A real photography gig

I got to play a real photographer and shoot a wedding!  For realsies!

My friend Mandy's cousin had long ago asked her if she'd do her wedding photos for her.  Mandy asked me to shoot with her, as she had never done a wedding before, or anything of that magnitude.  I hadn't either, but we both agreed that we could surely do it (or give it a good attempt) together.  You gotta start somewhere, even if it is intimidating.

Saturday was the big day, and I think we were both fairly nervous but excited.  Her cousin is extremely easy going, and had really only a few requests for photos that day.  So Mandy and I came up with a list, some pose ideas, organized ourselves to cover different angles throughout the day, and I have to say we seriously rocked it.

We showed up bright and early as the girls finished getting ready.  We herded the wedding party to the church to start photos, and we were thrilled to see that the iconic/beautiful front of the church was shaded at that time.  Neither of us had decided to officially "take charge" for the day, and we seemed to pass that baton back and forth quite nicely.  Only a few times did I realize we were both taking photos at the same time and the poor wedding party was confused at who to look at.  Lesson learned. 

As can be expected, it was difficult at times to keep the whole wedding party there for the variety of photos that the bride and groom wanted.  There were crying babies and beer drinking priorities, afterall.  But we succeeded, flew through the group shots, and had time to spare before the ceremony.  Mandy and I had plenty of time to work on some still shots of their rings, flowers, programs, etc.  And even a break to put our feet up and have doughnuts and cookies in the basement.  Photography makes you hungry!

The two ring bearers and flower girl did amazingly well for their age.  They listened and posed and smiled on cue, and I think they were loving all the excitement of the day.  The curls, the suspenders, the smiles...they were stinking adorable!

After the ceremony, which went beautifully (and the lighting in the church was great for photos), Mandy joined the wedding party on their party bus to the bars while I headed to the reception hall to get some photos of the decorations, cupcakes, etc. 

I headed home after the wedding party arrived and dinner began. Mandy was staying for the duration anyways as a guest with her family, so she offered to finish up the cake cutting, toasting, and first dance photos. I was so appreciative of that, as I was exhausted and fading fast by that point. 

I came home with 1,200+ photos, of which I've only started glimpsing at long enough to grab a few for this post.  Can't wait to go through them all, as daunting as that feels right now. 

We will see if any other opportunities come up for us!  I can only hope the families are as kind and laid back as these were.  I might be asking a lot, as Mandy's family, as well as the groom's, are pretty awesome.