I've got to shoot a wedding tomorrow. The real deal. A bride and groom, parents, wedding party, brothers and sister, 100 guests, several locations, the works. I've done it about a 1000 times before so no big deal, right? Then why do I have butterflies in my stomach? Why am I obsessing over every piece of gear? The answer....wedding rust.
You see I haven't shot a wedding since early November. It was a busy year and I was shooting every weekend and plenty of weekdays. I was in the groove. Bad lighting? Bring it on. Windy beach? No worries. Stoned bride? Not a problem. Crazy mom? I love em. But now.....wedding rust.
Wedding rust is a real thing and it applies to every facet of the wedding industry. When we haven't photographed for awhile, or prepared specific food in large quantities, or done wedding hair for 3 months we get rusty. I'm not worried, I've been here before and I know I'll snap out of it, as will most venders. I know this is true as when I'm at an early in the year wedding, all the venders kinda roll their eyes at each other...here we go again, I feel like I'm not in the mode.
I think this would apply to most jobs. If you work hard at something and take a few months off, when you get back your not at your very best for a couple of days/weeks. It takes time to get back in the saddle. I know that tomorrow we'll all pull it off, we've just got to be conscious that we're rusty. Here's a few pics of a January wedding I did a couple years ago, the first week of January.
Wide angle shot of groom and groomsmen. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Groom and best man. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Groom an Groomsmen warming up on bicycles. Wrightsville Beach, NC
Groomsmen on bicycles. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Bride and bridesmaids posing before getting ready. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Great January wedding menu. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Bride getting kiss from her dog. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Wedding Dog with bridesmaids in the background. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Closeup of groom. Headshot. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
The wedding ceremony. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Wide angle shot of the wedding ceremony. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Exchanging of vows. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
First Kiss. Standing on pier, water in the background. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Married. Walking up a very short aisle from the pier. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Bride and bridesmaids on a cold January Beach. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Bride and bridesmaids on a cold January Beach, ocean in the background. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Groom and groomsmen casual pose on a January beach. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Groom dipping bride on the beach. January Wedding. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Candid moment on a January Beach in Wrightsville Beach, NC. Beach and seagull in the background.
Bride and groom spinning on a January beach to warm up. Ocean in the background. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Bride flaring her dress on a cold January Beach. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Candid moment between bride and groom with beach house in the background. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Bride grabbing groom by the lapels to pull him in for a kiss. Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Bride and Groom sitting in tree looking into each others eyes in Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Bride and groom sharing a kiss on a pier at Wrightsville Beach, NC. Ocean and beach houses in background.
Side note: Sounds pretty good working for 9 months and taking off 3 doesn't it? Not so fast. There is no real down time. Most wedding folks I know are getting to spend time with family after our crazy hours throughout the year, marketing, lining up events for later in the year, repairing and getting equipment repaired, it slows down but it doesn't stop. There's always something to do and I don't get paid this time of year, but the bills keep coming. Gotta plan to live off my savings and credit cards for a few months, till the season kicks in again. Not complaining, I love what I do...looking forward to 2018.