in my next life

When I was a kid my mother used to say in her next life she was going to "come back" as our cat. It was kind of a joke in our house that this cat was living the high life, and every now and then we would entertain the thought of who or what we would do in our next life (please note, this was all in good fun and does not in any way reflect our religious beliefs). I have zero interest in being a cat, and although the thought of being a celebrity is tempting there isn't one I would really want to trade places with on an every day basis (no, not even Britney...think bare feet and gas station).

So this is what I've come up with.  In my next life I'm going to come back as a wedding photographer. I'm pretty convinced that these people have the coolest job on the planet. Not only can they channel their creative energy into making beautiful art, but they are hired to capture the moments of what possibly is deemed "the best day" of someone's life.  How awesome is that? Sure, taking family pictures is fun and rewarding, but a family photo session doesn't hold a candle to a beautiful wedding. I guess snapping pics of a high school senior or a beautiful newborn baby might be cool, but I would much rather shoot a bride in the gown that she's dreamed about her whole life. (Do you have a new baby? If so pick up the phone and call Summer Adams- she is an incredible newborn photographer! Seriously A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!)

This thought came full circle to me the other night while attending a friend's wedding. The photographers followed her around all night, making sure they captured every single moment of her day. The bride and groom were having a blast, and they were there to witness it all. What a fun job! Easy, no. Fun, yes.

My friend Kristy is a wedding photographer, and I just love hearing her stories and watching her business grow. Her styled engagement sessions are so cool that I'm planning a fake engagement just for the pictures (neither she or my husband are aware of this yet). And every time my friend Melissa posts pics from a wedding it makes me want to get married all over again...with the same groom, of course =).  These girls are totally awesome, and I respect their talent and ability to pick up a camera and make magic happen. Of course I recognize there is a tremendous amount of work that goes into building a successful photography business- like anything, if it were easy then everyone would do it.  I just think this particular job would be pretty darn cool.

For those of you who will respond to this with the Oprah-fied "it's never too late" motto, no worries. I've got it covered.  I am happy to live vicariously through Kristy and Melissa's experiences and beautiful pictures. In the meantime I enjoy playing around with our fancy camera at home, and somehow I've managed to become the resident Junior League photographer (please don't hold the awful CFR lighting against me you guys!). I've even added a photography class to my Bucket List. One of these days I'll get to it.