Life And Photography.
Usually it’s Weddings. Family. Parties. Fun.
But what about the parts of life that aren’t always fun?
One of my all time favorite photographers, Jeremy Cowart, was shooting John Schneider a few years ago. During the shoot, John received a call that his father had passed away. Instead of dropping everything, he asked Jeremy to instead continue to take photos as he processed everything… It was heartbreaking, and moving, and amazing. You can check it out here: https://www.jeremycowart.com/schneider
Sometimes, dealing with life is not fun, but that doesn’t make it any less life… And while those aren’t the events we always think of when we think of having pictures taken, they can be incredibly powerful.
I was asked recently to do a trash the dress shoot, but not your typical one. One that symbolized the end of a marriage, not the beginning. At first, I was extremely hesitant, it was way outside my comfort zone, and it just made me feel… weird. But, as I thought about it, John’s story came to mind, and I decided to at least consider the idea.
When looking up ideas for “trash the dress - divorce style” google instantly returned images of burning dresses, ripped dresses, women spray painting obscenities on the dress… And I get all that, I really do. But I wanted to help tell a different story.
I wanted to tell a story that is about someone growing, changing, adapting, overcoming, figuring stuff out, falling apart, getting back up, re-inventing, re-imagining, re-building. Because that story will be a much more powerful one in a year, in 5 years, and hopefully for the rest of their life.
Sometimes life doesn’t go the way you expect. And thats ok.
Deal with it the best you can, move on, move up, stay positive, stay strong, and make ways for you to remember those times when you though you wouldn’t pull through. You got this.
