Hello friends! And a very Happy New Year to you! My 2013 started off with one of the worst colds I’ve had in a long time, but I am on the mend thankfully. I feel like I got that out of the way, and now the rest of the year is going to be amazing!
And with that, I have some news! In addition to the new blogsite layout, things are changing a bit here at SSP, and I want to share my thoughts with you.
Chris and I have been doing wedding photography for five years now. In some ways, I can’t believe it has gone by so quickly! And other times I think, five years – wow, it seems like a lot longer. We have met so many incredibly wonderful couples and have had some amazing adventures that could have only been experienced through our photography business. That time we photographed a wedding right in the middle of a huge blizzard. That time it rained (okay, this happened more than once). That time it was over 100 degrees (this definitely happened more than once). That time we photographed a beautiful wedding on New Year’s Eve and counted down to the new year with our wonderful couple’s friends and family. That time the officiant didn’t show up and the amazing wedding coordinator stepped in to perform the ceremony. That time we ate dinner in a tiny broom closet (a closet!). That time the venue was crawling with spiders everywhere I turned, but I stayed brave. That time we photographed a wedding in super cute and tiny Decorah, Iowa. That time we photographed a wedding in Hawaii!
So many clicks of the shutter, so many miles on the car. Checklist-checking, prepping the gear, packing the gear, carrying the gear. Driving, standing, walking, running. Directing, posing, staging, observing. Early mornings, late nights. Importing, exporting, backing up. Editing, editing, editing. Album designing, email answering, social media posting.
Oh and did I mention that we both have other full-time jobs? At one point I realized: I’m spending nearly all of my free time capturing other people’s memories instead of making more of my own. Yes, Chris and I were fortunate enough to have had some wonderful adventures here-and-there over the last five years – mainly our trips to Alaska, St. John, and Colorado. But when I look back at the amount of time that I was working vs. the amount of time I wasn’t working, it’s quite an imbalance. The typical workweek for most people is designed with two days off (exception: parents!), but with two jobs and a never-ending-to-do list, I have been working seven days a week most weeks. The time commitment with weddings plus our other jobs leaves us with little to no free time and we miss our weekends, so…
We’ve decided to take a pause on offering full-scale weddings for a while.
Never say never, so I won’t say that we aren’t doing them at all, but we’re taking a much needed pause in order to simplify our lives a bit. I truly do LOVE weddings. Yes, it’s a lot (a lot a lot) of work, but there is something so special about The Big Day that always draws me back in. I’m truly honored when we’re chosen to share that day with someone and when we’re trusted to capture those important moments. So I personally will still be available for a few smaller weddings, and to second-shoot for fellow wedding photographers, and of course for portraits here and there, which I also love! Chris, however, is hanging up his BlackRapid double camera strap for the time being. He will still have a hand in the business though – he is my brilliant technical support.
Thank you to all of our fantastic couples from 2008-2012! We feel so very blessed to have crossed paths with you in such a special way.
Lindsey and Brian, thank you so much for sharing your wedding day with Chris and me! You two are so incredibly fun and sweet, and I’ve enjoyed getting to know you. Best wishes for a happy life together!
When I was going through the photobooth images, this one made me laugh! I love the creative use of negative space here:
