I’ve been thinking a lot lately about this job I get to do. Several times in the past few weeks, I’ve had people ask me what I do for a living. When I tell them that I’m a wedding photographer, the response is always “Oh, wow! That must be so awesome! What a great job.” And I always agree with them. So lately, I’ve been thinking about why it is that I love this job I get to do and why I’m so incredibly thankful to the people who trust me to do it.
Let me back up for a minute: I recently read a book by Donald Miller, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years. Donald Miller is a Christian author who talks in the book about living a good life story. About having a purpose that is worthy of retelling, a life that is “story” material — something people would want to watch a movie about. It’s pretty interesting, and I loved this idea of “the story.”
The more I thought about it, the more I realized that I’m intrigued by this idea of story, because that’s what I get to be a part of in the lives of my clients. I get to create a visual representation of their love story — whether it’s a wedding day, a newborn baby, or a family in the midst of the craziness of life. For an hour or a day, I get to be a photographic storyteller. And that’s amazing.
When I was younger, I wrote stories all the time. I was going to be a writer with all sorts of novels published. I used to scribble on newspapers before I could even write letters and re-read what I wrote to my parents. But, besides “Jeanie Beanie Jumping Queenie” (a poem I had published in fourth grade), I never published a real story.
Until now… sort of. There’s a big difference, and that’s the best part. As a visual storyteller, I’m not the author of these stories. I’m not the creator, fabricating beauty and emotion and change. I’m just the observer, capturing real life as it happens and preserving it. Because the truth is, in all of my writing days, I don’t think I could have ever matched the powerful impact of these stories I get to glimpse into as a photographer. Real life is more beautiful than anything I could make up.
Just like any story, photography is a journey filled with exploration, challenges, joys, setbacks, and triumphs. I feel so blessed to be on this journey with people who appreciate the art of photography in their lives. I feel so blessed for the people who took a risk on me in the beginning, when I didn’t know too much about photography but had a passion for it — and I feel so blessed for the people who are still asking me to be a part of their stories for a brief time today.
It’s a joy. My heart is full. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to share what’s on my heart, and to be a part of preserving your stories.
If you feel like leaving a comment or feel compelled to express anything in the comments section of this post, I’m going to choose someone at random and send them a copy of A Million Miles in a Thousand Years.
