When I was in college, I went to a sunrise wedding on Sullivan's Island. It was dark when we arrived. The moon was still shining on the water. As the sky turned lighter blue, I could see shapes of people walking down the path over the dunes. Most of the guests were barefoot and carried coffee cups, still steaming. Some of them had sleepy, slowly blinking eyes, like dosing cats. The sun peaked up over the Atlantic turning the sand pink and yellow. The bride's sister handed her some flowers she had put together for her. Everyone whispered.
There were no cameras. That was the part that fascinates me. I thought about the Indigo Girls lyrics, "don't write it down. Don't take a picture. Remember this in your heart," and I have. But as I stood there as a 21-year-old watching this experience, all I could think about was the photographs that I wanted to take: how beautiful the bride looked, how proud the adult children looked and how her golden retriever napped at their feet during the vows. The ceremony lasted 10 minutes and I can think of 100 photographs that I wish I could have taken: photos that would have been nice for the couple to have and return to on hard days. It was so peaceful. At the time, I felt like taking a photograph might have taken something from that very quiet moment.
I think about the peace of that experience every time I see the sunrise, or carry my coffee cup to an early morning destination. I hope I can bring that kind of peace even when (especially when) I have the camera with me.
6.29.2009
Sunrise
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
2 comments:
What a beautiful idea for a wedding! I've never heard of a sunrise one before, I'm sure it was amazing.
and thanks for your sweet comment! I don't have a shop right now, I'm still a student and consequently don't have time to do much else besides homework/intern work. :) but I can't wait until I graduate and can start creating more of the things I love to do!
I think sometimes it is way too tough to "remember it in your heart"-especially at times when your heart is so full, and there is so much going on all around. Photos have a way of slowing down the world so we can take a breath, revisit, ponder, remember--not just for ourselves, but for our loved ones, past and future. Who hasn't reveled in seeing old photos of their grandparents when they were young, when we were not there to share their special days? I know that I need to write it down, take photos (make copies!) AND hold it in my heart all at the same time; and even then, it will go by too quickly. I wonder if all these years later, your friends would chose differently now.
Post a Comment