NOT be in DC than to live there, getting more excited to leave it than to live in it. Then again, I’m sure this occurs to anybody going on a trip to somewhere outside of their hometown, so maybe I shouldn’t be that worried. Right?
Something to consider: when I worked in the food biz, I didn’t travel as much. I was chained to my job – leaving at any time would cause a shortage wherever I worked, whether it was behind the line or managing a dining room, and I couldn’t do that to my comrades. Now, however, I’ve got my 9-5 with a decorated cubicle, and time off is… allowed. It freaks me out, even after working there for eight months. After working in restaurants for ten years, this job feels like I’m in retirement. A continuous vacation. And they say that happens when you’re at a job you love, right?
Right?
Speaking of jobs that I love, I shot a wedding again this weekend, and I remember why I love shooting them all over again. I shot it with my best friend’s wife, Amber, who generally does a lot of children portraiture, as she has been asked to shoot a few more weddings this year. I got to pop her wedding photography cherry, which was fun in the sense that I got to see how another photographer functions and works, which in turn made me recognize things I need to work on while also refreshing my memory on techniques I use when I was giving her advice and instructing her. It was nice to get back into the routine of planning, mapping out a strategy, and executing, all the while capturing someone’s special day.
As much as a friend joked on Facebook, it really was like riding a bike (even though it’s been ages since I’ve ridden one). Planning out where we should be, moving around to capture the angles I wanted, and being able to anticipate what events were going to occur and how they were going to happen was encouraging, as if I never lost a step. I’ll be honest, I was a little nervous about my ability to get back into the swing of things, but once “Here Comes The Bride” started up on the organ, my game face was on and I was ready to go. My friend, Nick, even said it was exciting and impressive to watch me work, as I got together with Amber the night before to direct her and detail the game plan, and moving around fluidly without disrupting the ceremony. I’ve never heard someone be that excited about watching me work before, so I kind of found it amusing, but also a very nice compliment. What can I say? I take my job seriously.
Right?
This week, I’ll be doing a lot of post-production on the images, and with nothing scheduled to shoot (yet), I think it’ll be a nice way to get back into my DC routine and kick off the wedding photography business Andrew and I have been completely busy and distracted from. Oops! I think being too busy with business ventures and photography projects you’re passionate about isn’t a bad thing.
Right?
Until next time,
- Patrick
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