Today would have been my grandparent’s 65th wedding anniversary. Grandpa Mark died a few years before I was born. Grandma Betty died 3 years ago today, joining Mark in death on the 62nd anniversary. Grandma Betty was one of those people that was instrumental in helping me become the person I am today. Of course, I didn’t know that or appreciate her for it as a kid! I thank God for her now though. I wanted to share with you two photographs of them and what they mean to me as a wedding photographer.
I adore this first photo for so many reasons; the wind blowing grandma’s dress and the clothesline, the way grandpa is holding her and the way they are gazing at each other. It inspires me. I want to create images that capture that look of love between two people. All of these years later, you don’t have to guess how much they cared for one another – you can see it, in that moment, frozen in time. My job is one of recording moments between people, and I am honored to be present at those times.
I take my job as a wedding photographer seriously because of this second photo. It’s 65 years later and we find ourselves looking at this piece of their wedding day. I don’t know where my clients will be in 65 years; perhaps they’ll be celebrating together, perhaps they’ll be separated, perhaps their surviving grandchildren we be looking at their wedding photos and remembering how much they loved their grandparents, I can’t know. But I can do my best that day to create memories that will exist for years to come.
Happy Anniversary Grandpa Mark and Grandma Betty!