Ten Glorious Years
Get a Life. Not a Job.
20 glorious years ago, as an impressionable young lad, searching for my place in this world and ever trying to figure out what the heck I wanted to be when I grow up, I read those words… Get a Life. Not a Job. Where? I can’t remember. Perhaps an army recruitment commercial? But as cliché, as it may be, that motto helped shape and guide many pivotal decisions I’ve gone on to make in my life and my “job” choices. It’s what’s kept me out of office cubicles ever since. It’s what led me into careers in athletics, white water guiding, mountain guiding, ski guiding, firefighting, and then ultimately (but probably not finally), and much to my own surprise… wedding photography.
If anyone had asked me back then, or even 10 years later, if I thought I’d grow up to be a wedding photographer, I think I’d have laughed. But had anyone described to me then, what my life (not my job) looks like now, 20 years later… how, where, and with whom I’m spending my time… I think I would have said, “Well that sounds pretty freakin’ awesome.” And such has been the consequence of relentlessly pursuing a life I love, as opposed to any job in particular… a career I could never have predicted, but a life I’ve always dreamed of.
That started, of course, all those 20 years ago, with meeting and falling for a girl who wanted the same… a life of adventure and, consequently, whatever jobs or careers could facilitate that. And so, Erika and I kept falling into things together… love, of course, but also outdoor adventure, travel, coffee, wine, and so many other beautiful things, including photography… not as a career, at first, but as a storytelling device for our travels and adventures.
Then, in May of 2008 – exactly 10 years ago -, everything shifted without us or anyone knowing. Two friends got married and made the fateful decision to ask us to photograph the wedding. That and a butterfly flapped its wings…
We had no idea! No idea what we were doing (sorry Tara and Joel), no idea what to expect, no idea how to light, and certainly no idea that we were forming the makings of a tiny snowball atop a steep, deep snow slope.
After that first wedding, Tarra and Joel asked us if we’d continue to photograph more weddings. Our response was a resounding, “Fuck no!” We were so out of our element. So stressed. So challenged… all the things we’ve grown to love about wedding photography today.
If anyone had been able to look into the future and describe for us, during that first wedding, where we would be 10 years later, we simply would not have believed it. That not only would we be working as full-time professional wedding photographers, but we’d be internationally recognized as two of the best in the world, documenting wedding celebrations all around the world, photographing the weddings of world-renowned photographers, teaching professional photographers all over the world, and travelling with our kids all around the globe. The very notion of any, let alone all of that would have sounded so ridiculously insane to us then. And so, we pinch ourselves almost every day now.
Our cameras have brought us to 26 countries on 6 continents. We’ve met incredible humans all around the world. We’ve witnessed the most intimate and emotional of ceremonies. We’ve experienced the craziest and wildest parties of our lives. We’ve seen the most beautiful oceans and mountains and cathedrals. We’ve observed the most beautiful relationships. And we’ve felt the most incredible love within, and between families.
We still don’t know what we wanna be when we grow up, but we know the life we wanna live… and we’re livin’ it.
Thank you, Tarra and Joel, for starting this whole crazy snowball for us. We sucked ass at your wedding, but we poured our hearts and souls into it, as we have for each and every wedding ever since (more than a hundred now).
Thank you to all our incredible couples and families who’ve believed in us and trusted us with your priceless memories. Documenting and immortalizing these momentous celebrations around the world is an honour that will forever inspire our work and our life.
To celebrate this 10 Year Anniversary, we’ve put together this little collection of some of our favourite images from the weddings we’ve been trusted with throughout the past ten years…
Check out some of our favourite shots through the years:
