How I became a wedding photographer
I started photography in 2016, a year after my daughter was born. I was suffering from postnatal depression and social anxiety, to the point I was scared to even leave the house. I was looking for something – anything– to make me feel like myself again. I bought my first ‘proper’ camera and it became my armour. I immersed myself in beauty, creativity and escapism, photographing landscapes and our children. Photography was the hand that pulled me out of my shell and back into the world.
I’d posted a few photos on Facebook, and never expected- or even wanted- anything to come from it. So when a friend asked me to photograph her wedding, I immediately said no. In fact, I was so determined not to shoot the wedding, I went round her house with a slideshow of other photographers! But eventually I gave in, and less than a year after buying my first camera, I shot my first wedding. And 8 months after that, I was leaving my job in politics to become a full-time wedding photographer.
2 years later, Covid struck, and it gave me a whole new perspective. I got to see weddings stripped back to their essence, free of expectation, tradition or any of the elaborate dressing we’ve come to expect. And it made me realise just how important what we do is. We get welcomed into people’s families on a day they’ll be talking about for decades. We don’t just get to capture their memories, we get to be a part of them.
I love photography, but that’s not why I love this job. I love this job for the people I get to meet and capture. I love being part of a special moment, and knowing how much joy the photo will bring my couple, and the value it will hold in years to come.
