Can you believe it's tomorrow?

Or today, technically, since it's past midnight. 

It's the day I fly solo for a wedding.  I am scared beyong all belief.  So afraid that things will go wrong.  That they won't be happy.  It was different when I was doing it as a 'favour' but, now that money is being exchanged, the pressure is hard core and much more intense than it was with the other two.  I don't think I am ready.  What have I done?

In the meantime, I am taking a break from making a cheat sheet of poses from the past weddings I did.  I have a list of the poses that the bride and groom want that are out of the norm.  You know, that aunt who is something special or the old college roommate that you havent seen in 5 years?  I am new at this.  They know I am new at this.  This should be okay ..... right?  I just want to be thorough and quick so I can capture as many poses as possible.  I am even toying with bringing my youngest niece (13) as my assistant just to carry things around for me.  I need to stop second guessing myself.  I need to be full of confidence.  I can do this!!!

Recapping this past week, it has been a busy one.  In the course of about a week and a half, I took Tanya's daughter out for some photos.  I did a maternity shoot.  My sister and I went to different locations trying different things ... and are heading out again in a couple of weeks for a few more location shots.  I was also present at a wedding in which I was invited by Anzans Photography to shoot and observe.  What an experience.  It took place at the Westin Hotel where my day began in a penthouse suite.  Seriously, it had a living room, a massive bedroom, a conference room the length of my house and 4 bathrooms.  The view of the Parliment Buildings was nothing short of perfect.  Unfortunately, due to transportation issues, there was no room for me to join the bridal party at the location shoot but I got to play around in the grand ballroom, taking pictures of decor.  It was also an opportinuty for me to play around with a speedlight.  It was way harder than it looks.  I am completely oblivious to how it truly works but I did manage to get a few shots despite my lack of abilities.  It would have been most helpful if they had the lights turned up but that didn't happen until after they were done prepping.  Well .. so much for that.  Another "so much for that?"  My battery died and my spare was at home.  Can you believe that???  I was sooooo mad!!  I have never, ever left without my spare battery charged and, of all days, this was the one.  I had it in my hand.  Put it down by the front door to pack a few things, then walked away without picking it up.  I missed so many photographic opportinities but, on the plus side, it did leave me free and clear to help Oya.  I got to hold the reflectors, fluff the bridal dress for her, smooth the lumps in the bed, remove placemats and chairs and hold the remote flash when she needed it.  Watching her in action was amazing.  Seeing how to transition from one pose to another.  Hearing those key words to use to get the bride to look exactly where you want them to but not too far that you lose the colour in their eyes.  And the results ... wowsa!  This is one talented woman.  She captured the bride's beauty flawlessly.  There was even one shot, where the bride was laid out on the conference table and in between two massive chandeliers, that I swear looked like a couture pose you would see in a magazine.  Unfortunately, none of the images can be shared on the internet because of religious reasons and at the bride's wishes.  So sad.  I only got to see a few through Oya's camera display and can only imagine how beautiful they are on the computer and in print.

The wedding itself was an experience.  I knew going in that it wasn't a traditional Western wedding but I still wasn't prepared for what the day brought.  The bride and groom are Somalian and let me tell you, they do it in style.  I learned that night that a traditional Somali wedding actually happens in 3 parts.  Week 1 is the wedding ceremony.  Week 2 is the reception (this was my week) and week 3 is something else.  All equally lavish and festive.  On this particular night, imagine my surprise when I walked into the reception about 97% of the guests were women.  There were about a dozen men there.  This is their custom.  Sometimes the men and women celebrate in different locations.  The music was loud.  The dancing was non-stop - literally.  I would say that well over 50% of the tables were on the dance floor at all times, dancing to both traditional Somali music as well as some good ole dance tunes that had me shimmying in my seat.  (or I was just glad to finally understand something that was being said ... LOL)  The hospitality was a treat.  I was welcomed by many groups, invited to join them at tables and forced to eat, eat and eat.  And the food was good, good and good.  I stayed right til the end that night and got home at 3am.  I think I smiled the entire drive.  I can not thank Oya enough for inviting me and allowing me the opportunity to experience this day.  Just meeting Oya herself ... well ... let's just say it was an honour.  This is a woman who knows what she is doing and captures it flawlessly and, to top it all off, she is one of the nicest people I have ever met.  So warm and friendly.  She made me very at ease when I was feeling most overwhelmed.  I was actually quite sad when my time with her ended.  Hopefully our paths will cross again one day.

Alright ... another long post --> procrastination over.  Back to planning for tomorrow/today. 

ETA:  it is now 6:33 am and I haven't slept a wink since yesterday morning.  Can someone please have Mr. Sandman check his GPS the next time they bump into him?  He keeps forgetting to visit me.  ugh!

Happy Weekend to all.