The Mooring Bed and Breakfast/Reid State Park- Emily & Derek
Samantha Gallaher
One of my 2020 brides reached out to me needing her photos to be resent to her. These things happen, believe me, and I can relate more than she knows. Some of my former wedding clients have reached out looking for family portraits and have asked me if I remember their wedding from years ago. This question always shocks me. Of course I do! Your weddings are your special day, but they are special to me too, I promise.
I can also relate to the feeling like maybe you won’t be remembered. As your photographer, I won’t be the life of your party. I aim to be an unobtrusive observer of your day. Honestly, your wedding photographer should never be the most memorable part of your wedding day. I want my clients to remember having an easy, stress-free experience working with me and beyond that, I want them to re-live their own memories when they look at the photos I give them.
What I remember from Emily and Derek’s 2020 wedding is this: They were both incredibly sweet with a genuine and obvious affection for one another. Their love was a quiet one, not the loud and boastful type but the kind that you know will continue to grow over time instead of fade. They were fairly reserved during their portraits at Reid State Park, but willing to try whatever prompts I suggested. I vividly recall moments during these portraits where the newlywed glow was palpable.
Despite their reserved nature during formal portraits, the dance floor is where their true personalities shone. I absolutely adore the moments where I see my couples really come alive and enjoy their day to the fullest. I remember them sweetly offering me a slice of cake and insisting that I take some when I politely declined. They had the most incredible wedding playlist and I have a vivid sense-memory of them cutting their cake to The New Basement Tapes', "When I Get My Hands On You" during the blue hour lighting. Their wedding was early into the pandemic, when we were all swimming in uncertainty. But I was certain that I would never forget their day because I never forget any of the days I am chosen to be a part of.