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Since the beginning of my business, Stephen has been by my side supporting my every effort and dream to become a wedding photographer. It has been fun watching our relationship and business grow together from our beginning days of college until now. We are so excited to stretch ourselves even further together. I wanted to address this post specifically to those couples that are thinking about working together as photographers. I hear all the time that it's a "thought" that many have, but most are afraid to try. Honestly, it's not for everyone, but those of you thinking about it, it is worth giving it a try.
We were told many times that working together probably wasn't a good idea...but it was important for us to experience working together for ourselves. We gave it a shot... and for us it has been GREAT! I mean, spending all day and night with someone is bound to cause a few arguments... and believe me, we have had our share, but we've also gotten quite good at working together in all areas of our life. Stephen and I may be rareities or maybe just plain strange, but we honestly love being around each other all the time. I mean, don't get me wrong, we definitely need our time apart and GET our time apart, but it has been fun working together as a team!
We often see different perspectives in the work aspect, the communication aspect, and of course the visual aspect. It's a great balance to listen to each others perspective because it just makes you THAT much better than YOU are alone. I don't think everyone needs to work with their husband or wife, but I do think you can make it work with ANYONE. Working with a friend on particular shoots can help you see things differently. Ask friends for advice, editing suggestions or even location ideas because it's SUPER important to hear other people's opinions in every area of your business. I think it's even great to hire a friend or fellow photographer to help you on a shoot. An extra set of eyes always helps! This is how I believe you become a better business woman/man. I always ask at least three people close to me their opinions before actually making a decision because everyone has a DIFFERENT perspective.
For those of you that have thought about working together as a husband and wife team... I say go for it... BUT definitely set aside time for yourself. It's also important to nail down exactly what both your strengths and weaknesses are. Stephen's strength is in the behind the scenes numbers. He helps with the invoices, contracts and financing... You should have seen me in college math.. YIKES... and that's WHY my strength is behind the camera! Steve ALSO is quite good behind the camera.... I thought I would add a few photos to show his sneaky talent!
Another suggestion is finding your own thing besides your one business together. Stephen does some investments on the side and also is tweaking his golf game as he is hoping to possibly play professional golf someday. It's a nice break from each other as we have something new to share with each other at the end of the day. We do however struggle with working at home together. We often need to leave home and begin our work at different times of the day since its hard to constantly be at home. For us, work is hard to stop because we find ourselves editing even late at night. The downfall of this job is not having scheduled days and not having scheduled breaks like everyone else. I have found a way to fix this.... SET A SCHEDULE! :) Stop working at 5pm (like everyone else)... shut off your phone, your e-mail and stop working until the next morning. Also, for holiday breaks, it's OK to take a break too! Set up an away message on your e-mail. DON'T sit in your PJ's all day and watch tv re-runs. Ok ok, I'm totally guilty of staying in my PJs at least until noon some days but it definitely helps your day stay productive longer if you get ready earlier.
I have SOOO many suggestions and words of advice for those of you wanting to work with your spouses and I'd love to share them through e-mail! Shoot me an e-mail if you are looking for encouragement! I thought I would add a few images from a few of our favorite shoots this year. This is Stephen shooting Natalie and Reggie's engagement shoot....
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| We like wide open spaces... |
| We are always looking at different perspectives through the lens. This is Tarah and Josh. |
| This isn't Stephen. This is actually my brother Michael. Michael and our friend Steve are working on a business together as videographers. I will be posting a future post on them but for now, I had to share this photo of my brother Michael in action. It's great to have yet ANOTHER perspective through the lens :) |
| Stephen DEFINITELY helps when we do child shoots. He is a great distraction behind the camera. They always seem to laugh at him... (it makes sense right? :) This is little baby Annie. |
Over Thanksgiving, Stephen and I flew to snowy Colorado to celebrate our first Thanksgiving together as a married couple. We had a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving with some family in nearby Edwards, Colorado. As we shivered our little hearts out, we were anticipating our next wedding in a little town nearby called Beaver Creek. We just couldn't believe that we would actually be shooting a winter wedding in SNOW! Being from Phoenix, you don't see many "winter" snow weddings! We both felt that we have SO much to be thankful for this year. We LOVE traveling and we are so thankful that our couples trust us to travel to a different state in a foreign location to document their wedding day. We couldn't be MORE excited to photograph these destination weddings!! So to all of our wonderful clients, thank you. Stephen and I especially have to thank Jessica and Matt for giving us the opportunity to document this incredible wedding at the GORGEOUS Beaver Creek Chapel. This wedding was breathtaking in every aspect and we feel so blessed to have been a part of this special day. Not only was the wedding amazing, but Jessica and Matt helped make the entire day beautiful. I have to start out by writing about how beautiful both Jessica and Matt's big hearts really are. I first met Jess a few years ago and was overwhelmed by just how NICE and joyful both Jess and her sister Lauren were. They are seriously a different breed from the rest. There is just an immediate joy that hovers over you when you spend time with them. When I heard from Jess, I was ecstatic to have the opportunity to work with these two GREAT people. Matt is also a sweet gentle soul. Stephen and I had the opportunity to work with Matt's family last May at his sister Amy's wedding. It's so hard to put into words how we feel about Matt and Amy's family. Their soft spirits and genuine love really sets them apart and we truly felt so blessed to be a part of another wedding with them.
Last July, Stephen and I met up with Jessica and Matt in San Diego for their engagement session. If there is one thing about Jessica and Matt that I love, its how FUN they are!! They are willing to do just about anything. Stephen and I were seriously in shock when Jess told us we would have about three hours exploring the mountain top and taking photos of this spontaneous couple! If there is one thing that makes wedding photos even better, it's TIME. I was seriously jumping for joy (literally) because we could do just about anything around the gorgeous Beaver Creek Chapel and the amazing Beaver Creek Park Hyatt Hotel where the reception was held. We just want to thank both Jessica and Matt and the ENTIRE wedding party that celebrated with the couple on this special day. We felt so welcomed and were blown away by how friendly and loving everyone was. It was a true honor to have been able to document your wedding day! Click HERE to see a slideshow! |
| I had to add this photo as Jess and her sister Lauren walked along the sidewalks to the Beaver Creek Chapel. It was so funny listening to everyone's expression as Jess walked by. I simply heard " beautiful" maybe about 50 times? The Beaver Creek Chapel is right next to the ski lift! |
| Jess was SO proud of her blue Nina shoes! They were a perfect fit for the snow. |
| Matt was nothing but smiles before the ceremony. |
| A few tears shed down watching the ceremony. All of Jessica and Matt's siblings prayed over them before making the marriage official. Beautiful. |
| The light in the Beaver Creek Chapel was stunning. I felt like God's sweet blessing was shining through the window on them. |
| Outside the Beaver Creek Chapel, are TONS of trees that sit in the shade. They are COVERED in white snow. |
| They couldn't have picked a better time to get married. The light was delicious! |
| Jess is seriously one of the most STUNNING brides. Her gorgeous white cape is from David's Bridal. |
| I felt like she looked like a snow princess or that we were in Narnia somewhere :) |
| Before getting on the ski lift, Matt and Jess had some fun chasing each other in the snow. So cute! |
| YES YES, we actually rode on the LIFT! Being afraid of heights definitely doesn't help the enjoyment of the lift :) |
| We felt so honored to have shared a little snack lunch with the couple on top of the mountain while they toasted some Champagne to their new beginning together. |
| The top of the Beaver Creek mountain is incredible! I don't know much about skiing, but the powdered slopes looked like some GOOD skiing! |
| While Steve and I were on our way to the Beaver Creek Chapel, we found this old barn off the road on the golf course. The course was covered with snow, but we found out it was an old dairy farm that was active in the early 1900's. |
| I thought this photo was so cute. Both Jess and Matt were just about freezing, but they had a great time exploring with me. |
| It was REALLY important to both Jessica and Matt to have only family attend the wedding. Jessica had one of her best friends join her side while Matt asked his best friend Jared, to marry the two. it was so special and we just loved how intimate the ceremony and the reception was. |
| The Beaver Creek Park Hyatt Hotel did an amazing job setting up the gorgeous reception. Jessica's mom Cathy, did such an amazing job with the menu and organizing the event. |
| Jess and Matt shared with every family member just how thankful they were to have everyone travel so far to celebrate with them. |
Last week, Stephen and I had the wonderful pleasure of hanging out with two amazing people. Jessica and Matt are those kinds of people that just seem to get along with everyone. Their benevolent personalities are contagiously addicting to hang out with. I think we laughed almost the entire session at either ourselves or just laughed because we had such a wonderful time with each other.
They met in the fall of 2007 at a non profit fundraiser for Floresta. Floresta is an organization that focuses on microfinancing and community development in Africa and South America. Not only do Jessica and Matt have awesome personalities but they have a HUGE heart for people. What struck me the most about these two were how engaging they both are with everyone. It was an easy session to shoot because these two love birds just couldn't stop SMILING! Seriously, Jessica and Matt are awesome. Are you getting my point ? :) We met on the cliffs of La Jolla and worked our way into Pacific Beach where we found some funky colorful spots. The best part? We ended the session on the roller coaster in Mission Beach. The scary rickety Giant Dipper. It is as scary to ride as it sounds and Jessica was as scared as she looked. :) Thank you Jess and Matt. I am SO excited to shoot your wedding in November in the cold yet BEAUTIFUL Colorado mountains. Thank you for this opportunity!! |
| One thing I like to do with my clients is grab some personality out of them. I got some in this photo!! |
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