Why I love a wedding album

Tonight, a couple came to pick up their wall portraits and their wedding album.  As I sat back and watched them page through the book, I started thinking.

We live in a fast paced digital world.  We find information as fast as our fingers can type.  We can send a message all the way around the world in seconds.  A photo can go from your phone across the globe.   It's awesome and amazing technology and utilizing it in my business has been a great gift.  But while all of that technology is amazing and wonderful, there is still this part of me that loves simpler things.

I love the way a pencil touches paper.  I love that when I erase something, the paper doesn't look quite the same because mistakes do stay with us.  We learn from them.  We're never exactly the same way after a mistake just like the paper isn't the same after an eraser has touched it.

I love the sound of writing.  No clicking keys...  Just a smooth quiet noise.  And when I'm stuck creatively, doodling on paper always clears the block.  No amount of typing or mouse clicking can do that.

I love a good book.

The smell.  The feel of the paper.  The noise the pages make when they turn.  The way my hand curls around a book.  I love the way a stack of books isn't just a wonderful way to pass the time but it's also a beautiful display of color, style and size.

So I guess it's no surprise that I love a photo album and printed images.   Watching that couple look through their album tonight  reminded me why I do this. The way they turned the pages.  The way they touched the photos.  The way they leaned in to each other as they shared the experience.  It's tactile.  It's real.  It's actual.  It's an experience that overshadows looking at a screen every time.  Turning a page trumps clicking a button every time.  They remarked that the pictures look so much better when printed.  They do because they're real and substantial.  You can hold them in your hand.  They are there to touch.  And the best things in life are really there, aren't they?

Holding your love's hand.

The feel of two lips touching.

Your mom's lips kissing your forehead.

Wiping away your child's tear.

All tactile and priceless just like photos.

I'm honored to be your photographer.  I'm honored to deliver a photo that will be held by you and your children and maybe even generations beyond that.  It's a precious responsibility.