Harry Potter’s annoying isn’t he? One minute he’s a wimpy kid who lives in a closet, then a fancy wand and a few games of Quidditch later and he’s the most powerful boy wizard ever! How did he get that gig?! And every year amazing things just happen; like epic battles with He Who Sounds Like Vol-Au-Vent!
If only it was just as easy to become a professional wedding photographer, right?! Why can’t you equip yourself with a decent camera, do a few shoots and then have weddings just magically come looking for you?
Well the good news is that it can and does happen. Because it happened to me. So allow me to tell you the story of my first wedding and a certain someone called Harry!
I was in the classic Catch 22 situation: aching to shoot a wedding but lacking any previous experience and with no idea when I was going to get my first taste! However, I knew when the chance came I would be ready. In a previous post I mentioned how I spent a couple of years prior to this point learning and practising four main genres of photography, knowing that they would prepare me to be a very competent second shooter. Well now I wanted to put my theory to the test!
My lucky break came through my day job. I work in a large advertising agency which is populated with young, cool, creative types and I had established myself as the company’s most passionate amateur photographer (read: I talked about my photography at every opportunity!), so it was really just a matter of time until an opportunity came my way. And it came in the form of my female co-worker and fellow camera enthusiast Harry. Harry was a couple of months away from marrying Sam at an outdoor ceremony up at Freshwater, one of Sydney’s pretty northern beaches. She had been a fan of my work for some time and invited me along as a second shooter so I could gain some invaluable experience and kickstart my wedding portfolio. Read More→
I’m a born and bred Londoner who decided to give up the rat race, move halfway round the world to Australia and live by beautiful Bondi Beach.
But that’s not all. I also bought loads of cool camera gear to play with then realised I could use it to make a living, and now I run a successful wedding and baby photography business.
My background in media and marketing has been invaluable in quickly establishing myself, particularly through social networking, and I’m keen to help others do the same. I also strongly believe in giving back to the community, so look out for my blog posts where I’ll be sharing thoughts, insights, and tips about life as an emerging wedding photographer.