— The Image Is Found - Heartcrafted Images of Weddings and Families Since 2002

THE LEGACY PROJECT

After photographing hundreds of weddings over the past thirteen years, we found ourselves with a deep curiosity about the role our photographs play once our job is finished. Once the wedding day is relocated to memory, and marriage in all of it’s better and worse-s becomes ever-present, do the images we made still resonate? This curiosity led to a collaborative project in which we asked the couples we’ve photographed to write about the one photo from their wedding day that reminds them of what really matters. Which singular photograph has transformed from an image of something into the very memory of something? This is a collection of those images as chosen by the couples as well as their words about why they consider it the one.

Our intention for the project was to gather the insight from our couples to see if the images that we loved and meant the most to us, were the same ones they loved then, and still loved now. We were curious to see if any of them would choose the images that were “so creative” and on trend when they were taken and were humbled to find that none of them made the cut. What we discovered instead, is that the simple, un-coerced, authentic moments are the ones that time and time again resonate 1 year, 5 years, even 13 years later. Many of the photos these couples selected are not images we would have blogged, Instagrammed, or even put in our portfolio, but they perfectly encompass the honor of why we do what we do. The stories behind them, what the photos mean to them now, and why they chose it, started us down a path of shifting how we photograph today and moving forward. This realization and introspection has resulted in two truths we repeat before any wedding day:

LESS US, MORE YOU.

It is not about us or our ego. It’s about you and the images that we need to find, rather than create.

LESS LIKES, MORE LEGACY.

If an image doesn’t matter later, it doesn’t matter now.

This project has opened our eyes to the fact that everyone will have the one photo that perfectly reflects how they feel about their relationship, their love, and their wedding day. It’s the one they’ll show their grandchildren someday and go back for if the house is burning down. It’s the one that remains and the beauty of it all is that more often than not, it won’t be particularly noteworthy to anyone else but them. After reading these stories, these photographs mean more to us than any other photographs we have taken simply because their meaning extends far beyond what they mean to us to what truly matters.

So many of the photographs that you have taken hold so much meaning for us. The engagement photos, the wedding photos, our family photo shoot. In many ways you are the documenters of our entire relationship. We have only been together for five years (our first date was 9/23/09). The walls in our house and the photos in frames on our shelves are close to 50% images that you have taken, including one of the best portraits ever of Moxie, our dog, who sadly passed away this spring.

For our wedding, it is hard to narrow it down to one photograph, however. We are honored that a portrait of us is featured in such a major way in your studio and in your bridal show booth, but that is because it is a great image, and you are mostly responsible for its greatness (some credit goes to the dress and the shoes peeking out from behind the emoticon). The fact is, we would love that image even if it wasn't of us -- it is simply a great photograph.

For us, the meaningful "image" is the photobooth series that you "choreographed" and has hung on a prominent wall in each of the homes we have lived in since we were married.

SO MANY OF THE MOST IMPORTANT PEOPLE IN OUR LIVES ARE FEATURED, AND THEY REPRESENT THE DAY SO WELL (YOU CAN ALMOST FEEL THE LATE JULY HUMIDITY EMANATING FROM THE BODIES). THEY ARE ALSO A GREAT CONVERSATION STARTER, AS THERE ARE SO MANY STORIES CAPTURED SUCCINCTLY IN THOSE FEW IMAGES.

And yes, new stories have emerged: when Heidi, Sondra's sister, and her then boyfriend, John, broke up, we weren't sure how to handle it. The pictures work so well together, and this was the only image of Heidi, so we didn't want to remove it. Instead, we fashioned a small paper bag out of brown paper, and we placed it carefully over John's head, where it remains to this day.

- Sondra and Ben -