Do I Miss Photographing Weddings?

 Ashley and Bowen. Valdosta, Georgia, May 8, 2010.

Sometimes. A little bit, maybe.

Many commercial photographers will not do weddings. Some, I'm sure, think it's beneath them. Others find the rapid pace of wedding photography incompatible with the measured, contemplative pace of studio work.

Me, I always enjoyed photographing weddings. What's not to like? Happy people, celebrating a significant occasion in the lives of two families, plus a multitude of friends, all enjoying themselves. Like I say, what's not to like?

For many years weddings were not part of my marketing focus, but if someone asked me, I was usually happy to oblige. You could say that I backed into doing more wedding photography, and the reason for that was because I had good Karma!

That would be Karma Newland, a live-wire twenty-something who became my assistant in 1996. I had recently photographed her wedding, and she was enthusiastic about working with me to do more weddings. Also, commercial photography in the Chattanooga market began slowing down around that time, and I was looking for something to take up the slack.

We had a good run until around 2005. I loaned her one of my digital cameras and she soon became proficient enough to be my second shooter. Eventually, her husband's work took her out of the area. That was the end of my good Karma.

I stayed with it as long as I could. I stopped booking weddings of my own around 2008, but continued to work as a second shooter for other photographers. By 2020, the primary photographer for whom I mostly worked was moving to another city and winding down her business. My last wedding was in 2021, a few days before my 84th birthday. 

But it was kinda fun while it lasted.

The photo: Canon 5D (Classic), Canon EOS 70-200 f4L lens.

Visit my online gallery at https://davejenkins.pixels.com/  

Signed copies of my book Backroads and Byways of Georgia are available. The price is $22.95 plus $4.95 shipping. My PayPal address is djphoto@vol.com (which is also my email). Or you can mail a check to 8943 Wesley Place, Knoxville, TN 37922. Include your address and tell me how you would like your book inscribed.

Photography and text copyright 2025 David B.Jenkins.

I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo -- For the glory of God alone.

Tags:   photography     wedding photography    digital photography     Canon EOS 5D Classic camera     Canon EF 70-200mm f4L lens