This is my 2nd venture into professional photography; I shot from 1981-1994 before shuttering and entering the computer/IT arena. I have just celebrated my 2-years anniversary of returning to photography. Back then, I shot weddings. One of the last weddings I photographed is probably my most emotional and memorable one.
One morning, I received a call from a lady who owned a local flower shower shop. Her daughter was getting married and I was highly recommended to her. We talked for a little bit and scheduled an appointment for all of us to sit down and discuss the usual arrangements.
The various meetings following the booking date involved venue accessibility, engagement & pre-wedding shoots, which photos the bride & groom, their parents, etc. wanted and other logistics. One of the images the young bride wanted involved her grandmother. She wanted a pre-ceremony photo of her and granny together in the prep room just before the ceremony began. Apparently, granny had only been photographed one other time in her life, her own wedding day, and had been adamant about not having her photo taken.
Over the weeks leading up to The Day, I made a point of developing a friendship with the family and earned granny’s trust; she agreed to ONE photo of the two of them together.
The day of the wedding arrived and the usual confusion was rampant. I took all of the pre-wedding images on the list and headed to the prep room. When I arrived, I found the bride, her mother and granny in the room doing the last minute touches. I made “The One Shot”… but I’m a photographer; there’s never “just one shot.” During the brief time I had, I capture the “granny-granddaughter” image but, I also managed to capture an image of all three generations together.
One of the presents the couple received was a 2-week cruise which they were to leave for from the reception. Near the end of that first week, I received an urgent phone call from the bride. They had to terminate their cruise because granny had a stroke two days after the wedding and passed away. She wanted to know if I could get a copy of the granny-granddaughter photo for the funeral… she didn’t know about the “three generations” image I captured.
I contacted my lab, explaining the situation and what I needed. They helped me and I presented the family with two images; the one desired and “The Gift of Three.”
I was invited to granny’s service so I went out of respect. When I arrived at the church, they had the one photo at the head of granny’s casket and the unexpected one at the foot. For the longest time after that, we kept in touch and “The Gift” remained one of their most beloved. They had something to cherish forever.
THIS is why I am a photographer!
"Amazement"
"Boys Will Be Boys!"
"My Boys, Maijur & Girbin"
