One of the things I love about photography is the amount of variety there is in the type of work I get to do and the stories I get to tell. Even within the world of wedding photography, there is a fair amount of variety, and this past weekend was no exception.
Andrey and AnnMarie invited me to be part of their Russian Orthodox wedding weekend. Their celebrations lasted for several days, with all manner of beautiful ceremonies, parties, clothing, and friends and family. One of my favorite parts of Russian Orthodox weddings–as a photographer–is that they schedule in half a day just for portraits! I love the fact that we’re given time to create some wonderful portraits of the bride and groom and their wedding party and family, without the rush of being fit in between a ceremony and a reception. Instead, they schedule the portraits on an entirely different day than the ceremony, at a beautiful site. Brilliant!
So, we spent the afternoon at Portland’s Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden, creating some spectacular portraits of them, including 2 different wedding dresses for AnnMarie. Working at a leisurely pace, here’s a taste of what we created:
And then there’s the rest of the party, which lasts for several days. It involves lots of laughter, beautiful clothing, amazing food (I was given some of the best barbecue I’ve ever had), endless drinks, and plenty of goofing around. But it also includes a very rich bond of friendship, and a sense of family and community that is often lacking in our world today. Andrey and AnnMarie are blessed to be surrounded by such a community in their new life together.
We love telling wedding stories like this. Congratulations, AnnMarie and Andrey!
Nice work Fritz. Half a day dedicated to portraits, luxury : )
A luxury and a delight! And well worth the trouble, considering the beautiful portraits we were able to create.