Weddings: Les Tours de Culture

Okay, okay, we all knew this day would eventually come right? I have now taken pictures at over 20 weddings and I'm going to spend the next few posts talking about weddings, but not just weddings, their culture and that's my trump for keeping this blog topic about travel! :) To talk about weddings without focusing on the wedding itself and more about my interacting with every "Dearly beloved" day as a whirlwind of cultural documentation. 

Think about it, when else do you get to meet total strangers, find out how they met/fell in love, meet their entire family and extended relatives, share a meal with them, hear their favorite dance music, know their religious background, and meet each one of their best friends- all in ONE day?!! 

These occations included Greek, Italian, Irish, Indian, and Polish cultures. I am excited to reflect on their cultures with you- it has been quite a ride! 

Light: Returning Challenges

So here I am, looking through the lens every-other weekend at weddings, running in between trollys, venues and equipment bags for something the bride forgot that would add the perfect touch, and last but not least, learning lessons about lighting...again (see previous post: "Light: Fashion, Friend, or Faux"). Many photographers have assured me that this is a life-long journey and even they took a long time to get the right balance for aperture and shutter speed settings to produce the clearest shots possible in addition to staying true to color and ambiance. This is no small task once you see the difference I assure you. Ignacio, the lead I worked with last weekend said some of the best advice that I've heard in while in saying, "just keep shooting". (click here to see additional pictures!)

Even though I still feel like young, wide-eyed observer in adjusting my pace to that of wedding photography (similar to this little guy above), it feels good to know that my pictures are improving and I'm starting to see positive results in my submissions. I'll just keep chipping away at the field of freelance and it is GREAT and much more rewarding than I could've imagined! So for all of you out there who can relate, just keep shooting!