Making of a wedding photographer (part IV, the leap)

I was a chef at Snowbird Mountain Lodge and this offered me my very first wedding. This couple was getting married and didn’t really want/need a photographer and I had absolutely zero experience with weddings. I’d done a few portrait sessions in the past, I’ve done action photos and of course I’ve done still life and macro photos. I figured that I could just combine all of these disciplines into the skills that I needed for a wedding… I was so underprepared.

Weddings turn out to be a nuanced affair where you only have one chance at getting the shot. The stress at the begging for me was intense. I’ve had parachute malfunctions that were less stressful. I was still figuring out where I needed to be in relation to the bride and groom in order to get the expressions on their faces. The couple was extremely patient with me and they loved the photos that I did for them. Looking back, I wish I’d have done a lot of things differently.

The first wedding in the books, I had been talking to a friend who suggested that I approach some wedding venues. I was unsure of my skills but thought I’d try. Jody at Nantahala weddings and Events was very open to me being one of her vendors. I was grateful for the opportunity. She wanted some photos of the facilities including drone photos and hired me to do it. She had a wedding that weekend with about a hundred guests. They had a photography team already, but I was taking photos for the venue. I tried to stay out of their way but was able to talk to them about what I was doing. This unique experience allowed me to get some shots of bride and groom as well as what was happening at the venue. This really opened my eyes to what I needed to be doing at a wedding.

I was ALL IN on being a wedding photographer now and needed to get some bookings.

The making of a wedding photographer (part III)

I had tons of travel photos from around the world and trying to take photos of landscapes -along with motorcycles nd cars. getting the images into the hands of the drivers has been a challenge. There were a lot of times that the photos were used without me getting paid or even photo credit. Lori Killgurl Cannon and Carla Whaley were gracious enough to let me take their pictures.

Sarah Merrill also let me take photos of her and that got me a lot or follows and customers I will be forever in debt to these ladies. to help me get off the ground by letting me take pretty pictures of them. The photos weren’t always perfect and I only had a vague idea of what I was doing with the camera and absolutely no idea how to pose them.

These portrait photography sessions were definitely a learning experience for me and has made me a much better wedding photographer.

Making of a Wedding Photographer (part II)

I had been taking landscapes for years by now and I thought my photos were great. I really tried to keep people out of my photos, but looking back at some of the travel images, without anyone in them, they look odd. You can’t quite put your finger on it, but to me my photos seem to be like a post-apocalyptic scene.

I was retired from the Army now and took some excellent landscapes. I was on the Rescue Squad as an EMT and sitting on top of the mountain for SCCA Hill Climb event. I brought my camera and was taking photos. I was trying to figure out how to get my pictures into the hands of the drivers.

I could have collected email addresses and sent them photos. I didn’t care if I didn’t make money. I just wanted to get my photos to the drivers so they could hopefully enjoy what I did with my camera.

Theres a road here nicknamed “The Tail of the Dragon”. There’s (allegedly) 318 curves in 11 miles and several photography companies that work on the road. I thought it would be a cruel and selfish if theres people who make their living doing this and I’m giving photos away for free. I decided to reach out to one one of these companies, Killboy.com and talk to him about distributing my work.

Darryl (Killkoy) liked what I did and published my work in his online store. I made what his staff photographers made for selling an image and he got a cut for managing the business. I thought it was a win-win!

Making of a Wedding Photographer (part 1)

My interest in photography began in the late 1970’s. There was a project in a Boy Scout Magazine to build a home-made pinhole camera using 110 film. I made my own camera out of a butter box. It took horrible photos and I dont remember ever getting a sharp image, but I was hooked.

I took a photography class at my junior high school where we developed our own film in a dark room. Throughout high school I took photos with a 110 camera, my dad’s 35mm Pentax and disposable 35mm box cameras.

I’ve had cameras on and off throughout my adult years but my real love of photography wasn’t rekindled until until the early 2000s with my purchase of my first digital DSLR. I was in the Army stationed at Fort Lewis, near Seattle, WA. I was also in a position to travel quite a bit and take photos all over the world while I was working for Generals.

My wife, Kirsty is originally from Scotland and still has quite the accent. She enheritied my old cameras as I upgraded and developed her own interest in photography. That’s how we got the business name of “Scotch and Waller”

When I retired from the Army in January of 2016, I moved to the Smoky Mountains of NC. I was taking landscape photos of this beautiful area.

I had no idea how to make money with my photography until one day I was watching a Hill Climb car race and taking photos. I didn’t know how to get my photos into the hands of the racers. I linked up with a local photographer who had a business called Killboy.com and took photos of cars and motorcycles in the area. I worked with him for a couple of seasons on and off.

(to be continued)