How Did I get Here? Part III

Next up in our "How Did I get Here?" series, is the first wedding I ever shot.  My friend and adopted big sister, Stephanie contacted me when I was a Junior in college and asked if I could take some pictures at her wedding.  I was super nervous, not really sure what I should do, and had dreams of my camera crashing and all the pictures being destroyed.  But the wedding and the pictures turned out beautiful.

So here is a quick run down of things I learned at my first wedding.  These are good rules whether you're doing it for free for a friend/ family member, or whether it's someone you've just booked.

1. Make up a basic contract.  This just lets people know what you're offering and the time limits you're working with, that way they know what to expect.

2. Have a shot list.  This can be something you come up with and go over with the bride, or that you have the bride make.  Either way this list will insure that you get the photos that are most important to the happy couple.

3. Lots-o-Memory.  You can never have too much memory, that way you don't get to the middle of the ceremony and have to start deleting photos.

4. Take your time.  This is hardest for me to remember when I'm doing group shots.  Sure you don't want to have the posed photos take 2 hours while everyone is waiting at the reception.  But remember that this is a happy day and that most of the time, these people have been rushing to this point all morning.  Take your time and rearrange people until it looks right to you.

5.  Jump in there.  This sounds dumb to say, but don't be timid!  Sometimes when you're first starting out you don't want to get in the way of anyone and ruin the wedding, which is true, you want to be respectful.  But whether you're doing this for fun or for coinage, they picked you to be their photographer!  So have fun and jump in there to get the good shots.

Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a time to remember those who have served our country and those that are serving today.  I can't begin to imagine what these men and women have been through or what they gave for us.  The above photo was taken at my Great Uncle George's funeral in Arlington.  He served at Vietnam as well as in Air Force Intelligence for many years.  He truly gave his life, his whole life, to serving the country that he loved very much. So as we start out today excited about having the day off, perhaps planning our BBQ or ready to hit the pool, take a second to appreciate what this day means.  There is nothing wrong with celebrating and honoring those who died for our country with a day of joy and fun, but just remember we couldn't have that without them.  And maybe take a second to give a call to someone who is serving, and just say thanks, or that you're thinking about them.

My thanks to Great Uncle George and all he did for his country, to Brg. General Bozeman, to Captain Quisenberry, to Matt, to Donny, and to Paul, we're thinking about you guys.  And thanks to anyone else that I missed, we appreciate everything that you do for your country.  Have a great Memorial Day everyone, and stay safe.

Exhausti-fied

Today I navigated (or rather the British Lady living inside my GPS navigated) my way through 4 states: Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky and Tennessee.  It took about 8 hours and I'm not gonna lie when I say that I was thrilled to be back in Tennessee.  I'm a little exhausted at the moment.  However, I had a fabulous trip, full of family, fun and fondue!  But there will be  more on that later, I promise. What amazed me was how glad I was to be home.  Now, I love adventure, I love travel, and I'm not one to stay at home all the time...

but when I opened the door and Miss Sookie and Miss Briscoe came rushing towards me, I was pretty excited.  Not to mention the great smooch I got from Speed Racer.

(Kinda like that...)

It's not amazing to love being home, everyone loves being with the ones they love, but what was amazing was that this felt like home.  We moved to Knoxville a little over a year and a half ago and I think it has taken that long for it to feel like my home.  Don't get me wrong, I still get home sick for the mountains where Speed Racer and I fell in love, but I am getting pretty fond of Knoxville and this house.  I love our house.

This was Speed Racer's Grandfather's house.  It means a lot to us to be able to live here.  Although we are doing a lot of updates it's been fun to make it our own as well as have memories to build on.  Coming home is a wonderful feeling, whether home is where you actually live, or to someone you love, or somewhere you haven't been for a long time.  Home is where we make it, whether it's built or in the heart.

And on that note, there are some adorable kitties who are begging to be cuddled with, and it's good to be home.