Dec 16, 2016

Another bitter cold day starting out with my alarm going off and not enough sleep. I was in for an English teacher at Memorial, and her first class really got me started off right. It was a small group and they sat silently working for the entire class. It was kind of incredible. I had an early break which was nice because I was hungry anyway. I saw Aiden because he was home sick and then I went back in for the second part of the day. The next class was loud but mostly working. The final class was mostly quiet and working, but I had to write one girl up for being an asshole about not doing her work and then disrupting other people. So it goes.

I came home and had some Gardein chick'n strips after work and then tried to take a nap. I guess I slept a little bit, but I've been bad at naps lately. Tracy and Christie were supposed to pick me up at 6:30, but they were running late. They ended up being over a half hour late, but that's not really unusual for them. We drove up the Parkway to the Stone Pony in time to park, walk a few blocks in the cold, and get inside the venue to a definitely over-capacity crowd where we had to shuffle sideways to get across the room. We didn't have to wait long for Jimmy Eat World to come on.

While the band was incredible and played an amazing set, the crowd was beyond shitty. It was packed in tight, but almost everyone was literally just standing there during their heavier and more upbeat songs. Like not even nodding their heads to the beat. I honestly do not understand why those people were there or how they were enjoying themselves. I completely understand not wanting/needing to jump around at a show, but how can you stand totally still? Doesn't music generally move people to dance a little bit? I always feel bad for the band too because they're rocking their hearts out on stage and getting no response.

I ended up really wishing I had not sold my Taking Back Sunday tickets because you know damn well that crowd would have been insane as always. Live and learn. It's just a bummer that the shows had to be on the same night. Our drive home was long, but Tracy and I chatted a lot about travel and where we'd like to end up living so that was nice. I don't get to have a lot of one on one chats with her these days. I was definitely ready for bed when I got home

Oct 19, 2013

I headed up to the Asbury Park area to meet Quinny, the photographer I was second shooting for today. He seemed like a good guy and we got along well. We had a busy schedule for the day so we got started right away talking about the logistics, then I went to the groom's house to shoot the guys getting ready. Of course the guys are usually done getting ready when I get there for this part, but there's always the same problems like trying to figure out how to put the flowers on their lapel or how to fold their pocket squares. It's always funny to watch, and I still don't understand why they leave it up to the guys to figure it out. Despite this, we got some cool shots in the road and house, including one of my favorite shots I've taken with groomsmen. When he said, "Do you mind if we take a picture with the guns?" I had no idea this would happen.

The guys caught the trolley, stopped at the liquor store that the family owns, then headed over to the church. It was a while before everyone arrived and filled the pews so I shot around and watched the bagpipers practice. It was a proper Irish Catholic wedding. Once getting started the ceremony went quickly (for a Catholic service) and all went well. After the receiving line, we did grouped pictures with the family inside and outside with the wedding party and then it was off to the beach!

We went down to the Asbury Park boardwalk to shoot in the old Casino building and on the beach. Quinny has his routine down so much that he was going really quickly with each shot. I did the best I could to keep up, but not knowing exactly what he was doing each time made it harder.  I liked a lot of the shots he was doing and took a mental note of them for the future. I wanted to direct the group sometimes, but he was in the zone so I didn't interrupt. I suppose I should be more assertive sometimes.

Our next stop was Monmouth University. This place is beautiful. The inside has gorgeous lighting, marble staircase, arched doorways, and an awesome garden outside. We made use of all of these aspects. Quinny and his videographer got some really great shots here. It was a hard balance for me trying to shoot details and close-ups while also getting some wide portfolio shots of each scene for myself.

Finally it was time to head to the reception at a beautiful hall not far away. They had the cocktail hour setup outside on a deck. The food was decadent and seemingly never-ending. It started raining a bit which drove some people under the awning and pressured the people in charge to get things moving. The reception was very nice and classy. All the usual events took place and I circulated, taking photos of couples at tables and people dancing. We even got a tip from the bride that Quinny was nice enough to share with the videographer and me. I had a great experience with him and I hope to shoot a wedding with him again. I had a long drive home down the dark parkway, but my podcasts kept me company until I made it back to my bed.