I can’t remember whether I mentioned it at the time, but way back in August some good friends of ours hired me to be one of three photographers shooting at their wedding.

I still remember how thrilled I was when they asked me—I had just recently purchased my fancy pants digital SLR camera, and I was beginning to discover more and more what joy photography brought me. This was my chance to prove myself.

The wedding was absolutely gorgeous—highly photogenic, and I enjoyed myself more than I ever expected to. I drove home that evening satisfied that I had captured some truly unique moments, and that the bride would love my photographs.

But here’s the catch. Because of our very casual agreement, the bride and I never set an expectation for when I would deliver her disc of edited photos to her. And because I am the busy, procrastinatory person that I am, the school year started and I still had not edited her pictures. Unacceptable, I know.

Well, I’m lucky that she’s so forgiving. But I hope the photos were worth the wait. Today, I delivered to her a slidehow of (in my opinion) the best photos from her wedding. (You can view that set here on Flickr) Her reaction as she watched it was absolutely priceless. I felt a warm fuzzy feeling watching her. I love the fact that my simple photos can remind her of one of the happiest days of her life—fantastic!

As it happens, this evening I met with another couple to discuss photographing their wedding. The bride is the daughter of some long-time family friends. Tonight, as I talked to her, her parents, and her fiancee, I caught some of that infectious excitement again. I really can’t wait for their wedding at the end of December. (And don’t worry; we already set a delivery date for the photos. )

I would be the first to admit that I am no kind of hotshot wedding photographer. I do not have the skill or the experience that the people who charge thousands of dollars do. Also, I think a walrus has more business sense than me.

But what I do have is an intense passion for capturing important moments in people’s lives in a beautiful, memorable way, an eye for detail and composition, and a growing technical skill. At the very least, I have promise. I have no idea what I will do with that promise, but… for the time being, I am loving every minute that I spend photographing people.

In addition to a number of habits, I seem to have picked up a set of accouterments for productivity this quarter:

Now, whenever I am studying or writing or doing basically any kind of work that has to do with paper, I feel incomplete without my lovely colored pens and my iPod and my reading glasses. Shallow, I know, but these items actually make me feel more like studying. I liken their effect to that an actor feels when he puts on a costume and becomes that character. I put in my earbuds and put on my glasses and I am studious.

Which, incidentally, is what I should get back to being right now. Cheers.

• Thinking
• Walking
• Talking
• Living out of my backpack
• Drinking coffee
• Wearing reading glasses
  
• Still periodically behaving like a five year old

And… heck! The quarter’s not even quite over. Who knows what might happen in the next two-ish weeks.

Who decided that it was a good idea for me to walk out of the house today wearing a bright purple sweater, a bright turquoise cardigan, and bright red shoes?

Whoever she is, I should fire her.

Also, the person who decided that it was a good idea to just fall asleep last night without first getting ready for bed and then was so rushed this morning that she left on the exact same pants—and MAKEUP—that she was wearing yesterday?

She should be fired too. For making me look and feel like a hobo. All day.

(P.S. I don’t think I should be allowed to write blog entries when I am tired and snarky. )

… Camel hair jackets smell like decomposing wookie carcasses when they get wet.

Okay, maybe that is not strictly true. Maybe it is only camel hair jackets purchased at “Value Village” in Springfield, Oregon that smell like decomposing wookie carcasses when they get wet.

You see, I have this really fantastic jacket. It is cute, it is warm, it is made of camel hair. But Oregon has this funny thing called “rain,” and camel hair, as it turns out, is not a fantastic rain repellent. Nor is it fantastic at not smelling foul.

But I am boycotting my puffy blue raincoat in favor of this camel hair coat anyway. Why? Because my raincoat is ugly and makes me depressed, and this coat is cute and it makes me happy.

I’m sure my friends will be willing to hold their noses for fashion’s sake.

(P.S.: Do you like how neatly I managed to reference wookies twice in one week? I may have to make this a tradition.)