A m y & C a r l
8.8.15
This will be a long one, you've been warned... but in order to understand the portraits from this wedding, you're going to have to read this one.
I photograph a lot of weddings. Nearly every weekend from May until November, I'm photographing a wedding & to be frank, it's very seldom that there is a wedding that is so genuinely different from the next that it leaves me more than humbled to have been a part of it.
Now, before you jump to conclusions and make the assumption that I'm in any way stating that most weddings are monotonous that's absolutely not so, every wedding I photograph is unique & has it's own personal touch to it, this wedding however just happened to have several unique moments that truly made me step back a moment & remind myself to remember what's important.
First, there's a portrait in here that I have to explain because Amy has no idea what her mother has had planned for months & you may be curious yourself to what the story is behind this edited photograph. Several months ago I received a phone call from Amy's mother Denise out of the blue, she explained to me that Amy's father had passed away & she was wondering if she could send me some photographs of him to edit him into a photograph of her walking down the isle.
Of course, without hesitation - I said yes. & when offered payment, said "No Ma'am!"
This was pretty difficult to do because of the photographs I had... I didn't know if I could pull it off & then it dawned on me... that it didn't have to look perfect, it could even easily look like an edit & that... that would be okay.
So, I already knew that we had this planned & that it was going to be an emotional wedding.
Then, at the point in which I assume that this wedding could not be more unique than to have to fulfill this particular request... I talk to Amy about a month before the wedding and she tells me that her 96 year old grandmother will not be able to attend the wedding. so she wants to go visit her the day of the wedding so that she can see her & Carl on their wedding day.
What I did not know however is that on the day of the wedding, Amy would be bringing her grandmother a flower & pinning it to her, as way to include her on the wedding day. It's gestures like this that really tell a lot about the character of an individual. We live in a time where we don't stop to think about things like this & it was a breath of fresh air to have these truly individualized events taking place in the middle of wedding.
After this, we went to the cemetery so that Amy could visit her father. This is something that I knew in advance we'd be doing, but I don't think you fully understand the impact that something is going to have on you until you're there experiencing it. I made the suggestion that Amy leave a flower from her bouquet on his grave, which I think ended up being the perfect gesture... & then that's all that was said.
What do you say to someone experiencing this on their wedding day? You really don't say anything at all, you just... be there for her. & Amy has a wonderful support system, two of her best friends - her husband & her maid of honor were there for hugs when she returned.
So it's because of all the above aforementioned events that this wedding became one of the most memorable weddings I have ever photographed & I am genuinely humbled, honored even to be able to share their photographs with all of you.
XOXO
Crystal Broussard
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