07/26/2021
It's almost impossible to run this business by myself. I have a ton of people that help day-to-day, and so I want to start thanking them. Today, I want to share an appreciation post and a hilarious, it's-so-bad-it's-great story.
So, about 2 weeks ago, on July 10, I had double-booked myself. It's probably every photographer's 2nd worst nightmare (the first being to forget to show up in the first place). If you're wondering how one lands in this spot to begin with, I was trying out a new management software, and I thought I had my calendar linked to it, and someone booked, and it was NOT linked, and alas, I had 2 weddings on the same day. Luckily, one was 2-hours of photography earlier in the day, and the other was 5 hours of video later in the day, so I was only in a jam for an hour.
Enter my dear friend Gwen, who owns Ignite Photography! She graciously agreed to help cover the photography portion of the first wedding when I had to leave early. I am featuring her photos of the day in this post, because she rocks, and really saved the day in more ways than one as you will learn about.
Okay, so buckle in as I tell you the tale of my 2-wedding day...
My plan was to drive to the second wedding first, set up for the ceremony, get my drone footage and some b-roll, and introduce my assistant/second shooter to the bride, then, drive to the first wedding to get the getting ready, ceremony, and creative portraits before handing the reins over to Gwen and driving back to the second wedding to take over for Nick and film the rest of the day. I had a plan!
So, I wake up early, pack my gear, and head out to the first location. Everything is going pretty well besides my stress level being at about 1,000,000+, lol. I get set up, run over the game-plan with my second for the 100th time, and head to the first wedding. It's about a 30-minute drive between the 2 locations, and I'm on my way when the bride from the wedding I'm driving to calls me and asks me when I planned on getting there. Please cue all of the dread. Have you ever drank wayyyyy too much coffee. You know those shakes you get, well, that's how I felt when I answered the phone as I'm driving on these back-ass country roads between Foggy Mountain and Greensburg... It's 1:10 pm, I'm scheduled to start at 1:45, and she wants dress pictures by itself so she needs to know where I am. Ok, so, just to pause, she is the sweetest bride, but we are probably both stressed out and I'm like, I'm on the way. I'll see you in 10! Mind you, her ceremony is supposed to start at 2. We were only going to get a few "fake" getting ready photos before the start, and I'm thinking, OMG, if this runs late, my whole day is going to be thrown off. I get there, get the dress pictures, getting ready, and detail shots and the ceremony starts on time! PHEW! We are back on track baby! I noticed that I missed a call from my second and so I'm riding the line of a panic attack but put on my game face and get through family formals and start the creative portraits of the couples. Congratulations if you've read this far. This is where it gets "fun..." So, I take the couple down to the deck near the lake of Lakeview and bend down to get a low-level shot of them with the fountain in the background. I'm like, huh...That's a different feeling. Where is that breeze coming from...
I look down. Guys, seriously, there is a tear in the crotch of my pants. Full-on dread and panic give way, to well, this is hilariously tragic and I don't think the day can get worse, so let's roll with this. Mind you, I have to go straight to the second wedding. I have no second to spare to go fix this problem. THANK GOD for Gwen and coming in clutch to help recommend poses and take control because my mind is half on, omg, what color underwear did I wear today, and can people see this? Really not where you want your brain at on a wedding day, let alone a 2-wedding day.
So, when I arrive at the second wedding and tell my stressed-out second shooter this delightful tale, he thinks it's hilarious, and it is, just not for me in that exact moment, and his day turns around. You're welcome, Nick... So, I manage to make it to dinner without any more major wardrobe malfunctions, and my friends in Willow Hill absolutely save the day when they give me some gaff tape to tape my pants back together so I can get through the second round of creative portraits with a little less airflow. HAHAHA
And so that is why, I will be keeping an entire set of extra clothes in my car from now on, and also why I have the absolute best friends in the whole world. And now you can go laugh at me and the ridiculous situations I get myself into.
