2026 was a big year!
I did 8 weddings this year. 3 full weddings, 1 city hall wedding, 2 weddings as a second shooter with Francyne and 2 with Nathalie. My daughter Cathy also came to 3 weddings as a second/ /third/photobooth photographer. 8 is not bad - I feel like I would like try for 10, but honestly it might start to feel like work.
It was all a piece of cake compared to last year, (I recovered from major surgery and got help from Francyne and Cathy to cover my weddings) but still, planning, shooting, editing and delivering wedding photos is not for the faint of heart. I delivered my last wedding yesterday and I now call the year over, for weddings anyway. I already have three weddings on the books for next year (one elopement, and two as a second shooter) with two or three possibles. My clients tend to book 8-10 months before their wedding date. Fingers crossed!
Every wedding, with no exception, is always the best wedding of the year. Every wedding has beautiful people getting married, beautiful guests, and lovely venues. Some, of course, are more better than others but it's always chronological.
Every time I book a client, I'm amazed they are willing to put down money on me, just some guy on the internet, so thank you all for your trust. Every time it's the day before a wedding, I can't sleep from the nerves: am I a fraud? I'm nervous up until the moment I meet the people (I'm usually on groom prep) and start talking and taking pictures. After that the day just unfolds. As I'm taking pictures, I'm aware that there are some good ones in there, but it's hard to tell on the back of the camera.
When I get home after the day, I dump all of the RAW files onto my computer and do a quick scan to collect my "quick 24" images, delivered within 24 hours. I'm relieved that there are so many great shots, and I bang out the quick ones. Later, when I'm procrastinating on editing thousands of photos, I'm worried there won't be a lot of good ones but I'm always happy to see that there are a ton of good ones.
People laughing. People dressed up. Kids sprinting all over the place. Happy people. A bit of drama, but not too much. Couples, about to be married, seeing each other for the first time in their wedding outfits. The ceremony. Family photos. Group photos. The couple on their own. Receptions and dinner, speeches, the first dances, tossing and cutting and all the other rituals, and then we're out of there.
I always bring sandwiches but I never eat one until the drive home. Those sandwiches are always the best.
I just delivered my last wedding of the year, and I'm ready for next year.
