7 years ago today, Sue and I said these vows to each other. I have to say that more then anything else from our wedding, I’m most proud of these vows. They are like our constitution. And like the more famous constitution, they did not come easily but when they did they really made a difference. I like them not because I live up to them everyday but because they help guide me in those moments when I don’t want to live up to them. We pull them out from time to time but the thought of them is with me always.

“I Sue/Joey, take you Joey/Sue to be my husband/wife.
I promise to honor, cherish and adore you.
I promise to laugh and play with you…to respect and believe in you.
I promise to live my life to the fullest and bring passion and adventure to our marriage.
I promise to work through the challenges and difficulties that lie ahead.
I promise to create a safe place where we can let down our guard and be vulnerable…
…and I know that we’ll make a difference in the world, not by being perfect but by being ourselves.
I promise to continue our love affair and grow in ways our relationship will require.
I promise to be your friend and partner…to trust and forgive you.
And I promise to love you – even when you forget how amazing you are – so that when my one precious life comes to an end, we’ll both say this was the best thing we ever did.”

Joey and Sue
San Francisco
September 26th, 2004

In the past couple month’s I’ve really started to think about my work and what I love about photography. Most photographers would say its something about the ability to share one’s vision with the world. I would agree and those thoughts took me back to the moment that I thought I could be a photographer. It was before Lucius was born and I walked into a friend’s house as saw a photo of a boy that I found engaging and different then your average children photos. Took me a few moments to realize that I was looking at one of my photos. That was the first time I saw my work displayed at someone’s house. That was the moment that I thought I had something interesting to offer as a photographer.

I say this because I’ve realized that photos achieve an entirely different level of impact and significance once they are printed and displayed. I had actually looked that the photo of our friend’s son many times on my computer but never “hey – I might have a career at this”. It wasn’t until I saw it live and in color that it meant something to me.

This made me realize that what I love about photography isn’t so much the photo but actually creating art for people’s homes. There is nothing better then delivering a picture to a client and seeing their faces light up as they hang their canvas or thumb through their album.

This is impacting how I approach my sessions. Now when I work with clients my goal is to create images that they will be displayed in their homes and become part of their family’s legacy. Of course some people simply need images for holiday cards or announcements which is absolutely ok, but my personal goal is to capture something that they will love to hang on their walls. I’m also using software to show people exactly how images will look in their home or office. So now I can help clients determine the perfect image, material and size for a specific spot it their home. All of my wedding packages include albums so that my couples can experience their day for years to come. And I’ve created ordering specials where I basically include digital copies in the price of prints and albums.

My goal now isn’t so much to take great photos but to create family art for homes. Much harder to do of course but so much more valuable for valuable to my clients and rewarding for me.

A few images that are now hanging in homes right now…