May 15, 2020
Updated: Oct 8, 2020
Would you believe me if I told you that I documented this wedding in Florida from my couch in Michigan? I probably wouldn't either.
It was a Friday afternoon when one of my past brides, Anne, reached out to ask if I could help her with location selection and camera settings for her sister's wedding. Alyssa and Mark decided to elope in Florida at a family home surrounded by their closest loved ones. It was not the wedding they envisioned, but it was absolutely beautiful.
I got on a video call with Anne that day and we scouted out the best locations around the property. Then, we talked all about camera settings! Within an hour, I taught her how to manually select focus, format a memory card, change the photo quality to RAW, set white balance and ISO to auto, and how to know when the shutter speed was too low. For the non-photographers reading this, that is a lot to learn successfully in one hour! Anne was so excited to learn and soaked up all the information. We talked about compositions and practiced focusing, it was amazing! I am a high school photography teacher and being away from the classroom has been heartbreaking. It was so great to teach those skills again.
The following day was the wedding! On Saturday after the ceremony Anne called me once again so that I could help with the documentation of their portraits. I got on a video call and directed Alyssa and Mark through prompts and guided them in poses, just like I would do on a wedding day. I will admit, it was challenging at times to communicate through an iPad my vision for the photograph, but it was such a fun challenge. I got off the call and felt invigorated. It reminded me of my passion, my why. Those moments, which otherwise may have not been captured, are now documented permanently.
Then, when Anne returned back to Michigan with her camera in hand, I received the images from her and edited their wedding photographs. It was great to see their day through someone else's lens. It was such an interesting perspective. The first and last photographs you see below were photographed by me using my Fuji XT-3 camera and iPad. The photographs in between were edited by me, but beautifully captured by Anne. Despite the challenges, she truly did photograph Alyssa and Mark skillfully!
This was definitely a unique experience, but an amazing one at that! I am extremely thankful that I was able to be a part of Alyssa and Mark's day, even though I was not physically there. In this season, I am looking forward to continuing to collaborate with others, teach photography skills, and experience new ways to be creative within this art form.
All my love,