"I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where. I love you simply, without problems or pride: I love you in this way because I do not know any other way of loving but this, in which there is no I or you, so intimate that your hand upon my chest is my hand, so intimate that when I fall asleep your eyes close." Pablo Neruda

It’s amazing the way relationships that start out of completely random parts of your life can come back around to mean so much to you. I shoot a lot of engagement sessions. In fact, this time of year I spend most of my time wandering through fields and creek beds, up and down hills and in little back roads laughing about life with the couples who give me the chance to be a part of such a huge time in their lives. For as much time as I spend with a camera in my hand there’s really nothing as humbling to me as shooting the wedding of a friend, let alone the little brother of another friend and past groom as well. To say I’ve found a place in this family is fair but the story here isn’t just about me.

About 10 years ago I started working at a Baptist church down the road from my college as an assistant youth pastor. My job’s weren’t exactly strenuous - basically I was there to lead a small group and facilitate things along with having the chance to go to camps and be a part of these kid’s lives during the week. It really is amazing to me still the impact these kids had on my life and though I was there to somehow teach them I can promise I learned more in the process. All that said this short 2 year stint at this church was where I was blessed enough to meet Dave (the videographer and close friend that we tag along with us all over the place and his awesome little brother Matt). Dave + Matt’s dad was the head pastor of this church and getting to know these boys was a huge blessing to me. At the time I didn’t know what place in my life this whole experience would hold but here we are about a decade down the road and I’m still able to keep up with several of the kids (who are no longer kids) that listened to me read and explain the word to them on Wednesday and Sundays.

Needless to say it meant a lot to me when I found out that Matt had met a girl he wanted to commit his life to. When he called to ask me to photograph the wedding I was at least twice as excited as he was. These two are amazing together. Matt has a big personality and isn’t one to hold back on how he’s feeling. This guy is as blunt as he is smart and I was so excited to meet Sarah who in her own shy, confident way knows exactly how to match him in quick wit and dry sarcasm. Every second of this shoot was a blast but what struck me wasn’t that we had fun - I assumed we would. It’s not even that Sarah toughed it out in below freezing weather with a brisk breeze and no coverage. What caught my eye was how deep and sincere some of the moments are. When Sarah snuggles into Matt’s shoulder you can also see her sense of security and joy. He’s not a big dude but with his arms around her he looks huge and every little vulnerable moment, as fleeting as they often where, left me more convinced that these two are perfect together. So grateful to have held the camera onthis one along side Matt’s older bro Dave as he caught the day on video and Max who we hired right out of college along side Matt. This was a pretty special afternoon.