Shooting a wedding is always a very special occasion for me. Following the couple everywhere forms a bond that usually grows even stronger after delivering photos and taking orders for large prints or photo books . I want it to remain so and consciously avoid overbooking.
I have been very lucky with my couples, meaning that all of them have been happy with me and I have been happy with them. This young autumn couple I will remember for appreciating photography even past some other aspects of wedding. It was a moderate, unpretentious wedding and they had very reasonable expectations for photography.
I remember the bride sitting in front of me in our first meeting, saying: “We don’t need lots of photos.” And with a little anticipation in her voice she added: “But hopefully some of them will be really good!” What could I say to make her feel confident of me? Not much. I’m never sure myself, to be honest. There is no measure of being really good. Something you considered being rather good yesterday is average to you today. You can compare yourself to who ever and feel accordingly.
I don’t remember what I answered then, but I know the answer now: I will definitely not get worse! So if there’s something that you’ve seen in my blog and liked, this is the standard you can expect. Hopefully even better little by little, but I will not fail. (With a little help from God almighty :) )
After I delivered their wedding photos and a 30×45 cm print as a gift to my couple the young married man said looking fondly at his wife: “Beautiful wedding photos were important to you. I’m happy that we got them.” They ordered a 60x90cm canvas and a photo book to complement the regular postcard size prints. It’s not important how well off someone is, but how highly they value your work.
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Pulm on ka fotograafi jaoks väga oluline sündmus. Nii planeerimisfaas kui külg külje kõrval veedetud päev loovad pruutpaari ja fotograafi vahel sideme, mis üheskoos pilte vaadates ning suuri trükke või fotoraamatuid tellides aina tugevneb. Mulle meeldib mõelda, et nii jääbki, et mäletan nende nimesid ja lugusid veel aastaid hiljem.
Mul on oma pruutpaaridega väga vedanud: nemad on minuga rahule jäänud ja mul on neist ainult head mälestused. Ütlen seda lootuses, et sa ei kahtle mu siiruses. Need noored abiellunud jäävad mulle meelde, sest fotograafia oli nende jaoks oluline. Vahest isegi olulisem kui mõni teine osa sellest armsast, tagasihoidlikust tseremooniast pereringis. Ka nende ootused fotograafile olid realistlikud.
Mäletan esmakohtumist pruudiga, kui ta istus teisel pool lauda ja ütles: “Meile ei ole tähtis, et pilte oleks palju.” Minu heakskiitva noogutuse peale lisas ta, ärevusenoot hääles: “Aga ma väga loodan, et me saame mõned head pildid, kasvõi ühe!” ja jäi mulle lootusrikkalt otsa vaatama. Olin ausalt öeldes kimbatuses. Mida vastata, et ta mind valides end kindlalt tunneks, aga samas mitte ootusi üles paisutada?
Ma ei mäleta, mida ma siis vastasin, aga mõtlemisainet jagus mulle sellest tükiks ajaks. Kui sind palgatakse ü h t e head pilti tegema, annab ikka seljanahal ka pisut tunda, aga see selleks… Vastuse mõtlesin igatahes välja: halvemaks ma mingil juhul ei lähe. See tähendab, kui sulle on mõned minu senistest töödest meeldinud, siis see on standard, milles võib kindel olla. Loodetavasti õpin iga kord midagi ja oskan kõike järjest paremini enda kasuks pöörata, aga ma vähemalt ei pane puusse! (Kui just kogu maailm minu vastu ei keera :) )
Kui peale pulmi töö üleandmiseks uuesti kokku saime, ütles värske abielumees, õrnalt oma kaasale otsa vaadates: “Ilusad pulmafotod olid sulle nii olulised ja me saime need.” Lisaks tellisid nad fotoraamatu ja 60x90cm fotolõuendil seinapildi. Minu jaoks on loo iva selles, et oluline pole mitte ainult see, kui suured on kellegi võimalused, vaid kui palju ta väärtustab sinu tööd.
2 comments
Excellent blog you have here.. It’s difficult to find high quality writing like yours nowadays. I honestly appreciate people like you! Take care!!
Thank you! I do my best to write exactly what I mean every time and not only for SEO which seems to be a common practice.