After hustling to get a photography portfolio through TFP's and really cheap prices, I finally shot my first wedding this weekend for a great couple named Mike and Erica. What a wonderful experience. Shooting weddings really provides photographers with immediate social commentary. You get exposed to culture, traditions and values. There is a professional side that tells you what shots you need, subject placement, lighting etc. But there is another side that is more personal, intimate. A side that marvels at the human experience. You click and snap away like the shutterbug that you are, but in reviewing the pics, you realize that you've captured something deeper. A moment. I liken photos to bookmarkers in time. And weddings, if your paying attention, have many of those moments. I remember watching Erica cry as she danced with her father. As a new father myself, that scene resonated deeply within me. For as I was snapping away, the important things in life came into clear perspective. In that moment I stopped being a wedding photographer and became a spectator of life.
